Relativistic Hamiltonians in many-body theories

We discuss the description of a many-body nuclear system using Hamiltonians that contain the nucleon relativistic kinetic energy and potentials with relativistic corrections. Through the Foldy-Wouthuysen transformation, the field theoretical problem of interacting nucleons and mesons is mapped to an equivalent one in terms of relativistic potentials, which are then expanded at some order in 1/m_N. The formalism is applied to the Hartree problem in nuclear matter, showing how the results of the relativistic mean field theory can be recovered over a wide range of densities.Comment: 14 pages, uses REVTeX and epsfig, 3 postscript figures; a postscript version of the paper is available by anonymous ftp at ftp://carmen.to.infn.it/pub/depace/papers/951

On the role of the effective interaction in quasi-elastic electron scattering calculations

The role played by the effective residual interaction in the transverse nuclear response for quasi-free electron scattering is discussed. The analysis is done by comparing different calculations performed in the Random--Phase Approximation and Ring Approximation frameworks. The importance of the exchange terms in this energy region is investigated and the changes on the nuclear responses due to the modification of the interaction are evaluated. The calculated quasi-elastic responses show clear indication of their sensibility to the details of the interaction and this imposes the necessity of a more careful study of the role of the different channels of the interaction in this excitation region.Comment: 16 pages, 4 Postscript figure

On the Interpretation of the Electroweak Precision Data

The recent precision electroweak data on $\Gamma^l, \bar s^2_W$ and $M_W/M_Z$ are compared with the tree-level and the dominant-fermion-loop as well as the full one-loop standard-model predictions. While the tree-level predictions are ruled out, the dominant-fermion-loop predictions, defined by using $\alpha (M^2_Z)\cong 1/128.9$ in the tree-level formulae, as well as the full one-loop predictions are consistent with the experimental data. Deviations from the dominant-fermion-loop predictions are quantified in terms of an effective Lagrangian containing three additional parameters which have a simple meaning in terms of $SU(2)$ symmetry violation. The effective Lagrangian yields the standard one-loop predictions for specific values of these parameters, which are determined by $m_t$ and $m_H$.Comment: Preprint BI-TP 93/46 (September 1993), to be published in Phys. Lett. B, LaTeX, 10 pages, (figures are not included

Patent foramen ovale and thromboembolic complications

The foramen ovale, an atrial septal defect which is essential in the fetal circulation, remains patent through adulthood in approximately 25% of the general population and so it represents the most common persistent abnormality of fetal origin. Patent foramen ovale (PFO) allows interatrial right-to-left blood shunting during those periods of the cardiac cycle in which the right atrial pressure exceeds the left one. An increasing number of pathological manifestations of PFO has been recently identified; among these, paradoxical systemic embolism, refractory hypoxemia in patients with right ventricular myocardium infarction or severe pulmonary disease, orthostatic oxygen desaturation in the rare platypnea-orthodeoxia syndrome, neurological decompression illness in divers, high altitude pilots and astronauts, and finally, migraine headache with aura. Nowadays many techniques allow to detect a PFO. In this study we investigated each of them, assessing their potential diagnostic role even in comparison with the main features of the other method

New Measurements of Nucleon Structure Functions from the CCFR/NuTeV Collaboration

We report on the extraction of the structure functions F_2 and Delta xF_3 = xF_3nu-xF_3nubar from CCFR neutrino-Fe and antineutrino-Fe differential cross sections. The extraction is performed in a physics model independent (PMI) way. This first measurement for Delta xF_3, which is useful in testing models of heavy charm production, is higher than current theoretical predictions. The F_2 (PMI) values measured in neutrino and muon scattering are in good agreement with the predictions of Next to Leading Order PDFs (using massive charm production schemes), thus resolving the long-standing discrepancy between the two sets of data.Comment: 5 pages. Presented by Arie Bodek at the CIPNAP2000 Conference, Quebec City, May 200

Superscaling and Neutral Current Quasielastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering beyond the Relativistic Fermi Gas Model

The superscaling analysis is extended to include quasielastic (QE) scattering via the weak neutral current of neutrinos and antineutrinos from nuclei. The scaling function obtained within the coherent density fluctuation model (used previously in calculations of QE inclusive electron and charge-changing (CC) neutrino scattering) is applied to neutral current neutrino and antineutrino scattering with energies of 1 GeV from $^{12}$C with a proton and neutron knockout (u-channel inclusive processes). The results are compared with those obtained using the scaling function from the relativistic Fermi gas model and the scaling function as determined from the superscaling analysis (SuSA) of QE electron scattering.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, published in Phys. Rev.

Constraints on a Universal IMF from UV to Near-IR Galaxy Luminosity Densities

We obtain constraints on the slope of a universal stellar initial mass function (IMF) over a range of cosmic star-formation histories (SFH) using z=0.1 luminosity densities in the range from 0.2 to 2.2 microns. The age-IMF degeneracy of integrated spectra of stellar populations can be broken for the Universe as a whole by using direct measurements of (relative) cosmic SFH from high-redshift observations. These have only marginal dependence on uncertainties in the IMF, whereas, fitting to local luminosity densities depends strongly on both cosmic SFH and the IMF. We fit to these measurements using population synthesis and find the best-fit IMF power-law slope to be Gamma=1.15+-0.2 (0.5 < M/M_solar < 120). This slope is in good agreement with the Salpeter IMF slope (Gamma=1.35). A strong upper limit of Gamma<1.7 is obtained which effectively rules out the Scalo IMF due to its too low fraction of high-mass stars. This upper limit is at the 99.7% confidence level if we assume a closed-box chemical evolution scenario and 95% if we assume constant solar metallicity. Fitting to the H-alpha line luminosity density, we obtain a best-fit IMF slope in good agreement with that derived from broadband measurements. Marginalizing over cosmic SFH and IMF slope, we obtain (95% conf. ranges, h=1): omega_stars = 1.1-2.0 E-3 for the stellar mass density; rho_sfr = 0.7-4.1 E-2 M_solar/yr/Mpc^3 for the star-formation rate density, and; rho_L = 1.2-1.7 E+35 W/Mpc^3 for the bolometric, attenuated, stellar, luminosity density (0.09-5 microns). Comparing this total stellar emission with an estimate of the total dust emission implies a relatively modest average attenuation in the UV (<=1 magnitude at 0.2 microns).Comment: 16 pages, accepted by Ap