Angular distributions of γ rays from the 7Li(p,γ) reaction at low energies

Angular distributions of the 14–17 MeV γ rays from the 7Li(p,γ) reaction at Ep=450, 402, and 80 keV were measured at 0°≤θlab≤135°, using a BGO detector and a 28-μg/cm2 LiF target. The angular distributions at Ep=450 and 402 keV agree with the previous results by Mainsbridge; at Ep=80 keV the ground-state transition is anisotropic on the order of 20%, confirming recent results by Chasteler et al

Using bijective maps to improve free energy estimates

We derive a fluctuation theorem for generalized work distributions, related to bijective mappings of the phase spaces of two physical systems, and use it to derive a two-sided constraint maximum likelihood estimator of their free energy difference which uses samples from the equilibrium configurations of both systems. As an application, we evaluate the chemical potential of a dense Lennard-Jones fluid and study the construction and performance of suitable maps.Comment: 17 pages, 11 figure

Estimation of soil types by non linear analysis of remote sensing data

International audienceThe knowledge of soil type and soil texture is crucial for environmental monitoring purpose and risk assessment. Unfortunately, their mapping using classical techniques is time consuming and costly. We present here a way to estimate soil types based on limited field observations and remote sensing data. Due to the fact that the relation between the soil types and the considered attributes that were extracted from remote sensing data is expected to be non-linear, we apply Support Vector Machines (SVM) for soil type classification. Special attention is drawn to different training site distributions and the kind of input variables. We show that SVM based on carefully selected input variables proved to be an appropriate method for soil type estimation

Parametric LTL on Markov Chains

This paper is concerned with the verification of finite Markov chains against parametrized LTL (pLTL) formulas. In pLTL, the until-modality is equipped with a bound that contains variables; e.g., $\Diamond_{\le x}\ \varphi$ asserts that $\varphi$ holds within $x$ time steps, where $x$ is a variable on natural numbers. The central problem studied in this paper is to determine the set of parameter valuations $V_{\prec p} (\varphi)$ for which the probability to satisfy pLTL-formula $\varphi$ in a Markov chain meets a given threshold $\prec p$, where $\prec$ is a comparison on reals and $p$ a probability. As for pLTL determining the emptiness of $V_{> 0}(\varphi)$ is undecidable, we consider several logic fragments. We consider parametric reachability properties, a sub-logic of pLTL restricted to next and $\Diamond_{\le x}$, parametric B\"uchi properties and finally, a maximal subclass of pLTL for which emptiness of $V_{> 0}(\varphi)$ is decidable.Comment: TCS Track B 201

A probabilistic analysis of argument cogency

This paper offers a probabilistic treatment of the conditions for argument cogency as endorsed in informal logic: acceptability, relevance, and sufficiency. Treating a natural language argument as a reason-claim-complex, our analysis identifies content features of defeasible argument on which the RSA conditions depend, namely: change in the commitment to the reason, the reason’s sensitivity and selectivity to the claim, one’s prior commitment to the claim, and the contextually determined thresholds of acceptability for reasons and for claims. Results contrast with, and may indeed serve to correct, the informal understanding and applications of the RSA criteria concerning their conceptual dependence, their function as update-thresholds, and their status as obligatory rather than permissive norms, but also show how these formal and informal normative approachs can in fact align

Application of Minimal Subtraction Renormalization to Crossover Behavior near the 3^3He Liquid-Vapor Critical Point

Parametric expressions are used to calculate the isothermal susceptibility, specific heat, order parameter, and correlation length along the critical isochore and coexistence curve from the asymptotic region to crossover region. These expressions are based on the minimal-subtraction renormalization scheme within the $\phi^4$ model. Using two adjustable parameters in these expressions, we fit the theory globally to recently obtained experimental measurements of isothermal susceptibility and specific heat along the critical isochore and coexistence curve, and early measurements of coexistence curve and light scattering intensity along the critical isochore of $^3$He near its liquid-vapor critical point. The theory provides good agreement with these experimental measurements within the reduced temperature range $|t| \le 2\times 10^{-2}$

Limits on nu_e and anti-nu_e disappearance from Gallium and reactor experiments

The deficit observed in the Gallium radioactive source experiments is interpreted as a possible indication of the disappearance of electron neutrinos. In the effective framework of two-neutrino mixing we obtain $\sin^{2}2\vartheta \gtrsim 0.03$ and $\Delta{m}^{2} \gtrsim 0.1 \text{eV}^{2}$. The compatibility of this result with the data of the Bugey and Chooz reactor short-baseline antineutrino disappearance experiments is studied. It is found that the Bugey data present a hint of neutrino oscillations with $0.02 \lesssim \sin^{2}2\vartheta \lesssim 0.08$ and $\Delta{m}^{2} \approx 1.8 \text{eV}^{2}$, which is compatible with the Gallium allowed region of the mixing parameters. This hint persists in the combined analyses of Bugey and Chooz data, of Gallium and Bugey data, and of Gallium, Bugey, and Chooz data.Comment: 21 pages. Final version to be published in Phys. Rev.

Carefully designed multiple choice tests can help teachers to quickly determine what students don't understand

Over the last 20 years, US schools have widely adopted annual student testing, a move which many researchers believe may have been of little benefit to students' educational outcomes. Julian R. Betts, Youjin Hahn and Andrew C. Zau examine the impact of a different type of mathematics testing - one which is aimed at determining students' strengths and weaknesses in math. They find that since 2000 the Mathematics Diagnostic Testing Project in California’s second largest school district has increased student’s state test score by up to 4 percentage points. They attribute these increases to the detailed information and insights into student performance the tests provide compared to more traditional examinations