Azimuthal and Single Spin Asymmetries in Hard Scattering Processes

In this article we review the present understanding of azimuthal and single spin asymmetries for inclusive and semi-inclusive particle production in unpolarized and polarized hadronic collisions at high energy and moderately large transverse momentum. After summarizing the experimental information available, we discuss and compare the main theoretical approaches formulated in the framework of perturbative QCD. We then present in some detail a generalization of the parton model with inclusion of spin and intrinsic transverse momentum effects. In this context, we extensively discuss the phenomenology of azimuthal and single spin asymmetries for several processes in different kinematical configurations. A comparison with the predictions of other approaches, when available, is also given. We finally emphasize some relevant open points and challenges for future theoretical and experimental investigation.Comment: 70 pages, 34 ps figures. Invited review paper to be published in Progress in Particle and Nuclear Physic

The Spin Structure of the Nucleon

We present an overview of recent experimental and theoretical advances in our understanding of the spin structure of protons and neutrons.Comment: 84 pages, 29 figure

Investigating the Potential of Data Science Methods for Sustainable Public Transport

The planning and implementation of public transport involves many data sources. These data sources in turn generate a high volume of data, in a wide variety of formats and data rates. This phenomenon is reinforced by the ongoing digitization of public transport; new data sources have continuously emerged in public transport in recent years and decades. This results in a great potential for the application and utilization of data science methods in public transport. Using big data methods and sources can, or in some cases already does, contribute to a better understanding and the further optimization of public transport networks, public transport service and public transport in general. This paper classifies data sources in the field of public transport and examines systematically for which use cases the data are used or can be used. These steps contribute by structuring ongoing discussions about the application of data science in the public transport domain and illustrate the potential of the application of data science for public transport. We present several use cases in which we applied data science methods, such as machine learning and visualization to public transport data. Several of these projects use data from automated passenger information systems, a data source that has not been widely studied to date. We report our findings for these use cases and discuss the lessons learned, to inform future research on these use cases and discuss their potential. This paper concludes with a summary of the typical problems that occur when dealing with big public transport data and a discussion of solutions for these problems. This discussion identifies future work and topics worth investigating for public transport companies as well as for researchers. Working on these topics will, in our opinion, support the improvement of public transport towards the efficiency and attractiveness that is needed for public transport to play its essential role in future sustainable mobility. The application of these methods in public transport requires the collaboration of domain experts with researchers and data scientists, calling for a mutual understanding. This paper also contributes to this understanding by providing an overview of the methods that are already used, potential new use cases, data sources, challenges and possible solutions

Evaluation of prognostic factors and role of participation in a randomized trial or a prospective registry in pediatric and adolescent nonmetastatic medulloblastoma: a report from the HIT 2000 trial

Purpose We aimed to compare treatment results in and outside of a randomized trial and to confirm factors influencing outcome in a large retrospective cohort of nonmetastatic medulloblastoma treated in Austria, Switzerland and Germany. Methods and Materials Patients with nonmetastatic medulloblastoma (n = 382) aged 4 to 21 years and primary neurosurgical resection between 2001 and 2011 were assessed. Between 2001 and 2006, 176 of these patients (46.1%) were included in the randomized HIT SIOP PNET 4 trial. From 2001 to 2011 an additional 206 patients were registered to the HIT 2000 study center and underwent the identical central review program. Three different radiation therapy protocols were applied. Genetically defined tumor entity (former molecular subgroup) was available for 157 patients. Results Median follow-up time was 7.3 (range, 0.09-13.86) years. There was no difference between HIT SIOP PNET 4 trial patients and observational patients outside the randomized trial, with 7 years progression-free survival rates (PFS) of 79.5% ± 3.1% versus 78.7% ± 3.1% (P = .62). On univariate analysis, the time interval between surgery and irradiation (≤ 48 days vs ≥ 49 days) showed a strong trend to affect PFS (80.4% ± 2.2% vs 64.6% ± 9.1%; P = .052). Furthermore, histologically and genetically defined tumor entities and the extent of postoperative residual tumor influenced PFS. On multivariate analyses, a genetically defined tumor entity wingless-related integration site-activated vs non-wingless-related integration site/non-SHH, group 3 hazard ratio, 5.49; P = .014) and time interval between surgery and irradiation (hazard ratio, 2.2; P = .018) were confirmed as independent risk factors. Conclusions Using a centralized review program and risk-stratified therapy for all patients registered to the study center, outcome was identical for patients with nonmetastatic medulloblastoma treated on and off the randomized HIT SIOP PNET 4 trial. The prognostic values of prolonged time to RT and genetically defined tumor entity were confirmed

First operation of the KATRIN experiment with tritium

The determination of the neutrino mass is one of the major challenges in astroparticle physics today. Direct neutrino mass experiments, based solely on the kinematics of β β -decay, provide a largely model-independent probe to the neutrino mass scale. The Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino (KATRIN) experiment is designed to directly measure the effective electron antineutrino mass with a sensitivity of 0.2 eV 0.2 eV (90% 90% CL). In this work we report on the first operation of KATRIN with tritium which took place in 2018. During this commissioning phase of the tritium circulation system, excellent agreement of the theoretical prediction with the recorded spectra was found and stable conditions over a time period of 13 days could be established. These results are an essential prerequisite for the subsequent neutrino mass measurements with KATRIN in 2019