25,446 research outputs found
Dark matter and neutrino masses in the R-parity violating NMSSM
The R-Parity symmetry Violating (RPV) version of the Next-to-Minimal
Supersymmetric Standard Model (NMSSM) is attractive simultaneously with regard
to the so-called mu-problem and the accommodation of three-flavor neutrino data
at tree level. In this context, we show here that if the Lightest
Supersymmetric Particle (LSP) is the gravitino, it possesses a lifetime larger
than the age of the universe since its RPV induced decay channels are
suppressed by the weak gravitational strength. This conclusion holds if one
considers gravitino masses ~ 10^2 GeV like in supergravity scenarios, and is
robust if the lightest pseudoscalar Higgs field is as light as ~ 10 GeV [as may
occur in the NMSSM]. For these models predicting in particular an RPV
neutrino-photino mixing, the gravitino lifetime exceeds the age of the universe
by two orders of magnitude. However, we find that the gravitino cannot
constitute a viable dark matter candidate since its too large RPV decay widths
would then conflict with the flux data of last indirect detection experiments.
The cases of a sneutrino LSP or a neutralino LSP as well as the more promising
gauge-mediated supersymmetry breaking scenario are also discussed. Both the
one-flavor simplification hypothesis and the realistic scenario of three
neutrino flavors are analyzed. We have modified the NMHDECAY program to extend
the neutralino mass matrix to the present framework.Comment: Latex file, 23 pages, 7 figures. References added and discussion on
the indirect detection modifie
First Record of \u3ci\u3eHippodamia variegata\u3c/i\u3e (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) in Illinois, U.S.A., and Relation to Its Other Midwestern Collection Records
Hippodamia variegata (Goeze) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) is an Afro-Eurasian lady beetle first discovered in North America near Montreal, Canada, in 1984. Subsequent records of H. variegata have occurred over a gradually expanding area radiating from the initial detection site and also include a disjunct record from British Columbia. Here, we report the first Illinois specimen of H. variegata, collected in 2004, and discuss this in relation to previous reports of H. variegata in North America
Scotch Pine Deterioration in Michigan Caused by Pine Root Weevil Complex
Pine root tip weevil, Hylobius rhizophagus, and pine root collar weevil, H. radicis, attack certain Scotch pine stands simultaneously causing more mortality than expected from either insect alone. Recommendations for curtailing this insect complex include favoring red pine, planting Scotch pine far from brood sources, and avoiding stump culture of Christmas trees
How to derive and parameterize effective potentials in colloid-polymer mixtures
Polymer chains in colloid-polymer mixtures can be coarse-grained by replacing
them with single soft particles interacting via effective polymer-polymer and
polymer-colloid pair potentials. Here we describe in detail how
Ornstein-Zernike inversion techniques, originally developed for atomic and
molecular fluids, can be generalized to complex fluids and used to derive
effective potentials from computer simulations on a microscopic level. In
particular, we consider polymer solutions for which we derive effective
potentials between the centers of mass, and also between mid-points or
end-points from simulations of self-avoiding walk polymers. In addition, we
derive effective potentials for polymers near a hard wall or a hard sphere. We
emphasize the importance of including both structural and thermodynamic
information (through sum-rules) from the underlying simulations. In addition we
develop a simple numerical scheme to optimize the parameterization of the
density dependent polymer-polymer, polymer-wall and polymer-sphere potentials
for dilute and semi-dilute polymer densities, thus opening up the possibility
of performing large-scale simulations of colloid-polymer mixtures. The methods
developed here should be applicable to a much wider range effective potentials
in complex fluids.Comment: uses revtex4.cls; submitted for archival purpose
Composition, structure and chemistry of interstellar dust
The observational constraints on the composition of the interstellar dust are analyzed. The dust in the diffuse interstellar medium consists of a mixture of stardust (amorphous silicates, amorphous carbon, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and graphite) and interstellar medium dust (organic refractory material). Stardust seems to dominate in the local diffuse interstellar medium. Inside molecular clouds, however, icy grain mantles are also important. The structural differences between crystalline and amorphous materials, which lead to differences in the optical properties, are discussed. The astrophysical consequences are briefly examined. The physical principles of grain surface chemistry are discussed and applied to the formation of molecular hydrogen and icy grain mantles inside dense molecular clouds. Transformation of these icy grain mantles into the organic refractory dust component observed in the diffuse interstellar medium requires ultraviolet sources inside molecular clouds as well as radical diffusion promoted by transient heating of the mantle. The latter process also returns a considerable fraction of the molecules in the grain mantle to the gas phase
Strengthening Community Colleges' Influence on Economic Mobility
Examines the role of community colleges in enhancing upward mobility. Compares family incomes of community college and four-year college students and incomes by degree attained. Recommends ways to help more students obtain degrees in high-earning fields
Atlas of wide-field-of-view outgoing longwave radiation derived from Nimbus 6 Earth radiation budget data set, July 1975 to June 1978
An atlas of monthly mean outgoing longwave radiation global contour maps and associated spherical harmonic coefficients is presented. The atlas contains 36 months of continuous data from July 1975 to June 1978. The data were derived from the first Earth radiation budget experiment, which was flown on the Nimbus-6 Sun-synchronous satellite in 1975. Only the wide-field-of-view longwave measurements are cataloged in this atlas. The contour maps along with the associated sets of spherical harmonic coefficients form a valuable data set for studying different aspects of our changing climate over monthly, annual, and interannual scales in the time domain, and over regional, zonal, and global scales in the spatial domain
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