The chiral condensate in a constant electromagnetic field

We study the shift of the chiral condensate in a constant electromagnetic field in the context of chiral perturbation theory. Using the Schwinger proper-time formalism, we derive a one-loop expression correct to all orders in $m_{\pi}^2 / eH$. Our result correctly reproduces a previously derived ``low-energy theorem'' for $m_\pi = 0$. We show that it is essential to include corrections due to non-vanishing $m_\pi$ in order for a low energy theorem to have any approximate regime of validity in the physical universe. We generalize these results to systems containing electric fields, and discuss the regime of validity for the results. In particular, we discuss the circumstances in which the method formally breaks down due to pair creation in an electric field.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, LaTeX; removed extraneous section + minor revision

Doctor of Philosophy

dissertationOver the past 50 years, there has been a gradual upward trend in overweight and obesity prevalence, such that current epidemiological estimates indicate that over one-third of U.S. adults are obese and another third are overweight. Cancer prevalence has risen in tandem with excess adiposity in a dose response relationship that may grow stronger with age, suggesting a number of U.S. adults may be at risk. However, prevailing weight loss interventions aimed at disrupting and reversing this alarming trend are predominantly based on an overly simplistic model of energy balance, and consequently have failed to achieve any meaningful long-term results. This may be due in part to interventive focus on the symptomatic expression of excess weight rather than the underlying mechanisms of obesity onset and maintenance. Conversely, identifying malleable traits that promote healthier body composition profiles, as well as their potential mechanistic and behavioral means of conferring clinical benefits, may facilitate the development of the next generation of targeted psychosocial interventions for obesity. Herein is presented an integrated biopsychosocial framework that elucidates cybernetic feedback circuits between stress, reward, homeostatic mechanisms, and both bottom-up and top-down self-regulatory processes that interact to govern obesogenic behaviors. A portion of this conceptual framework was then tested in a correlational study of a sample of overweight and obese female cancer survivors, which revealed that higher dispositional mindfulness was indirectly associated with reduced adiposity via enhanced capacity to savor nonfood rewards and improved autonomic regulation during attention to food cues. Finally, findings from an early stage pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) are presented. This RCT investigated the preliminary feasibility and efficacy of Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE), a multimodal intervention designed to target mechanisms underpinning appetitive dysregulation, as an added component to exercise and nutrition counseling to treat excess adiposity among the same sample. Findings revealed that MORE may be an efficacious means of effectively targeting underlying mechanisms explicated by the proposed conceptual framework, in that MORE was associated with significantly enhanced interoceptive awareness, savoring, and responsiveness to natural rewards, and reduced food attentional biases and maladaptive eating behaviors

Exotic Forest Insects and Residential Property Values

This paper presents a case study of the economic damages to homeowners in a northern New Jersey community due to an exotic forest insect--the hemlock woolly adelgid. Hedonic property value methods are used to estimate the effect of hemlock health on property values. A statistically significant relationship between hemlock health and residential property values is established. Moreover, there are some signs of spillover impacts from hemlock decline, as negative effects are realized on the parcels where the declining hemlock stands are located as well as on neighboring properties. These results give some indication of the benefits of potential control programs and strategies and also show support for community- or neighborhood-based programs in residential settings.invasive species, economic impacts, hedonic property values, general spatial model, Land Economics/Use,

To What Extent Does the Privilege against Self-Incrimination Protect an Accused from Physical Disclosures

The Federal Government and forty-six states have incorporated within their constitutions the common law privilege against self-incrimination. Iowa and New Jersey, the two exceptions, have accepted the privilege, either by incorporation into their common law by judicial interpretation, or by statute. Originally, this universal acceptance was an outgrowth of the thumb-screw and rack days of the star chamber in England, and the protection from physical torture by officers of the law to extract confessions was deemed such a fundamental right\u27 as to warrant constitutional safeguards. However, since its adoption in this country, authorities both in and outside of the legal field have questioned the purpose and policy of retaining the privilege in any form

