Tunneling spectroscopy in the magnetic superconductor TmNi2B2C

We present new measurements about the tunneling conductance in the borocarbide superconductor TmNi$_2$B$_2$C. The results show a very good agreement with weak coupling BCS theory, without any lifetime broadening parameter, over the whole sample surface. We detect no particular change of the tunneling spectroscopy below 1.5K, when both the antiferromagnetic (AF) phase and the superconducting order coexist.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev. B, Rapid Communication

\sqrt{s}_min: a global inclusive variable for determining the mass scale of new physics in events with missing energy at hadron colliders

We propose a new global and fully inclusive variable \sqrt{s}_{min} for determining the mass scale of new particles in events with missing energy at hadron colliders. We define \sqrt{s}_{min} as the minimum center-of-mass parton level energy consistent with the measured values of the total calorimeter energy E and the total visible momentum \vec{P}. We prove that for an arbitrary event, \sqrt{s}_{min} is simply given by the formula \sqrt{s}_{min}=\sqrt{E^2-P_z^2}+\sqrt{\met^2+M_{inv}^2}, where M_{inv} is the total mass of all invisible particles produced in the event. We use t\bar{t} production and several supersymmetry examples to argue that the peak in the \sqrt{s}_{min} distribution is correlated with the mass threshold of the parent particles originally produced in the event. This conjecture allows a determination of the heavy superpartner mass scale (as a function of the LSP mass) in a completely general and model-independent way, and without the need for any exclusive event reconstruction. In our SUSY examples of several multijet plus missing energy signals, the accuracy of the mass measurement based on \sqrt{s}_{min} is typically at the percent level, and never worse than 10%. After including the effects of initial state radiation and multiple parton interactions, the precision gets worse, but for heavy SUSY mass spectra remains 10%.Comment: 33 pages, 36 figures, discussion on effect of ISR and MPI adde

The surface detector array of the Telescope Array experiment

The Telescope Array (TA) experiment, located in the western desert of Utah,USA, is designed for observation of extensive air showers from extremely high energy cosmic rays. The experiment has a surface detector array surrounded by three fluorescence detectors to enable simultaneous detection of shower particles at ground level and fluorescence photons along the shower track. The TA surface detectors and fluorescence detectors started full hybrid observation in March, 2008. In this article we describe the design and technical features of the TA surface detector.Comment: 32 pages, 17 figure

New air fluorescence detectors employed in the Telescope Array experiment

Since 2007, the Telescope Array (TA) experiment, based in Utah, USA, has been observing ultra high energy cosmic rays to understand their origins. The experiment involves a surface detector (SD) array and three fluorescence detector (FD) stations. FD stations, installed surrounding the SD array, measure the air fluorescence light emitted from extensive air showers (EASs) for precise determination of their energies and species. The detectors employed at one of the three FD stations were relocated from the High Resolution Fly's Eye experiment. At the other two stations, newly designed detectors were constructed for the TA experiment. An FD consists of a primary mirror and a camera equipped with photomultiplier tubes. To obtain the EAS parameters with high accuracies, understanding the FD optical characteristics is important. In this paper, we report the characteristics and installation of new FDs and the performances of the FD components. The results of the monitored mirror reflectance during the observation time are also described in this report.Comment: 44 pages, 23 figures, submitted to NIM-

Association analyses identify 38 susceptibility loci for inflammatory bowel disease and highlight shared genetic risk across populations

Cellular mechanisms in basic and clinical gastroenterology and hepatolog

Personal relative deprivation increases self-selected portion sizes and food intake

Cues and experiences of the deprivation of financial/material resources have been associated with increased caloric intake and risk for overweight/obesity. Given that social comparisons may serve as a powerful reference for the adequacy of one's standing and resources, the present research tested whether subjective feelings of personal relative deprivation (PRD) or “losing out” to others stimulates calorie selection and intake. Study 1 demonstrated that self-reported chronic experiences of PRD positively predicted calories selected for a portion and consumed during an ad-libitum meal. Study 2 revealed that experimentally-induced PRD resulted in an increase in the amount of calories selected on a portion selection task and a stronger desire to consume the foods. Consequently, these findings demonstrate that chronic and acute subjective deprivation of non-food resources may contribute to socioeconomic gradients in obesity, and that perceived social inequality may have inherently obesogenic properties that promote excess calorie intake

Low subjective socioeconomic status stimulates orexigenic hormone ghrelin ? A randomised trial

10.1016/j.psyneuen.2018.01.006Psychoneuroendocrinology89103 - 11

Avoiding hunger or attaining fullness? Implicit goals of satiety guide portion selection and food intake patterns

Although implicit theories have been studied in the context of personal traits, there has been limited investigation of their role in physiological domains such as appetite. Subjective feelings and affective states can function as goals and desired end states that individuals regulate their behaviors to attain. Likewise, different conceptualizations people maintain for the subjective experience of satiety (i.e., terminating hunger or attaining fullness) may also predict individual variations in eating behavior. We examined whether portion selection and food intake were guided by such implicit goals pertaining to the nature of satiety. Across 3 studies, we observed that individuals report distinct subjective requirements (degrees of fullness) to attain different states of satiety (stop hunger, feel comfortably full, feel completely full), suggesting that these states reflect independent goals or outcomes. Importantly, personal requirements to feel completely full (compared to stop hunger or feel comfortably full) were observed to be the strongest predictor of portion sizes selected in Study 1 (B = 1.17, p <.001) and Study 2 (B = 4.26, p =.004), and the quantity of energy consumed from a meal in Study 2 (B = 3.07, p =.01). Yet, experimentally activating a situational goal to stop hunger (vs. feel full) produced the selection of smaller portion sizes, F(1, 41) = 5.64, p =.02, and personal requirements to stop hunger to become the dominant predictor of portion selection patterns in Study 3 (B = 0.43, p =.005). These findings reveal that eating behaviors of modern consumers may be guided by a predominant goal to attain the subjective experience of complete fullness, although this implicit goal may be malleable to situational demands

Subjective socioeconomic status modulates perceptual discrimination between beverages with different energy densities

Prior research has revealed socioeconomic disparities in obesity and diabetes across developed nations, such that the burden of these disorders is disproportionately shouldered by socioeconomically disadvantaged populations. More recent research has demonstrated that independent of actual socioeconomic status (SES), the mere perception of scarcity, deprivation, or inferiority of socioeconomic resources is sufficient to stimulate increased preference for energy-dense foods and meals. This heightened motivation towards energy-dense foods when experiencing low subjective SES (SSES) may be accompanied by changes in perceptual discrimination between foods that differ in energy density, which may in turn shape later preference and selection for energy-dense foods. Conversely, the experience of high SSES and relative socioeconomic security may lead to de-prioritization of energy density during food selection, leading to suppressed detection of energy density. We tested these predictions by randomly assigning participants (n = 93) to experimental inductions of low, high, or neutral (control) SSES. Next, participants tasted and rated four different versions of soy milk that varied on energy density (low or high) and texture (thin or thick). While participants in control and low SSES conditions could perceptually discriminate between low and high energy versions of the beverages, those in the high SSES condition exhibited no differences in assessments of energy density of the beverages. Consistent with the notion that perceived deprivation (or satisfaction) of important non-food socioeconomic resources may stimulate/suppress appetite, our findings indicate that SSES may modulate perceptual discrimination of energy in foods, which may contribute to socioeconomic differences in food preferences and obesity risk independent of actual financial and economic constraints