Fluctuations and correlations from microscopic transport theory

The multiplicity fluctuations in A+A collisions at SPS and RHIC energies are studied within the HSD transport approach. We find a dominant role of the fluctuations in the nucleon participant number for the final fluctuations. In order to extract physical fluctuations one should decrease the fluctuations in the participants number. This can be done considering very central collisions. The system size dependence of the multiplicity fluctuations in central A+A collisions at the SPS energy range – obtained in the HSD and UrQMD transport models – is presented. The results can be used as a ‘background’ for experimental measurements of fluctuations as a signal of the critical point. Event-by-event fluctuations of the K/p , K/p and p/p ratios in A+A collisions are also studied. Event-by-event fluctuations of the kaon to pion number ratio in nucleus-nucleus collisions are studied for SPS and RHIC energies. We find that the HSD model can qualitatively reproduce the measured excitation function for the K/p ratio fluctuations in central Au+Au (or Pb+Pb) collisions from low SPS up to top RHIC energies. The forward-backward correlation coefficient measured by the STAR Collaboration in Au+Au collisions at RHIC is also studied. We discuss the effects of initial collision geometry and centrality bin definition on correlations in nucleus-nucleus collisions. We argue that a study of the dependence of correlations on the centrality bin definition as well as the bin size may distinguish between these ‘trivial’ correlations and correlations arising from ‘new physics’. 5th International Workshop on Critical Point and Onset of Deconfinement - CPOD 2009, June 08 - 12 2009 Brookhaven National Laboratory, Long Island, New York, US

Technological determinism and new media

Technological determinism is the belief that technology is the principal initiator of the society\u27s transformation. The emergence of this theory is usually attributed to the American sociologist Thorstein Veblen, who formulated the causal link between the technology and the society. According to the supporters of technological determinism, any social changes are controlled by the technology, technological development, communications technology and media. The modern information society arises as a result of the development of innovations, new technologies and their social and political implications. Since the establishment of this direction in the early 20th century, two different branches separated: radical and moderate (hard, soft) technological determinism. According to the radical version, the technologies represent a prerequisite for changing the society, the second branch regards the technology only as a key factor that may or may not mean a change. Today, we can quite confidently say that the Internet and the nature of new media is fundamentally changing the structure of the society. The expansion of computers, networks and the Internet has radically changed many aspects of not only human communication, but also the entire society\u27s life. The rising popularity of new media has changed the nature and the way our society and the individuals act – the way we do the shopping, recruit staff, pay taxes, use the library, gain academic degrees and educate ourselves.Through a philosophical analysis, the text examines the nature of contemporary technological determinism, the features of new media and the method they use to affect the creation and distribution of information and knowledge in the education process