115 research outputs found
Factors affecting customer intention to use online food delivery services before and during the COVID-19 pandemic
With the emerging popularity of online food delivery (OFD) services, this research examined predictors affecting customer intention to use OFD services amid the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Specifically, Study 1 examined the moderating effect of the pandemic on the relationship between six predictors (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, price saving benefit, time saving benefit, food safety risk perception, and trust) and OFD usage intention, and Study 2 extended the model by adding customer perceptions of COVID-19 (perceived severity and vulnerability) during the pandemic. Study 1 showed that all of the predictors except food safety risk perception significantly affected OFD usage intention, but no moderation effect of COVID-19 was found. In Study 2, while perceived severity and vulnerability had no significant impact on OFD usage intention, the altered effects of socio-demographic variables during the COVID-19 pandemic were found. Theoretical and managerial implications are provided
Implications of Compressed Supersymmetry for Collider and Dark Matter Searches
Martin has proposed a scenario dubbed ``compressed supersymmetry'' (SUSY)
where the MSSM is the effective field theory between energy scales M_{\rm weak}
and M_{\rm GUT}, but with the GUT scale SU(3) gaugino mass M_3<< M_1 or M_2. As
a result, squark and gluino masses are suppressed relative to slepton, chargino
and neutralino masses, leading to a compressed sparticle mass spectrum, and
where the dark matter relic density in the early universe may be dominantly
governed by neutralino annihilation into ttbar pairs via exchange of a light
top squark. We explore the dark matter and collider signals expected from
compressed SUSY for two distinct model lines with differing assumptions about
GUT scale gaugino mass parameters. For dark matter signals, the compressed
squark spectrum leads to an enhancement in direct detection rates compared to
models with unified gaugino masses. Meanwhile, neutralino halo annihilation
rates to gamma rays and anti-matter are also enhanced relative to related
scenarios with unified gaugino masses but, depending on the halo dark matter
distribution, may yet be below the sensitivity of indirect searches underway.
In the case of collider signals, we compare the rates for the potentially
dominant decay modes of the stop_1 which may be expected to be produced in
cascade decay chains at the LHC: \tst_1\to c\tz_1 and \tst_1\to bW\tz_1. We
examine the extent to which multilepton signal rates are reduced when the
two-body decay mode dominates. For the model lines that we examine here, the
multi-lepton signals, though reduced, still remain observable at the LHC.Comment: 22 pages including 24 eps figure
Collider and Dark Matter Phenomenology of Models with Mirage Unification
We examine supersymmetric models with mixed modulus-anomaly mediated SUSY
breaking (MM-AMSB) soft terms which get comparable contributions to SUSY
breaking from moduli-mediation and anomaly-mediation. The apparent (mirage)
unification of soft SUSY breaking terms at Q=mu_mir not associated with any
physical threshold is the hallmark of this scenario. The MM-AMSB structure of
soft terms arises in models of string compactification with fluxes, where the
addition of an anti-brane leads to an uplifting potential and a de Sitter
universe, as first constructed by Kachru {\it et al.}. The phenomenology mainly
depends on the relative strength of moduli- and anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking
contributions, and on the Higgs and matter field modular weights, which are
determined by the location of these fields in the extra dimensions. We
delineate the allowed parameter space for a low and high value of tan(beta),
for a wide range of modular weight choices. We calculate the neutralino relic
density and display the WMAP-allowed regions. We show the reach of the CERN LHC
and of the International Linear Collider. We discuss aspects of MM-AMSB models
for Tevatron, LHC and ILC searches, muon g-2 and b->s \gamma branching
fraction. We also calculate direct and indirect dark matter detection rates,
and show that almost all WMAP-allowed models should be accessible to a
ton-scale noble gas detector. Finally, we comment on the potential of colliders
to measure the mirage unification scale and modular weights in the difficult
case where mu_mir>>M_GUT.Comment: 34 pages plus 42 EPS figures; version with high resolution figures is
at http://www.hep.fsu.edu/~bae
Collider and Dark Matter Searches in Models with Mixed Modulus-Anomaly Mediated SUSY Breaking
We investigate the phenomenology of supersymmetric models where moduli fields
and the Weyl anomaly make comparable contributions to SUSY breaking effects in
the observable sector of fields. This mixed modulus-anomaly mediated
supersymmetry breaking (MM-AMSB) scenario is inspired by models of string
compactification with fluxes, which have been shown to yield a de Sitter vacuum
(as in the recent construction by Kachru {\it et al}). The phenomenology
depends on the so-called modular weights which, in turn, depend on the location
of various fields in the extra dimensions. We find that the model with zero
modular weights gives mass spectra characterized by very light top squarks
and/or tau sleptons, or where M_1\sim -M_2 so that the bino and wino are
approximately degenerate. The top squark mass can be in the range required by
successful electroweak baryogenesis. The measured relic density of cold dark
matter can be obtained via top squark co-annihilation at low \tan\beta, tau
slepton co-annihilation at large \tan\beta or via bino-wino coannihilation.
