13,848 research outputs found
A comment on "Amplification of endpoint structure for new particle mass measurement at the LHC"
We present a comment on the kinematic variable recently proposed in
"Amplification of endpoint structure for new particle mass measurement at the
LHC". The variable is designed to be applied to models such as R-parity
conserving Supersymmetry (SUSY) when there is pair production of new heavy
particles each of which decays to a single massless visible and a massive
invisible component. It was proposed in "Amplification of endpoint structure
for new particle mass measurement at the LHC" that a measurement of the peak of
the distribution could be used to precisely constrain the masses of
the SUSY particles. We show that when Standard Model backgrounds are included
in simulations, the sensitivity of the variable to the SUSY particle
masses is more seriously impacted for than for other previously
proposed variables.Comment: 5 page
The stransverse mass, MT2, in special cases
This document describes some special cases in which the stransverse mass,
MT2, may be calculated by non-iterative algorithms. The most notable special
case is that in which the visible particles and the hypothesised invisible
particles are massless -- a situation relevant to its current usage in the
Large Hadron Collider as a discovery variable, and a situation for which no
analytic answer was previously known. We also derive an expression for MT2 in
another set of new (though arguably less interesting) special cases in which
the missing transverse momentum must point parallel or anti parallel to the
visible momentum sum. In addition, we find new derivations for already known
MT2 solutions in a manner that maintains manifest contralinear boost invariance
throughout, providing new insights into old results. Along the way, we stumble
across some unexpected results and make conjectures relating to geometric forms
of M_eff and H_T and their relationship to MT2.Comment: 11 pages, no figures. v2 corrects minor typos. v3 corrects an
incorrect statement in footnote 8 and inserts a missing term in eq (3.9). v4
and v5 correct minor typos spotted by reader
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The joy of vacuuming? How the user experience affects vacuum cleaner longevity
An apparent reduction in the average lifetime of vacuum cleaners is explored in this paper in relation to their perceived usability and increasingly frequent product replacement. Motivations for product disposal combine perceived and real product failure with a perceived or real improved product offer. From an historical perspective, vacuum cleaners typify this pattern, continually offering a ‘cheaper and improved’ product. Vacuum cleaner manufacturers reinvigorate the sense of satisfaction and revulsion associated with extracting dirt from our homes through new performance focused product development. For example, increased motor power, filtration, bag-less machines and clear bin compartments have all acted as sales drivers, whilst cost effective materials and offshore and more efficient manufacturing have reduced purchase prices. The latter, cost-driven, processes can create machines that are more likely to be functionally and aesthetically damaged in use, reinforcing the trend for faster replacement. The market appears likely to continue to focus on improved user experience, with growth in market share for lighter weight cordless battery powered machines posing the risk of an increased environmental burden. Drawing from qualitative and quantitative research undertaken for a study for Defra, we explore the user’s relationship to the product, investigating the frustrations and joys of vacuum cleaner use and ownership. The findings illustrate that the revulsion and attraction of cleaning, as well as the tedium and satisfaction fostered by the product, have direct implications for vacuum cleaner longevity
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The relationship between ideas about cleanliness and actions that affect product longevity
As Mary Douglas famously put it, ‘where there is dirt there is system’ (1991 (1966): 35). She was concerned particularly with the cultural systems that determine the ideas about dirt that motivate and constrain people’s actions with material objects. This paper assumes that such motivations and constraints may affect consumers’ willingness to keep or to dispose of their possessions, and therefore have an impact on product longevity. It reports on ongoing empirical research using product analysis, ethnographic interviews, a questionnaire and student design work into the possibility of increasing the longevity of vacuum cleaners by design interventions. Because its object of study is a cleaning product used in everyday cleaning practices, the research naturally connects with Douglas’ ideas as well as more recent work such as Dant 2003 that focuses on how people deal practically with the materiality of dirt, not determined by cultural categories. This paper builds on Vaussard et al.’s (2014) classification of individuals by their degree of concern for keeping their house clean, into ‘Spartan’, ‘Minimalistic’, ‘Caring’ and ‘Committed’ cleaners and their implications for vacuum cleaner replacement. Introducing a short history of concern about dirt since germ theory, it considers whether the desire for a more up to date/efficient/powerful/good looking/clean/shiny machine may accelerate replacement. It finally considers whether a design that ‘ages gracefully’ might have a longer life-span, either as a personal possession or as part of a service system
