Twisted Boundary Conditions and Matching to the Effective Four Dimensional Theory

Nontrivial twisted boundary conditions associated with extra compact dimensions produce an ambiguity in the value of the four dimensional coupling constants of the renormalizable interactions of the twisted fields' zero modes. Resolving this indeterminancy would require a knowledge of the exact form of the higher dimensional action including the coefficients of higher dimensional operators. For the case of moderately sized extra dimensions, the uncertainty in the coupling constants can be of order one and may lead to modifications in the stability of the model.Comment: 8 pages, REVTe

Time, geodesy, and astrometry: Results from radio interferometry

The results from a total of a dozen transcontinental and intercontinental VLBI experiments are discussed. Particular emphasis is placed on: (1) the inferred behavior of the frequency standards, usually hydrogen masers, on time scales from 10 to 100,000 seconds; (2) the estimated celestial positions of the observed radio sources; (3) the determinations of the vector baselines; and (4) the inferred values of polar motion and UT.1

The generation of animated sequences from state transition systems.

We address the issue of the construction of a computer animation system by composing together a collection of behaviours for the individual objects which are to be animated. The behaviours are developed using a formal notation for state transition systems. The notation is particularly flexible, allowing both a constructive and constraining aproach to behaviour representation. The behaviour necessary for animating Newton's Cradle for an arbitrary number of spheres is developed as an example of the method

Colliders and Brane Vector Phenomenology

Brane world oscillations manifest themselves as massive vector gauge fields. Their coupling to the Standard Model is deduced using the method of nonlinear realizations of the spontaneously broken higher dimensional space-time symmetries. Brane vectors are stable and weakly interacting, and therefore escape particle detectors unnoticed. LEP and Tevatron data on the production of a single photon in conjunction with missing energy are used to delineate experimentally excluded regions of brane vector parameter space. The additional region of parameter space accessible to the LHC as well as a future lepton linear collider is also determined by means of this process.Comment: 12 pages, 13 figure

The Akulov-Volkov Lagrangian, Symmetry Currents and Spontaneously Broken Extended Supersymmetry

A generalization of the Akulov-Volkov effective Lagrangian governing the self interactions of the Nambu-Goldstone fermions associated with spontaneously broken extended supersymmetry as well as their coupling to matter is presented and scrutinized. The resulting currents associated with R-symmetry, supersymmetry and space-time translations are constructed and seen to form a supermultiplet structure.Comment: 17 pages, LaTeX; Title, abstract and introduction changes, references adde

New insights into informal migrant employment: hand car washes in a mid-sized English city

This article provides new analytical insight into migrant labour by examining a newly emergent low-margin sector, hand car washes (HCWs). The sector is co-created by pressures from above in the form of economic restructuring and from below by employers and migrants who diffuse fluid and flexible low-wage employment. The diffusion of HCWs demonstrates how exploitative privatized employment generates autonomous economic growth in the unregulated economy. The formal and informal economies are however interlinked and overlapping within and beyond the labour process. Locally, HCWs have the potential to become the established car wash sector, putting regulated outlets in a state of uncertainty as informalization in employment if not business practice becomes the norm

Subchondral bone remodelling in osteoarthritis

Subchondral bone remodelling is an integral part of osteoarthritis and involves the development of subchondral sclerosis seen on plain imaging, along with osteophyte formation. The development of these changes is due to persistent abnormal mechanical stresses which create a cellular and biomolecular response to microfractures in the subchondral bone and osteochondral junction. An early sign is bone marrow lesions seen on MRI scanning. Healing can occur at this stage by correcting the abnormal loads. Persistence leads to what is thought to be a delayed union or nonunion response by the bone. Microfractures of the osteochondral junction, coupled with articular cartilage fissuring and loss, allows synovial fluid to penetrate the subchondral bone along with cytokines and other molecules reacting with the bone cells to increase the pathological effects. This review gives an overview of the current thoughts on subchondral bone remodelling in osteoarthritis that is aimed at orthopaedic surgeons to help in the understanding of the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis and the role of surgical management

Update on nCTEQ PDFs: nuclear PDF uncertainties and LHC applications

We present updated nCTEQ nuclear parton distribution functions with errors including pion production data from RHIC. We compare them with the results of other groups and present selected LHC applications.Comment: Presented at DIS2014, 28 April - 2 May 2014, Warsaw, Poland. PoS(DIS2014)04

Radio emission from the massive stars in the Galactic Super Star Cluster Westerlund 1

Current mass-loss rate estimates imply that main sequence winds are not sufficient to strip away the H-rich envelope to yield Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars. The rich transitional population of Westerlund 1 (Wd 1) provides an ideal laboratory to observe mass-loss processes throughout the transitional phase of stellar evolution. An analysis of deep radio continuum observations of Wd 1 is presented. We detect 18 cluster members. The radio properties of the sample are diverse, with thermal, non-thermal and composite thermal/non-thermal sources present. Mass-loss rates are ~10^{-5} solar mass/year across all spectral types, insufficient to form WRs during a massive star lifetime, and the stars must undergo a period of enhanced mass loss. The sgB[e] star W9 may provide an example, with a mass-loss rate an order of magnitude higher than the other cluster members, and an extended nebula of density ~3 times the current wind. This structure is reminiscent of luminous blue variables, and one with evidence of two eras of high, possibly eruptive, mass loss. Three OB supergiants are detected, implying unusually dense winds. They also may have composite spectra, suggesting binarity. Spatially resolved nebulae are associated with three of the four RSGs and three of the six YHGs in the cluster, which are due to quiescent mass loss rather than outbursts. For some of the cool star winds, the ionizing source may be a companion star though the cluster radiation density is sufficiently high to provide the necessary ionizing radiation. Five WR stars are detected with composite spectra, interpreted as arising in colliding-wind binaries.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic