The Higgs as a Portal to Plasmon-like Unparticle Excitations

A renormalizable coupling between the Higgs and a scalar unparticle operator O_U of non-integer dimension d_U<2 triggers, after electroweak symmetry breaking, an infrared divergent vacuum expectation value for O_U. Such IR divergence should be tamed before any phenomenological implications of the Higgs-unparticle interplay can be drawn. In this paper we present a novel mechanism to cure that IR divergence through (scale-invariant) unparticle self-interactions, which has properties qualitatively different from the mechanism considered previously. Besides finding a mass gap in the unparticle continuum we also find an unparticle pole reminiscent of a plasmon resonance. Such unparticle features could be explored experimentally through their mixing with the Higgs boson.Comment: 12 LaTeX pages, 2 figure

Resonant Raman scattering off neutral quantum dots

Resonant inelastic (Raman) light scattering off neutral GaAs quantum dots which contain a mean number, N=42, of electron-hole pairs is computed. We find Raman amplitudes corresponding to strongly collective final states (charge-density excitations) of similar magnitude as the amplitudes related to weakly collective or single-particle excitations. As a function of the incident laser frequency or the magnetic field, they are rapidly varying amplitudes. It is argued that strong Raman peaks should come out in the spin-density channels, not related to valence-band mixing effects in the intermediate states.Comment: Accepted in Physical Review

EU Cohesion policy 2007-13 and the implications for Spain : who gets what, when and how?

The recent negotiation of the EU budget and the associated reform of EU Cohesion policy have had major policy implications for Spain, the country in receipt of most Cohesion policy support in the current programming period (2000-06). EU enlargement, combined with relatively rapid growth in Spain, impacted on the eligibility of Spanish regions for Cohesion support while also taking the country as a whole beyond the eligibility threshold for the Cohesion Fund. As a result, based on the original Commission budget proposals of February 2004, Spain was facing a reduced Cohesion policy budget of at least a half (to below €30 billion). This paper first reviews the budget negotiations from a Spanish (Cohesion policy) perspective, identifying the key negotiating goals and the extent to which they were achieved. It then looks at the outcome of the negotiations for Spain, initially at the national level and then in the regions. It highlights the significant differential impacts of the cutbacks in Cohesion policy allocations at the regional level and the pressures on the Spanish government to modulate the regional impact of the budgetary changes. Having considered the direct funding implications of the new Cohesion policy, the second half of the paper is concerned with the regulatory, institutional and economic impacts of the new policy regime. Many of the reform proposals fit with Spanish priorities, not least the new rationale for Cohesion policy (with its stress on the Lisbon and Gothenburg agendas) and the new policy architecture (with all regions eligible for some form of support and with a related shift from a geographic to more of a thematic focus). The retention of the key Structural Funds principles has also been welcomed in Spain, unsurprising given the wealth of experience and expertise built up over three (high-spending) programming cycles. As in most Member States, the main regulatory concern relates to the extent to which a more simplified and devolved approach to Funds' implementation will be achieved in practice. As regards policy and institutional impacts, the paper brings together regional views on the new budgetary and regulatory frameworks and reviews how the new regulations are being implemented in practice. A discussion of the developing National Strategic Reference Framework and the related Operational Programmes makes clear that the strong emphasis on the Lisbon agenda is not viewed as a constraint in Spain; rather, it is felt to fit well with recent Spanish developments and goals. Finally, the paper considers the economic implications of the reductions in Cohesion policy support. On the basis of evaluation studies, it highlights the positive impact the Funds have had in the past and the potentially quite varied regional impacts the reductions in funding may have in the future

Feeding entrainment of locomotor activity rhythms, digestive enzymes and neuroendocrine factors in goldfish

©2007. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ This document is the Accepted version of a Published Work that appeared in final form in Journal of PHYSIOL BEHAV. To access the final edited and published work see http://doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2006.10.017L.M. VERA, N. DE PEDRO, E. GÓMEZ-MILÁN, M.J. DELGADO, M.J. SÁNCHEZ MUROS, J.A. MADRID, F.J. SÁNCHEZ-VÁZQUEZ. Feeding entrainment of locomotor activity, digestive enzymes and neuroendocrine factors in goldfish. PHYSIOL BEHAV 90 (2-3) 518-524, 2007. The existence of food anticipatory activity (FAA) in animals subjected to daily feeding schedules seems to be mediated by a feeding-entrainable oscillator (FEO). Such an FEO may help in anticipating meal time and so optimizing food acquisition and nutrient utilization. In this study we investigated the existence of FAA and whether digestive enzymes, plasma cortisol, hypothalamic NPY and gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and plasma melatonin were entrained by periodic feeding in goldfish. We observed that periodically fed goldfish showed FAA in locomotor activity as well as in amylase and NPY. Alkaline protease and GIT melatonin were higher after feeding, whereas plasma cortisol levels were reduced. Plasma melatonin remained unmodified before and after meal time. These results suggested that scheduled feeding entrained both behavioral and certain physiological patterns in goldfish, FAA being of adaptive value to anticipate a meal and prepare the digestive physiology of fish

Dynamics of biochemical components, lipids classes and energy values on gonadal development of R.philippinarum associated with the temperature and ingestion rate

This study evaluates the effect of temperature, coupled with ingestion rate, on the dynamics of biochemical components and lipid classes in R. philippinarum. The data are discussed with regard to sexual development and energy balance. Experimental protocol developed in the present study used two groups of the clam R. philippinarum: L (temperatures of 14 °C and 18 °C) and H (temperatures of 18 °C and 22 °C). The intra-group ingestion level was similar, although the ingestion level of the clams in the group H was 2.4 times higher than group L. We observed that R. philippinarum conditioned at 18 °C (18L) shows higher protein content, furthermore an important loss of organic weight was observed after 48 days. In such a situation, the clams use their own reserves (carbohydrates and glycogen) for sexual development while in situations without food stress (positive energy balance) and low temperature (14 °C) an accumulation of reserves is produced. Strikingly dissimilar behaviour in biochemical composition was observed for the 18H and 22H treatments, both with a positive energy balance. Despite similar protein content, the highest levels of carbohydrates were observed at the lower temperature (18 °C). Glycogen was also higher for the 18 °C treatment, although the differences were significant only in the males. Although the total lipids in R. philippinarum showed no significant differences in any treatment, they became apparent and related to sex when considering the individual lipid classes. There was no variation in lipid classes in the males between the 14L and 22H treatments despite the large disparity in the degree of sexual development. However, in the females significant differences in lipid classes (phospholipids, triglycerides) were observed. The results of this study show that a positive energy balance permits R. philippinarum gonadal development and accumulation of reserves both in low and high temperature conditions. In low temperature situations, gonadal development is slower and the energy reserves are accumulated in the form of carbohydrates. When the clams are conditioned at high temperatures, gonadal development is fast and complete, carbohydrates are consumed and lipids are accumulated.Publicado

Origin and standing of Canary Black Pig

We summarize the historical information about origin of Canary Black Pig and standing in the Canary Islands. The presence of pig in Canary Islands is from 500 year b.C., where aborigines used its meat as food, its fat to preserve foods, its skin as clothing and its bones to produce tools and adornments. The census is constituted for 283 animals, 182 females and 101 males, with a major representation in Tenerife and Gran Canaria islands, 173 and 71 animals respectively.A través de la documentación histórica del Archipiélago Canario, se ha esbozado el origen del Cerdo Negro Canario, a la vez que se expone su estado actual en las diferentes islas del archipiélago. La presencia del cerdo data desde hace 2500 años en el Archipiélago Canario, donde los aborígenes utilizaron su carne como alimento, su manteca para conservas, su piel para vestimenta y sus huesos para fabricación de útiles y adornos. El censo lo constituyen unos 283 ejemplares, 182 hembras y 101 machos, y su mayor representación está en las islas de Tenerife y de Gran Canaria con 173 y 71 animales respectivamente

Tracing KAM tori in presymplectic dynamical systems

We present a KAM theorem for presymplectic dynamical systems. The theorem has a " a posteriori " format. We show that given a Diophantine frequency $\omega$ and a family of presymplectic mappings, if we find an embedded torus which is approximately invariant with rotation $\omega$ such that the torus and the family of mappings satisfy some explicit non-degeneracy condition, then we can find an embedded torus and a value of the parameter close to to the original ones so that the torus is invariant under the map associated to the value of the parameter. Furthermore, we show that the dimension of the parameter space is reduced if we assume that the systems are exact.Comment: 33 pages and one figur

EP-1270: Volumetric modulated arc therapy in high-risk neuroblatoma¥s treatment. Single institucional experience

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Genetic characterisation of the palmera sheep with microsatellites

It have been studied 178 animals (the whole population) of the Palmera sheep with 24 microsatellites in order to characterise this autochthonous breed from La Palma Island (Canary Islands, Spain). Ovine and bovine microsatellites recommended by FAO, ISAG (International Society of Animal Genetics) and other authors in the bibliography for ovine biodiversity studies have been used. These markers were amplified by mean of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique and to get the size separation of the obtained fragments we have developed electrophoresis in polyacrylamide gel in an automatic sequencer ABI377XL. All the microsatellites have been polymorphic and between 2 (ETH10) and 15 (CSSM66) alleles have been found with an average value of 7.04. The expected heterozigosity has been 0,6039 and the observed heterozigosity 0.5504. The paternity and maternity have been checked with these microsatellites and this has been used to make a paternity panel with 10-12 markers and an a priori exclusion probability higher than 99,9 percent. This panel is useful to check paternity in this threatened breed.Se estudian 178 animales pertenecientes a la raza ovina Palmera, lo que supone la totalidad de la población, mediante 24 marcadores microsatélites con objeto de caracterizar esta raza autóctona de la Isla de la Palma (Islas Canarias, España). Se han empleado microsatélites de ovino y de bovino recomendados por la FAO, por la ISAG (International Society of Animal Genetics) y por otros autores en la bibliografía para este tipo de estudios en ovinos. Los microsatélites se han amplificado mediante la reacción en cadena de la polimerasa (PCR) y los fragmentos amplificados se han separado mediante electroforesis en un secuenciador automático ABI 377XL. Todos los microsatélites utilizados han resultado polimórficos y se han encontrado entre 2 alelos para el ETH10 y 15 para el CSSM66, con un número medio de alelos de 7,04. La heterocigosidad media esperada ha sido 0,6039 y la observada 0,5504. Se ha llevado a cabo también la comprobación de paternidades y maternidades con estos microsatélites, lo que ha servido para establecer una batería de 10-12 microsatélites con una probabilidad de exclusión a priori superior al 99,9 p.100 que puede resultar muy útil para realizar controles de filiación en esta raza ovina en serio peligro de extinción

Computer administration of the genealogy in the palmera sheep

One of the most important problems when recovering small animal populations is planning of mating in order to minimize the decrease of inbreeding. In such populations, for their small size, almost all animals are related in the pedigree. Thus, discarding animal for that reason is not to be recommended. The calculation of population parameters must be precise but under easy management, so it can be arranged with herd book requirements. We have developed software these calculations for the Palmera sheep breed. From the herd book, the program organizes automatically the pedigree for each animal until the fifth previous generation, then it calculates the individual inbreeding coefficient (F) using the Malécot algorithm for kinship coefficient. Another most important feature is the computation of the coancestry matrix enclosing the whole population or just a partial selection of males and females. The program allows a variety of reports as output, suitable for farmers and official institutions. One report represents graphically the average population inbreeding along time.En la recuperación de las poblaciones pequeñas uno de los principales problemas que se plantea al realizar la planificación de las montas es minimizar la consanguinidad dado que prácticamente todos los animales son parientes y por otra parte no es aconsejable desestimar a varios de los pocos animales disponibles. Los cálculos deben ser precisos pero fáciles de manejar y se han de compaginar con los requisitos necesarios para completar adecuadamente el libro genealógico. Para la oveja Palmera se ha desarrollado un programa de gestión que realiza estas operaciones. A partir de los datos de gestión necesaria para el libro genealógico, el programa organiza de forma automática el pedigrí de cada uno de los animales hasta el nivel de quinta generación de antecesores y, una vez organizado, calcula el coeficiente individual de consanguinidad (F) utilizando un algoritmo de cálculo que se basa en el método de Malécot o de los coeficientes de parentesco. Otra de las opciones más interesantes es el cálculo de la matriz de coascendencia, para lo cual se seleccionan los machos y las hembras para los que se desea calcular, pudiendo ser la selección total o parcial. El programa informático realiza diversos informes entre los cuales uno representa de forma gráfica la evolución a lo largo del tiempo de la consanguinidad de la población en estudio