Baryogenesis, Dark Matter and the Pentagon

We present a new mechanism for baryogenesis, which links the baryon asymmetry of the universe to the dark matter density. The mechanism arises naturally in the Pentagon model of TeV scale physics. In that context, it forces a re-evaluation of some of the assumptions of the model, and we detail the changes that are required in order to fit observations.Comment: JHEP3 LaTeX, 15 pages. New version corrects errors in the electroweak baryon violating and matter radiation temperatures, which were pointed out by the referee. Substantial quantitative but no qualitative change to our conclusion

Embedding the Pentagon

The Pentagon Model is an explicit supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model, which involves a new strongly-interacting SU(5) gauge theory at TeV-scale energies. We show that the Pentagon can be embedded into an SU(5) x SU(5) x SU(5) gauge group at the GUT scale. The doublet-triplet splitting problem, and proton decay compatible with experimental bounds, can be successfully addressed in this context. The simplest approach fails to provide masses for the lighter two generations of quarks and leptons; however, this problem can be solved by the addition of a pair of antisymmetric tensor fields and an axion.Comment: 39 page

Simple Sprinkler Performance Testing for Juab County

This fact sheet describes how to perform a site inspection and a sprinkler test so you can irrigate your landscape more efficiently, and provides an irrigation schedule for Juab County

Continuum Vlasov Simulation in Four Phase-Space Dimensions

In the VALHALLA project, we are developing scalable algorithms for the continuum solution of the Vlasov-Maxwell equations in two spatial and two velocity dimensions. We use fourth-order temporal and spatial discretizations of the conservative form of the equations and a finite-volume representation to enable adaptive mesh refinement and nonlinear oscillation control [1]. The code has been implemented with and without adaptive mesh refinement, and with electromagnetic and electrostatic field solvers. A goal is to study the efficacy of continuum Vlasov simulations in four phase-space dimensions for laser-plasma interactions. We have verified the code in examples such as the two-stream instability, the weak beam-plasma instability, Landau damping, electron plasma waves with electron trapping and nonlinear frequency shifts [2] extended from 1D to 2D propagation, and light wave propagation. We will report progress on code development, computational methods, and physics applications. This work was performed under the auspices of the U.S. DOE by LLNL under contract no. DE-AC52-07NA27344. This work was funded by the Lab. Dir. Res. and Dev. Prog. at LLNL under project tracking code 08-ERD-031. [1] J.W. Banks and J.A.F. Hittinger, to appear in IEEE Trans. Plas. Sci. (Sept., 2010). [2] G.J. Morales and T.M. O'Neil, Phys. Rev. Lett. \textbf{28},417 (1972); R. L. Dewar, Phys. Fluids \textbf{15},712 (1972)

Can individual and social patterns of resource use buffer animal populations against resource decline?

Species in many ecosystems are facing declines of key resources. If we are to understand and predict the effects of resource loss on natural populations, we need to understand whether and how the way animals use resources changes under resource decline. We investigated how the abundance of arboreal marsupials varies in response to a critical resource, hollow-bearing trees. Principally, we asked what mechanisms mediate the relationship between resources and abundance? Do animals use a greater or smaller proportion of the remaining resource, and is there a change in cooperative resource use (den sharing), as the availability of hollow trees declines? Analyses of data from 160 sites surveyed from 1997 to 2007 showed that hollow tree availability was positively associated with abundance of the mountain brushtail possum, the agile antechinus and the greater glider. The abundance of Leadbeater's possum was primarily influenced by forest age. Notably, the relationship between abundance and hollow tree availability was significantly less than 1:1 for all species. This was due primarily to a significant increase by all species in the proportional use of hollow-bearing trees where the abundance of this resource was low. The resource-sharing response was weaker and inconsistent among species. Two species, the mountain brushtail possum and the agile antechinus, showed significant but contrasting relationships between the number of animals per occupied tree and hollow tree abundance. The discrepancies between the species can be explained partly by differences in several aspects of the species' biology, including body size, types of hollows used and social behaviour as it relates to hollow use. Our results show that individual and social aspects of resource use are not always static in response to resource availability and support the need to account for dynamic resource use patterns in predictive models of animal distribution and abundance.This research was supported by grants from the Hermon Slade Foundation (HSF 08-4; www.hermonslade.org.au) and the Australian Research Council (www.arc.gov.au), including an APD fellowship to Sam Banks (ARC DP 0984876)