The spatial ecology of free-ranging domestic pigs (Sus scrofa) in western Kenya

Background In many parts of the developing world, pigs are kept under low-input systems where they roam freely to scavenge food. These systems allow poor farmers the opportunity to enter into livestock keeping without large capital investments. This, combined with a growing demand for pork, especially in urban areas, has led to an increase in the number of small-holder farmers keeping free range pigs as a commercial enterprise. Despite the benefits which pig production can bring to a household, keeping pigs under a free range system increases the risk of the pig acquiring diseases, either production-limiting or zoonotic in nature. This study used Global Positioning System (GPS) technology to track free range domestic pigs in rural western Kenya, in order to understand their movement patterns and interactions with elements of the peri-domestic environment. Results We found that these pigs travel an average of 4,340 m in a 12 hr period and had a mean home range of 10,343 m2 (range 2,937–32,759 m2) within which the core utilisation distribution was found to be 964 m2 (range 246–3,289 m2) with pigs spending on average 47% of their time outside their homestead of origin. Conclusion These are the first data available on the home range of domestic pigs kept under a free range system: the data show that pigs in these systems spend much of their time scavenging outside their homesteads, suggesting that these pigs may be exposed to infectious agents over a wide area. Control policies for diseases such as Taenia solium, Trypanosomiasis, Trichinellosis, Toxoplasmosis or African Swine Fever therefore require a community-wide focus and pig farmers require education on the inherent risks of keeping pigs under a free range system. The work presented here will enable future research to incorporate movement data into studies of disease transmission, for example for the understanding of transmission of African Swine Fever between individuals, or in relation to the life-cycle of parasites including Taenia solium

Initial Plant Growth in Sand Mine Spoil Amended with Peat Moss and Fertilizer Under Greenhouse Conditions: Potential Species for Use in Reclamation

The Great Lakes Basin exhibits the largest collection of freshwater sand dunes in the world. Sand dunes are ecologically important and support a unique assemblage of flora and fauna. Sand dunes are also economically valuable. However, when sand dunes are mined, soil quality is drastically reduced. Therefore, soil quality improvements followed by revegetation maybe necessary for successful reclamation. This study evaluates the germination and initial growth of 2 legume species, sundial lupine (Lupinus perennis) and Illinois bundleflower (Desmanthus illinoensis), and 2 warm-season grass species, Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans) and little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium), in the presence of 2 soil amendments (inorganic fertilizer and sphagnum peat moss) added to spoil from a local sand mine. We sowed species in pots and propagated them under greenhouse conditions. Results indicate that sundial lupine and Illinois bundleflower exhibited the greatest germination and growth among species. Peat moss had the greatest overall impact on germination and growth while the addition of fertilizer positively affected initial growth. Based on these results, sundial lupine is recognized as a primary candidate for sand mine reclamation, while Illinois bundleflower is also recommended as an appropriate species for revegetation efforts. We recommend using soil amendments that are functionally equivalent to peat in increasing soil water holding capacity. We further suggest that fertilization may be accomplished by including legumes in plant species mixes used for revegetation. Results presented here may help to identify appropriate species and soil amendments for the reclamation of former sand mines or restoration of freshwater sand dunes

Such News Of The Land: U.S. Women Nature Writers

This pathbreaking collection, which contains 19 essays from scholars in a variety of fields, illuminates the work of two centuries of American women nature writers. Some discuss traditional nature writers such as Susan Fenimore Cooper, Mary Austin, Gene Stratton Porter, and Annie Dillard. Others examine the work of Zora Neale Hurston, Gloria Anzaldua, and Leslie Marmon Silko, writers not often associated with this genre. Essays on germinal texts such as Marjory Stoneman Douglas\u27s The Everglades: River of Grass stand alongside examinations of market bulletins and women\u27s gardens, showing how the rich diversity of women\u27s nature writing has shaped and expanded the genre, and enlarged the audience for whom nature mattered. This second, digital edition contains an updated introduction and author biographies.https://dune.une.edu/history_facbooks/1000/thumbnail.jp