Then, we typically find low rates for direct and indirect detection of
neutralino dark matter. However, essentially all the WMAP-allowed parameter
space can be probed by experiments at the CERN LHC, while significant portions
may also be explored at an e^+e^- collider with \sqrt{s}=0.5--1 TeV. We also
investigate a case with non-zero modular weights. In this case,
co-annihilation, A-funnel annihilation and bulk annihilation of neutralinos are
all allowed. Results for future colliders are qualitatively similar, but
prospects for indirect dark matter searches via gamma rays and anti-particles
are somewhat better.Comment: 38 pages including 22 EPS figures; latest version posted to conform
with published versio
DRAM-3 modulates autophagy and promotes cell survival in the absence of glucose
Macroautophagy is a membrane-trafficking process that delivers cytoplasmic constituents to lysosomes for degradation. The process operates under basal conditions as a mechanism to turnover damaged or misfolded proteins and organelles. As a result, it has a major role in preserving cellular integrity and viability. In addition to this basal function, macroautophagy can also be modulated in response to various forms of cellular stress, and the rate and cargoes of macroautophagy can be tailored to facilitate appropriate cellular responses in particular situations. The macroautophagy machinery is regulated by a group of evolutionarily conserved autophagy-related (ATG) proteins and by several other autophagy regulators, which either have tissue-restricted expression or operate in specific contexts. We report here the characterization of a novel autophagy regulator that we have termed DRAM-3 due to its significant homology to damage-regulated autophagy modulator (DRAM-1). DRAM-3 is expressed in a broad spectrum of normal tissues and tumor cells, but different from DRAM-1, DRAM-3 is not induced by p53 or DNA-damaging agents. Immunofluorescence studies revealed that DRAM-3 localizes to lysosomes/autolysosomes, endosomes and the plasma membrane, but not the endoplasmic reticulum, phagophores, autophagosomes or Golgi, indicating significant overlap with DRAM-1 localization and with organelles associated with macroautophagy. In this regard, we further proceed to show that DRAM-3 expression causes accumulation of autophagosomes under basal conditions and enhances autophagic flux. Reciprocally, CRISPR/Cas9-mediated disruption of DRAM-3 impairs autophagic flux confirming that DRAM-3 is a modulator of macroautophagy. As macroautophagy can be cytoprotective under starvation conditions, we also tested whether DRAM-3 could promote survival on nutrient deprivation. This revealed that DRAM-3 can repress cell death and promote long-term clonogenic survival of cells grown in the absence of glucose. Interestingly, however, this effect is macroautophagy-independent. In summary, these findings constitute the primary characterization of DRAM-3 as a modulator of both macroautophagy and cell survival under starvation conditions
Mixed Higgsino Dark Matter from a Large SU(2) Gaugino Mass
We observe that in SUSY models with non-universal GUT scale gaugino mass
parameters, raising the GUT scale SU(2) gaugino mass |M_2| from its unified
value results in a smaller value of -m_{H_u}^2 at the weak scale. By the
electroweak symmetry breaking conditions, this implies a reduced value of \mu^2
{\it vis \`a vis} models with gaugino mass unification. The lightest neutralino
can then be mixed Higgsino dark matter with a relic density in agreement with
the measured abundance of cold dark matter (DM). We explore the phenomenology
of this high |M_2| DM model. The spectrum is characterized by a very large wino
mass and a concomitantly large splitting between left- and right- sfermion
masses. In addition, the lighter chargino and three light neutralinos are
relatively light with substantial higgsino components. The higgsino content of
the LSP implies large rates for direct detection of neutralino dark matter, and
enhanced rates for its indirect detection relative to mSUGRA. We find that
experiments at the LHC should be able to discover SUSY over the portion of
parameter space where m_{\tg} \alt 2350-2750 ~GeV, depending on the squark
mass, while a 1 TeV electron-positron collider has a reach comparable to that
of the LHC. The dilepton mass spectrum in multi-jet + \ell^+\ell^- + \eslt
events at the LHC will likely show more than one mass edge, while its shape