Reduced Electron Model with Accurate Trapping Effects for Non-Linear Ion Accoustic Waves

Ion Accoustic Wave (IAW) dynamics are usually simulated assuming an isothermal Boltzmann fluid response of the electrons. It has been shown that results from the Boltzmann model may significantly differ from cor- responding ones obtained considering the fully kinetic electron dynamics, in particular wrt. the non-linear instability mechanisms of finite amplitude IAWs [1]. For ZTe /Ti 10 (Z the ionization degree and Te/i the electron/ion temperature), the positive contribution from trapped electrons to the non- linear kinetic frequency shift of IAWs in fact dominates over the negative one from trapped ions [2]. But carrying out simulations over IAW time scales while evolving fully kinetic electrons is a multi-scale computation and thus numerically very costly. For a spatially one-dimensional system, we shall present the implementation of an improved reduced electron model, the so- called adiabatic model, based on the adiabatic invariance of the phase space action u dx, [(x, u) the electron (position, velocity) in the wave frame, the integral being taken over a transit/bounce period for passing/trapped parti- cles] [3]. Simulations obtained with this adiabatic model, which only need to resolve the slow IAW time scale, are successfully compared to fully kinetic ones, in particular for computing non-linear frequency shifts of IAWs over different ZTe /Ti regimes resulting from both electron and ion trapping. [1] C. Riconda, A. Heron, D. Pesme, S. H¨ller, V. T. Tikhonchuk, and F. Detering, Phys. Rev. Lett. 94, 055003 (2005). [2] R. Berger, S. Brunner, T. Chapmann, L. Divol, C. H. Still, and E. J. Valeo, Phys. Plasmas 20, 032107 (2013). [3] R. L. Dewar, Phys. Fluids 15, 712 (1972)

Terrorism and Assassination: Political Assassination as an Instrument of National Policy - An Inquiry into Operations, Expediency, Morality, and the Law

The 2002 Symposium opened on Thursday, April 11, with a role-playing exercise and town meeting: Assassination of a Terrorist Enemy. In this session, a group of nationally prominent political leaders, policy makers, scholars, and members of the intelligence, military, religious and civil liberties communities engaged in a role-playing exercise exploring a fictional scenario posing the question of whether the United States should undertake an operation to assassinate the leader of a terrorist organization deemed responsible for acts of violence against the United States. The issue was explored through historical, moral, religious, operational, political, diplomatic, and legal perspectives. The final segment of the program included a town meeting discussion in which members of the audience participated in the debate and deliberation. These issues were explored the next day of the conference in a series of more specifically focused sessions. The opening session, on Thursday, April 11 from 6:30-9:00 p.m., featured Jeff Addicott; June Aprille; William C. Banks; Azizah al-Hibri, professor of Law at the University of Richmond School of Law; Julie Laskaris, Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Richmond; Peter Raven-Hansen, Gary Solis, Porcher Taylor, and Robert Turner. Rodney A. Smolla, the Allen Professor of Law at the University of Richmond School of Law, served as moderator. The “Roundtable Session I: Policy, Politics, and Operations” session, held on Friday, April 12 from 9:00-10:15 a.m., was led by Jeff Addicott, William C. Banks, Peter Raven-Hansen, Gary Solis, and Robert Turner. John Paul Jones, Professor of Law at the University of Richmond School of Law, served as moderator. “Roundtable Session II: Moral and Religious Perspectives,” held on Friday, April 12 from 10:30-11:45 a.m., was led by Azizah al-Hibri, Professor of Law at the University of Richmond School of Law. Julie Laskaris, Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Richmond, served as moderator. “Roundtable Session III: Assassination as an Instrument of Policy and the Law,” held on Friday, April 12 from 1:30- 2:45 p.m., was led by Jeff Addicott, William C. Banks, Peter Raven-Hansen, Gary Solis, Professor John Paul Jones, and Robert Turner. Porcher Taylor served as moderator

