Chen ranks and resonance

The Chen groups of a group $G$ are the lower central series quotients of the maximal metabelian quotient of $G$. Under certain conditions, we relate the ranks of the Chen groups to the first resonance variety of $G$, a jump locus for the cohomology of $G$. In the case where $G$ is the fundamental group of the complement of a complex hyperplane arrangement, our results positively resolve Suciu's Chen ranks conjecture. We obtain explicit formulas for the Chen ranks of a number of groups of broad interest, including pure Artin groups associated to Coxeter groups, and the group of basis-conjugating automorphisms of a finitely generated free group.Comment: final version, to appear in Advances in Mathematic

Model-Independent Bounds on R(J/ψ)R(J/\psi)

We present a model-independent bound on $R(J/\psi) \! \equiv \! \mathcal{BR} (B_c^+ \rightarrow J/\psi \, \tau^+\nu_\tau)/ \mathcal{BR} (B_c^+ \rightarrow J/\psi \, \mu^+\nu_\mu)$. This bound is constructed by constraining the form factors through a combination of dispersive relations, heavy-quark relations at zero-recoil, and the limited existing determinations from lattice QCD. The resulting 95\% confidence-level bound, $0.20\leq R(J/\psi)\leq0.39$, agrees with the recent LHCb result at $1.3 \, \sigma$, and rules out some previously suggested model form factors.Comment: 19 pages, 4 figures, JHEP format, revised to match published versio

Some Preliminary Thoughts on Permitting Animals to Sue in Contract and Tort

Animal protection statutes are valuable, but they might be more useful if formulated to give private rights of action to their beneficiaries- the animals. The author explores extending common law rights of action to animals. Admittedly, permitting animals to sue in contract and tort now seems fanciful, but the author hopes this article will provide an initial step toward bringing it about