1,141 research outputs found
Polarization Effects on the process with Large Extra Dimensions
We study large extra dimension effects on the polarizations of the pair
and electron beam at the process. It is shown that the
measurements of the cross section for transversely polarized pair with the
right-handed electron beam remarkably enhance the possibilities to see the low
scale quantum gravity effects. Higher Linear Collider bounds on the string
scale in this model can be obtained by using the left-handed electron beam.Comment: Final version to appear in Phys.Lett.B. More references are adde
The CO-H2 conversion factor of diffuse ISM: Bright 12CO emission also traces diffuse gas
We show that the XCO factor, which converts the CO luminosity into the column
density of molecular hydrogen has similar values for dense, fully molecular gas
and for diffuse, partially molecular gas. We discuss the reasons of this
coincidence and the consequences for the understanding of the interstellar
medium.Comment: 5 pages, 1 PostScript figure. To be published in the proceedings of
the Zermatt 2010 conference: "Conditions and impact of star formation: New
results with Herschel and beyond". Uses EAS LaTeX macro
Transcendence over Diversity: black women in the academy
Universities, like many major public institutions have embraced the notion of ‘diversity’ virtually uncritically- it is seen as a moral ‘good in itself’. But what happens to those who come to represent ‘diversity’- the black and minority ethnic groups targeted to increase the institutions thirst for global markets and aversion to accusations of institutional racism? Drawing on existing literature which analyses the process of marginalization in higher education, this paper explores the individual costs to black and female academic staff regardless of the discourse on diversity. However despite the exclusion of staff, black and minority ethnic women are also entering higher education in relatively large numbers as students. Such ‘grassroots’ educational urgency transcends the dominant discourse on diversity and challenges presumptions inherent in top down initiatives such as ‘widening participation’. Such a collective movement from the bottom up shows the importance of understanding black female agency when unpacking the complex dynamics of gendered and racialised exclusion. Black women’s desire for education and learning makes possible a reclaiming of higher education from creeping instrumentalism and reinstates it as a radical site of resistance and refutation
Mouse prion protein polymorphism Phe-108/Val-189 affects the kinetics of fibril formation and the response to seeding: evidence for a two-step nucleation polymerization mechanism
Prion diseases are fatal neurodegenerative disorders associated with the polymerization of the cellular form of prion protein (PrP(C)) into an amyloidogenic β-sheet infectious form (PrP(Sc)). The sequence of host PrP is the major determinant of host prion disease susceptibility. In mice, the presence of allele a (Prnp(a), encoding the polymorphism Leu-108/Thr-189) or b (Prnp(b), Phe-108/Val-189) is associated with short or long incubation times, respectively, following infection with PrP(Sc). The molecular bases linking PrP sequence, infection susceptibility, and convertibility of PrP(C) into PrP(Sc) remain unclear. Here we show that recombinant PrP(a) and PrP(b) aggregate and respond to seeding differently in vitro. Our kinetic studies reveal differences during the nucleation phase of the aggregation process, where PrP(b) exhibits a longer lag phase that cannot be completely eliminated by seeding the reaction with preformed fibrils. Additionally, PrP(b) is more prone to propagate features of the seeds, as demonstrated by conformational stability and electron microscopy studies of the formed fibrils. We propose a model of polymerization to explain how the polymorphisms at positions 108 and 189 produce the phenotypes seen in vivo. This model also provides insight into phenomena such as species barrier and prion strain generation, two phenomena also influenced by the primary structure of PrP.FWN – Publicaties zonder aanstelling Universiteit Leide
Universality in the Screening Cloud of Dislocations Surrounding a Disclination
A detailed analytical and numerical analysis for the dislocation cloud
surrounding a disclination is presented. The analytical results show that the
combined system behaves as a single disclination with an effective fractional
charge which can be computed from the properties of the grain boundaries
forming the dislocation cloud. Expressions are also given when the crystal is
subjected to an external two-dimensional pressure. The analytical results are
generalized to a scaling form for the energy which up to core energies is given
by the Young modulus of the crystal times a universal function. The accuracy of
the universality hypothesis is numerically checked to high accuracy. The
numerical approach, based on a generalization from previous work by S. Seung
and D.R. Nelson ({\em Phys. Rev A 38:1005 (1988)}), is interesting on its own
and allows to compute the energy for an {\em arbitrary} distribution of
defects, on an {\em arbitrary geometry} with an arbitrary elastic {\em energy}
with very minor additional computational effort. Some implications for recent
experimental, computational and theoretical work are also discussed.Comment: 35 pages, 21 eps file
Extreme Ultra-Violet Spectroscopy of the Lower Solar Atmosphere During Solar Flares
The extreme ultraviolet portion of the solar spectrum contains a wealth of
diagnostic tools for probing the lower solar atmosphere in response to an
injection of energy, particularly during the impulsive phase of solar flares.