Successful Approaches for the Use of Unmanned Aerial Systems by Surface Transportation Agencies

The past decade has seen ever-increasing attention and resources dedicated to the application and operation of unmanned aircraft systems (UASs). Beginning with issuance of special airworthiness certificates in the experimental category for unmanned aircraft in 2007, up to the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA’s) Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 and creation of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) §107 and §101, the complexity and breadth of applications for UAS technology have flourished. Recognizing the interest and potential benefits to the surface transportation community the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) commissioned Scan 17-01 to accelerate beneficial innovation by facilitating information sharing and technology exchange among the states and other transportation agencies. Results from a desk scan, amplifying questions, and a peer exchange workshop produced conclusions and recommendations in seven topic areas for transportation agencies to consider when getting started using a UAS

Challenges of early renal cancer detection: symptom patterns and incidental diagnosis rate in a multicentre prospective UK cohort of patients presenting with suspected renal cancer.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the frequency and nature of symptoms in patients presenting with suspected renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and examine their reliability in achieving early diagnosis. DESIGN: Multicentre prospective observational cohort study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Eleven UK centres recruiting patients presenting with suspected newly diagnosed RCC. Symptoms reported by patients were recorded and reviewed. Comprehensive clinico-pathological and outcome data were also collected. OUTCOMES: Type and frequency of reported symptoms, incidental diagnosis rate, metastasis-free survival and cancer-specific survival. RESULTS: Of 706 patients recruited between 2011 and 2014, 608 patients with a confirmed RCC formed the primary study population. The majority (60%) of patients were diagnosed incidentally. 87% of patients with stage Ia and 36% with stage III or IV disease presented incidentally. Visible haematuria was reported in 23% of patients and was commonly associated with advanced disease (49% had stage III or IV disease). Symptomatic presentation was associated with poorer outcomes, likely reflecting the presence of higher stage disease. Symptom patterns among the 54 patients subsequently found to have a benign renal mass were similar to those with a confirmed RCC. CONCLUSIONS: Raising public awareness of RCC-related symptoms as a strategy to improve early detection rates is limited by the fact that related symptoms are relatively uncommon and often associated with advanced disease. Greater attention must be paid to the feasibility of screening strategies and the identification of circulating diagnostic biomarkers

Challenges of early renal cancer detection: symptom patterns and incidental diagnosis rate in a multicentre prospective UK cohort of patients presenting with suspected renal cancer

Objectives: To describe the frequency and nature of symptoms in patients presenting with suspected renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and examine their reliability in achieving early diagnosis. Design: Multicentre prospective observational cohort study. Setting and participants: Eleven UK centres recruiting patients presenting with suspected newly diagnosed RCC. Symptoms reported by patients were recorded and reviewed. Comprehensive clinico-pathological and outcome data were also collected. Outcomes: Type and frequency of reported symptoms, incidental diagnosis rate, metastasis-free survival and cancer-specific survival. Results: Of 706 patients recruited between 2011 and 2014, 608 patients with a confirmed RCC formed the primary study population. The majority (60%) of patients were diagnosed incidentally. 87% of patients with stage Ia and 36% with stage III or IV disease presented incidentally. Visible haematuria was reported in 23% of patients and was commonly associated with advanced disease (49% had stage III or IV disease). Symptomatic presentation was associated with poorer outcomes, likely reflecting the presence of higher stage disease. Symptom patterns among the 54 patients subsequently found to have a benign renal mass were similar to those with a confirmed RCC. Conclusions: Raising public awareness of RCC-related symptoms as a strategy to improve early detection rates is limited by the fact that related symptoms are relatively uncommon and often associated with advanced disease. Greater attention must be paid to the feasibility of screening strategies and the identification of circulating diagnostic biomarkers