6,288 research outputs found
Towards gauge theories in four dimensions
The abundance of infrared singularities in gauge theories due to unresolved
emission of massless particles (soft and collinear) represents the main
difficulty in perturbative calculations. They are typically regularized in
dimensional regularization, and their subtraction is usually achieved
independently for virtual and real corrections. In this paper, we introduce a
new method based on the loop-tree duality (LTD) theorem to accomplish the
summation over degenerate infrared states directly at the integrand level such
that the cancellation of the infrared divergences is achieved simultaneously,
and apply it to reference examples as a proof of concept. Ultraviolet
divergences, which are the consequence of the point-like nature of the theory,
are also reinterpreted physically in this framework. The proposed method opens
the intriguing possibility of carrying out purely four-dimensional
implementations of higher-order perturbative calculations at next-to-leading
order (NLO) and beyond free of soft and final-state collinear subtractions.Comment: Final version to appear in JHE
Beyond the happy sheets! Evaluating learning in information skills teaching
This paper reviews three years of data measuring students' immediate reactions to a computer-assisted learning package in information skills and reports on work in progress to establish a more comprehensive programme of evaluation which will assess the longer term impact on learning of both the courseware itself and the way the courseware is delivered to students. The GAELS courseware was developed in the late 1990s as part of a collaborative project between the Universities of Glasgow and Strathclyde, with funding from the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council. The courseware was designed to teach higher level information skills and was initially developed for use with postgraduate engineering students; it has subsequently been adapted for use with students in other subject areas, including biological and physical sciences, and has been embedded for several years now in workshop sessions undertaken with postgraduate and undergraduate students across the Faculties of Science and Engineering at the University of Strathclyde. The courseware is introduced at the start of the academic session and made available on the Web so that students can use it as needed during their course and project work. During the first year, the courseware was used in isolation from other teaching methods (although a librarian was present to support students), whilst in the second and third years it was integrated into more traditional workshop-style teaching sessions (led by a librarian). Following work described in Joint (2003), library staff now wish to assess the longer term impact on learning of both the courseware itself and the way the courseware is delivered to students. However, the existing evaluation data does not adequately support this type of assessment. Teaching sessions are routinely evaluated by means of simple feedback forms, with four questions answered using a five-point Likert scale, collected at the conclusion of each session. According to Fitzpatrick (1998), such feedback forms measure students' reactions and represent but the first level of evaluation. Learning, which can be defined as the extent to which a student changes attitudes, improves knowledge and/or increases skill as a result of exposure to the training, is the second level and is not being measured with these forms. A more comprehensive programme of evaluation, including logging usage of the courseware outside teaching sessions and follow-up of students several months after their introduction to the courseware, is now being established to support a more meaningful assessment of impact of the courseware on student learning
The effect of Fe atoms on the adsorption of a W atom on W(100) surface
We report a first-principles calculation that models the effect of iron (Fe)
atoms on the adsorption of a tungsten (W) atom on W(100) surfaces. The
adsorption of a W atom on a clean W(100) surface is compared with that of a W
atom on a W(100) surface covered with a monolayer of Fe atoms. The total energy
of the system is computed as the function of the height of the W adatom. Our
result shows that the W atom first adsorbs on top of the Fe monolayer. Then the
W atom can replace one of the Fe atoms through a path with a moderate energy
barrier and reduce its energy further. This intermediate site makes the
adsorption (and desorption) of W atoms a two-step process in the presence of Fe
atoms and lowers the overall adsorption energy by nearly 2.4 eV. The Fe atoms
also provide a surface for W atoms to adsorb facilitating the diffusion of W
atoms. The combination of these two effects result in a much more efficient
desorption and diffusion of W atoms in the presence of Fe atoms. Our result
provides a fundamental mechanism that can explain the activated sintering of
tungsten by Fe atoms.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figure
Disparities in Cause-Specific Cancer Survival by Census Tract Poverty Level in Idaho, U.S.