These include temperature and density sensitive line ratios, Doppler shifted
emission lines and nonthermal broadening, abundance measurements, differential
emission measure profiles, and continuum temperatures and energetics, among
others. In this paper I shall review some of the advances made in recent years
using these techniques, focusing primarily on studies that have utilized data
from Hinode/EIS and SDO/EVE, while also providing some historical background
and a summary of future spectroscopic instrumentation.Comment: 34 pages, 8 figures. Submitted to Solar Physics as part of the
Topical Issue on Solar and Stellar Flare
Breakup Reactions of 11Li within a Three-Body Model
We use a three-body model to investigate breakup reactions of 11Li (n+n+9Li)
on a light target. The interaction parameters are constrained by known
properties of the two-body subsystems, the 11Li binding energy and
fragmentation data. The remaining degrees of freedom are discussed. The
projectile-target interactions are described by phenomenological optical
potentials. The model predicts dependence on beam energy and target,
differences between longitudinal and transverse momentum distributions and
provides absolute values for all computed differential cross sections. We give
an almost complete series of observables and compare with corresponding
measurements. Remarkably good agreement is obtained. The relative neutron-9Li
p-wave content is about 40%. A p-resonance, consistent with measurements at
about 0.5 MeV of width about 0.4 MeV, seems to be necessary. The widths of the
momentum distributions are insensitive to target and beam energy with a
tendency to increase towards lower energies. The transverse momentum
distributions are broader than the longitudinal due to the diffraction process.
The absolute values of the cross sections follow the neutron-target cross
sections and increase strongly for beam energies decreasing below 100 MeV/u.Comment: 19 pages, 14 figures, RevTeX, psfig.st
Faking like a woman? Towards an interpretative theorization of sexual pleasure.
This article explores the possibility of developing a feminist approach to gendered and sexual embodiment which is rooted in the pragmatist/interactionist tradition derived from G.H. Mead, but which in turn develops this perspective by inflecting it through more recent feminist thinking. In so doing we seek to rebalance some of the rather abstract work on gender and embodiment by focusing on an instance of 'heterosexual' everyday/night life - the production of the female orgasm. Through engaging with feminist and interactionist work, we develop an approach to embodied sexual pleasure that emphasizes the sociality of sexual practices and of reflexive sexual selves. We argue that sexual practices and experiences must be understood in social context, taking account of the situatedness of sex as well as wider socio-cultural processes the production of sexual desire and sexual pleasure (or their non-production) always entails interpretive, interactional processes
The UK Fireball Alliance (UKFAll); Combining and Integrating the Diversity of UK Camera Networks to Aim to Recover the First UK Meteorite Fall for 30 Years
No abstract available
Astroparticle Physics with a Customized Low-Background Broad Energy Germanium Detector
The MAJORANA Collaboration is building the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR, a 60 kg
array of high purity germanium detectors housed in an ultra-low background
shield at the Sanford Underground Laboratory in Lead, SD. The MAJORANA
DEMONSTRATOR will search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of 76Ge while
demonstrating the feasibility of a tonne-scale experiment. It may also carry
out a dark matter search in the 1-10 GeV/c^2 mass range. We have found that
customized Broad Energy Germanium (BEGe) detectors produced by Canberra have
several desirable features for a neutrinoless double-beta decay experiment,
including low electronic noise, excellent pulse shape analysis capabilities,
and simple fabrication. We have deployed a customized BEGe, the MAJORANA
Low-Background BEGe at Kimballton (MALBEK), in a low-background cryostat and
shield at the Kimballton Underground Research Facility in Virginia. This paper
will focus on the detector characteristics and measurements that can be
performed with such a radiation detector in a low-background environment.Comment: Submitted to NIMA Proceedings, SORMA XII. 9 pages, 4 figure
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