Open Access Publishing in Particle Physics: A Brief Introduction for the non-Expert

Open Access to particle physics literature does not sound particularly new or exciting, since particle physicists have been reading preprints for decades, and arXiv.org for 15 years. However new movements in Europe are attempting to make the peer-reviewed literature of the field fully Open Access. This is not a new movement, nor is it restricted to this field. However, given the field's history of preprints and eprints, it is well suited to a change to a fully Open Access publishing model. Data shows that 90% of HEP published literature is freely available online, meaning that HEP libraries have little need for expensive journal subscriptions. As libraries begin to cancel journal subscriptions, the peer review process will lose its primary source of funding. Open Access publishing models can potentially address this issue. European physicists and funding agencies are proposing a consortium, SCOAP3, that might solve many of the objections to traditional Open Access publishing models in Particle Physics. These proposed changes should be viewed as a starting point for a serious look at the field's publication model, and are at least worthy of attention, if not adoption

The Devil Is in The Details: An Analysis of the Satanic Panic

The Satanic Panic was a period lasting from the early 1980s to the mid-1990s characterized by a series of modern-day witch trials. “Satan hunters,” emboldened by the rise of the New Right in 1980, persecuted hundreds of day care operators. Their actions propelled a Satanic conspiracy theory into the cultural mainstream and has had a lasting impact on conservative politics. This project explores how the Satanic Panic came to be, how it advanced and functioned, and how it ended. It also examines question and information often left out of Satanic Panic historiography, such as what Satanism actually is and the roles of class, gender, and race play. This project argues that Satanic conspiracism created a type of political capital that the New Right exploited to other its enemies and advance its causes. As the United States enters a new period of Satanic paranoia in the form of QAnon, understanding the most recent moral panic over Satanism and how it was used for political gain has taken on a new and urgent importance. What can we learn from The Satanic Panic to help address the problems of today

Citing and Reading Behaviours in High-Energy Physics. How a Community Stopped Worrying about Journals and Learned to Love Repositories

Contemporary scholarly discourse follows many alternative routes in addition to the three-century old tradition of publication in peer-reviewed journals. The field of High- Energy Physics (HEP) has explored alternative communication strategies for decades, initially via the mass mailing of paper copies of preliminary manuscripts, then via the inception of the first online repositories and digital libraries. This field is uniquely placed to answer recurrent questions raised by the current trends in scholarly communication: is there an advantage for scientists to make their work available through repositories, often in preliminary form? Is there an advantage to publishing in Open Access journals? Do scientists still read journals or do they use digital repositories? The analysis of citation data demonstrates that free and immediate online dissemination of preprints creates an immense citation advantage in HEP, whereas publication in Open Access journals presents no discernible advantage. In addition, the analysis of clickstreams in the leading digital library of the field shows that HEP scientists seldom read journals, preferring preprints instead.Comment: Version to be published in Scientometric

Signal to background

Breathable foam for fire prevention; swords to plowshares; naming LHC magnets; more than 4000 LHC-related papers in spires database; Fermilab’s remote operations center; LHC summer schools at Fermilab and SLAC

From Autocracy to Democracy: The Effort to Establish Market Democracies in Iraq and Afghanistan Conference

The conference focused the legal, political, economic, and security issues facing post-war Iraq and Afghanistan

Consumer palatability scores and volatile beef flavor compounds of five USDA quality grades and four muscles

Proximate data, consumer palatability scores and volatile compounds were investigated for four beef muscles (Longissimus lumborum, Psoas major, Semimembranosus and Gluteus medius) and five USDA quality grades (Prime, Upper 2/3 Choice, Low Choice, Select, and Standard). Quality grade did not directly affect consumer scores or volatiles but interactions (P < 0.05) between muscle and grade were determined. Consumer scores and volatiles differed (P < 0.05) between muscles. Consumers scored Psoas major highest for tenderness, juiciness, flavor liking and overall liking, followed by Longissimus lumborum, Gluteus medius, and Semimembranosus (P < 0.05). Principal component analysis revealed clustering of compound classes, formed by related mechanisms. Volatile n-aldehydes were inversely related to percent fat. Increases in lipid oxidation compounds were associated with Gluteus medius and Semimembranosus, while greater quantities of sulfur-containing compounds were associated with Psoas major. Relationships between palatability scores and volatile compound classes suggest that differences in the pattern of volatile compounds may play a valuable role in explaining consumer liking

Seeds of Resilience: Learning from COVID-19 to Strengthen Seed Systems in Vermont

Seeds are central to crop-based production systems, yet in the United States seeds have been largely overlooked in both research and local and regional food systems initiatives. This report seeks to address the gap in seed-related research by assessing current strengths and vulnerabilities of Vermont’s seed systems. In particular, the findings presented in this report illuminate how seed systems can maintain function in the face of external shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic, and how we can apply the lessons learned toward building resilience for an uncertain future due to factors such as climate change. Despite the turmoil caused by the pandemic, the last several years have provided a unique opportunity to identify strategies to strengthen Vermont’s seed systems. The data presented and discussed in this report build on existing research and showcase a myriad of seed-related efforts in Vermont. We use an interdisciplinary approach to study the supply and demand for seed among farmers and gardeners in Vermont during the COVID-19 pandemic. To contextualize our report, we begin with a brief summary of findings taken from the 2020 and 2021 Vermonter Polls regarding seed system trends. Data from these surveys, conducted by the UVM Center for Rural Studies, were collected in February-March 2020 (before and during the onset of the pandemic in Vermont) and February- March 2021 (nearly a year into the pandemic). We then present the findings from two online surveys of commercial farmers (n=73) and non-commercial seed growers (n=75) in Vermont, which include a specific focus on five commonly grown crops in Vermont: garlic, tomatoes, squash, lettuce, and potatoes. In the future, this work can guide collaborative and participatory responses to seed system vulnerabilities exposed by the COVID-19 crisis

Influence of Production Practice Information on Consumer Eating Quality Ratings of Beef Top Loin Steaks

The purpose of this study was to identify if consumers’ palatability scores of beef top loin steaks were affected by disclosing production practices or brands related to each product. Strip loins were selected to represent 5 treatments: Grain-Fed Natural (Natural), Certified Angus Beef (CAB), Local Grass Fed (Grass), USDA Select (Conventional), and USDA Certified Organic (Organic). Two separate experiments were conducted (n = 120/experiment). In Experiment 1 and 2, panelists received the 5 treatment samples in a standard blind testing format in segment 1 (S1). In the second segment (S2) of Experiment 1, short descriptions were read aloud to participants before receiving each of their 5 samples, but all samples were actually USDA Select (false disclosure). In the second segment of Experiment 2, treatment descriptions were provided that matched the 5 treatments samples (true disclosure). When consumers evaluated samples in S1, they rated the Natural and CAB samples more tender and juicier (P < 0.05) than the other 3 treatments, and Organic was the least tender. Flavor and overall liking were greater (P < 0.05) for Natural and CAB steaks, while Conventional was intermediate, and flavor and overall liking were lowest for Grass and Organic (P < 0.05). When consumers received Select samples representing the 5 treatments, false disclosure decreased tenderness and juiciness of Natural, increased flavor liking of CAB, and increased tenderness, flavor liking, and overall liking of Organic (P < 0.05). True treatment disclosure increased flavor liking and overall liking of CAB and Grass, increased overall liking of Natural, and decreased juiciness of Conventional (P < 0.05). These results indicate consumers’ perception of eating quality can be influenced by quality differentiated brand names and labeling claims, particularly claims related to production practices