Objective. This population-based study compared cause-specific cancer survival by socioeconomic status using methods to more accurately assign cancer deaths to primary site. Methods. The current study analyzed Idaho data used in the Accuracy of Cancer Mortality Statistics Based on Death Certificates (ACM) study supplemented with additional information to measure cause-specific cancer survival by census tract poverty level. Results. The distribution of cases by primary site group differed significantly by poverty level (chi-square = 265.3, 100 df, p In the life table analyses, for 8 of 24 primary site groups investigated, and all sites combined, there was a significant gradient relating higher poverty with poorer survival. For all sites combined, the absolute difference in 5-year cause-specific survival rate was 13.6% between the lowest and highest poverty levels. Conclusions. This study shows striking disparities in cause-specific cancer survival related to the poverty level of the area a person resides in at the time of diagnosis
Argentaffin carcinoma of the terminal ileum
The purpose of this paper is to emphasise the importance of routine exploration of the abdominal viscera in all patients undergoing elective abdominal surgical procedures. We report here a case in which an unsuspected and asymptomatic argentaffin carcinoma of the small bowel was discovered in the course of hysterectomy carried out for intractable metrorrhagia. The operative procedure consisted of total hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. This was followed by resection of part of the terminal ileum 10 cm. on each side of the tumour together with a wedge of mesentery which included the infiltrated area.peer-reviewe
A complete O(alpha_S^2) calculation of the signal-background interference for the Higgs diphoton decay channel
We present the full {\cal O}(\as^2) computation of the interference effects
between the Higgs diphoton signal and the continuum background at the LHC.
While the main contribution to the interference originates on the partonic
subprocess, we find that the corrections from the and channels
amount up to 35% of it. We discuss the effect of these new subprocesses in the
shift of the diphoton invariant mass peak recently reported by S. Martin in
Ref.\cite{Martin:2012xc}.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure
EarthN: A new Earth System Nitrogen Model
The amount of nitrogen in the atmosphere, oceans, crust, and mantle have
important ramifications for Earth's biologic and geologic history. Despite this
importance, the history and cycling of nitrogen in the Earth system is poorly
constrained over time. For example, various models and proxies contrastingly
support atmospheric mass stasis, net outgassing, or net ingassing over time. In
addition, the amount available to and processing of nitrogen by organisms is
intricately linked with and provides feedbacks on oxygen and nutrient cycles.
To investigate the Earth system nitrogen cycle over geologic history, we have
constructed a new nitrogen cycle model: EarthN. This model is driven by mantle
cooling, links biologic nitrogen cycling to phosphate and oxygen, and
incorporates geologic and biologic fluxes. Model output is consistent with
large (2-4x) changes in atmospheric mass over time, typically indicating
atmospheric drawdown and nitrogen sequestration into the mantle and continental
crust. Critical controls on nitrogen distribution include mantle cooling
history, weathering, and the total Bulk Silicate Earth+atmosphere nitrogen
budget. Linking the nitrogen cycle to phosphorous and oxygen levels, instead of
carbon as has been previously done, provides new and more dynamic insight into
the history of nitrogen on the planet.Comment: 36 pages, 12 figure
Recent developments from the loop-tree duality
In this talk, we review the most recent developments of the four-dimensional
unsubstraction (FDU) and loop-tree duality (LTD) methods. In particular, we
make emphasis on the advantages of the LTD formalism regarding asymptotic
expansions of loop integrands.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figure. Presented at 13th International Symposium on
Radiative Corrections RADCOR2017, 24-29 September 2017, St. Gilgen, Austri
On the interplay between the loop-tree duality and helicity amplitudes
The spinor-helicity formalism has proven to be very efficient in the
calculation of scattering amplitudes in quantum field theory, while the loop
tree duality (LTD) representation of multi-loop integrals exhibits appealing
and interesting advantages with respect to other approaches. In view of the
most recent developments in LTD, we exploit the synergies with the
spinor-helicity formalism to analyse illustrative one- and two-loop scattering
processes. We focus our discussion on the local UV renormalisation of IR and UV
finite amplitudes and present a fully automated numerical implementation that
provides efficient expressions which are integrable directly in four space-time
dimensions.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures. In v2: discussion on the application of two-loop
local renormalisation added; references update
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