should provide indirect evidence for the large higgsino content of the decaying
neutralinos.Comment: 36 pages with 26 eps figure
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The Corrosion Resistance of Fe-Based Amorphous Metals: Fe49.7Cr17.7Mn1.9Mo7.4W1.6B15.2C3.8Si2.4 and Other Compositions
Several Fe-based amorphous metals were developed with good corrosion resistance. These materials have been produced as melt-spun ribbons, ingots, and thermal-spray coatings. Cyclic polarization has been conducted in several aggressive environments, at ambient temperature, as well as temperatures approaching the boiling points of the test solutions. The hypothesis that the corrosion resistance of iron-based amorphous metals can be enhanced through application of heuristic principles related to the additions of chromium, molybdenum, tungsten has been tested and found to have merit. Chromium (Cr), molybdenum (Mo) and tungsten (W) provide corrosion resistance; boron (B) enables glass formation; and rare earths such as yttrium (Y) lower critical cooling rate (CCR). The high boron content of this particular amorphous metal makes this amorphous alloy an effective neutron absorber, and suitable for criticality control applications. In general, the corrosion resistance of such iron-based amorphous metals is maintained at operating temperatures up to the glass transition temperature
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Corrosion Resistances of Iron-Based Amorphous Metals with Yttrium and Tungsten Additions in Hot Calcium Chloride Brine & Natural Seawater: Fe48Mo14Cr15Y2C15B6 and W-Containing Variants
Yttrium-containing SAM1651 (Fe{sub 48.0}Cr{sub 15.0}Mo{sub 14.0}B{sub 6.0}C{sub 15.0}Y{sub 2.0}), has a critical cooling rate (CCR) of approximately 80 Kelvin per second, while SAM2X5 (Fe{sub 49.7}Cr{sub 17.7}Mn{sub 1.9}Mo{sub 7.4}W{sub 1.6}B{sub 15.2}C{sub 3.8}Si{sub 2.4}) with no yttrium has a higher critical cooling rate of approximately 600 Kelvin per second. SAM1651's low CCR enables it to be rendered as a completely amorphous material in practical materials processes. Chromium (Cr), molybdenum (Mo) and tungsten (W) provide corrosion resistance; boron (B) enables glass formation; and rare earths such as yttrium (Y) lower critical cooling rate (CCR). The passive film stability of these Fe-based amorphous metal formulations have been found to be superior to that of conventional stainless steels, and comparable to that of Ni-based alloys, based on electrochemical measurements of the passive film breakdown potential and general corrosion rates
XMM-Newton EPIC & OM observations of Her X-1 over the 35 day beat period
We present the results of a series of XMM-Newton EPIC and OM observations of
Her X-1, spread over a wide range of the 35 day precession period. We confirm
that the spin modulation of the neutron star is weak or absent in the low state
- in marked contrast to the main or short-on states. During the states of
higher intensity, we observe a substructure in the broad soft X-ray modulation
below ~1keV, revealing the presence of separate peaks which reflect the
structure seen at higher energies. The strong fluorescence emission line at
~6.4keV is detected in all observations (apart from one taken in the middle of
eclipse), with higher line energy, width and normalisation during the main-on
state. In addition, we report the detection of a second line near 7keV in 10 of
the 15 observations taken during the low-intensity states of the system. This
feature is rather weak and not significantly detected during the main-on state,
when the strong continuum emission dominates the X-ray spectrum. Spin resolved
spectroscopy just after the rise to the main-on state shows that the variation
of the Fe Kalpha line at 6.4 keV is correlated with the soft X-ray emission.
This confirms our past finding based on the XMM-Newton observations made
further into the main-on state, and indicates the common origin for the thermal
component and the Fe Kalpha line detected at these phases. We also find that
the normalisation of the 6.4keV line during the low state is correlated with
the binary orbital phase, having a broad maximum centered near phi_(orbit) ~
0.5. We discuss these observations in the context of previous observations,
investigate the origin of the soft and hard X-rays and consider the emission
site of the 6.4keV and 7keV emission lines.Comment: 12 pages, accepted MNRA
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