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What is broken? Expected lifetime, perception of brokenness and attitude towards maintenance and repair
This paper addresses the discrepancy between the expected and actual lifetimes of vacuum cleaners considering perceived ‘brokenness’ as a driver for replacement. Among electrical products, vacuum cleaners have a high rate of domestic ownership in the UK. They also embody large quantities of greenhouse gases which could be reduced by increasing their longevity and resource efficiency (Schreiber et al., 2012). A focus on energy efficiency has only shown limited or even negative results, therefore to meet recent European Union regulations on durability requirements a focus on product longevity is needed. Around one half of new vacuum cleaner purchasers replace one less than 5 years old, below the expected lifespan, with perceived breakage, poor performance and unreliability as the major reasons for replacement. Their relative simplicity could allow vacuum cleaners to last for significantly longer. The nature of the common causes of failure is known, including stretched cords or blockages, and WRAP has developed guidelines for product improvements. However, many working or repairable machines are disposed of because they are perceived to be ‘irremediably’ broken
Transverse mass and invariant mass observables for measuring the mass of a semi-invisibly decaying heavy particle
Formulae are derived for the positions of end-points in the invariant mass
and transverse mass distributions obtained from the products of heavy states
decaying to pairs of semi-invisibly decaying lighter states. Formulae are
derived both for the special case where the two decay chains are identical and
the more general case where they are different. The formulae are tested with a
simple case study of heavy SUSY higgs particles decaying to gauginos at the
LHC.Comment: 13 pages, 8 eps figure
SUSY and Dark Matter Constraints from the LHC
The ability of the LHC to make statements about the dark matter problem is
considered, with a specific focus on supersymmetry. After reviewing the current
strategies for supersymmetry searches at the LHC (in both CMS and ATLAS), some
key ATLAS studies are used to demonstrate how one could establish that SUSY
exists before going on to measure the relic density of a neutralino WIMP
candidate. Finally, the general prospects for success at the LHC are
investigated by looking at different points in the MSSM parameter space.Comment: Talk given at the XLIrst Rencontres de Moriond session devoted to
Electroweak Interactions And Unified Theories in March 2006, to be published
in the associated proceedings. 10 pages, 8 figure
Supersymmetric particle mass measurement with the boost-corrected contransverse mass
A modification to the contransverse mass (MCT) technique for measuring the
masses of pair-produced semi-invisibly decaying heavy particles is proposed in
which MCT is corrected for non-zero boosts of the centre-of-momentum (CoM)
frame of the heavy states in the laboratory transverse plane. Lack of knowledge
of the mass of the CoM frame prevents exact correction for this boost, however
it is shown that a conservative correction can nevertheless be derived which
always generates an MCT value which is less than or equal to the true value of
MCT in the CoM frame. The new technique is demonstrated with case studies of
mass measurement with fully leptonic ttbar events and with SUSY events
possessing a similar final state.Comment: 33 pages, 33 .eps figures, JHEP3 styl
Squark and slepton masses as probes of supersymmetric SO(10) unification
We carry out an analysis of the non-universal supersymmetry breaking scalar
masses arising in SO(10) supersymmetric unification. By considering patterns of
squark and slepton masses, we derive a set of sum rules for the sfermion masses
which are independent of the manner in which SO(10) breaks to the Standard
Model gauge group via its SU(5) subgroups. The phenomenology arising from such
non-universality is unaffected by the symmetry breaking pattern, so long as the
breaking occurs via any of the SU(5) subgroups of the SO(10) group.Comment: 15 pages using RevTe
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