Developmental Level of Moral Judgment Influences Behavioral Patterns during Moral Decision-making

We developed and tested a behavioral version of the Defining Issues Test-1 revised (DIT-1r), which is a measure of the development of moral judgment. We conducted a behavioral experiment using the behavioral Defining Issues Test (bDIT) to examine the relationship between participants’ moral developmental status, moral competence, and reaction time when making moral judgments. We found that when the judgments were made based on the preferred moral schema, the reaction time for moral judgments was significantly moderated by the moral developmental status. In addition, as a participant becomes more confident with moral judgment, the participant differentiates the preferred versus other schemas better particularly when the participant’s abilities for moral judgment are more developed

Measuring Moral Reasoning using Moral Dilemmas: Evaluating Reliability, Validity, and Differential Item Functioning of the Behavioral Defining Issues Test (bDIT)

We evaluated the reliability, validity, and differential item functioning (DIF) of a shorter version of the Defining Issues Test-1 (DIT-1), the behavioral DIT (bDIT), measuring the development of moral reasoning. 353 college students (81 males, 271 females, 1 not reported; age M = 18.64 years, SD = 1.20 years) who were taking introductory psychology classes at a public University in a suburb area in the Southern United States participated in the present study. First, we examined the reliability of the bDIT using Cronbach’s α and its concurrent validity with the original DIT-1 using disattenuated correlation. Second, we compared the test duration between the two measures. Third, we tested the DIF of each question between males and females. Findings reported that first, the bDIT showed acceptable reliability and good concurrent validity. Second, the test duration could be significantly shortened by employing the bDIT. Third, DIF results indicated that the bDIT items did not favour any gender. Practical implications of the present study based on the reported findings are discussed

Large harmonic softening of the phonon density of states of uranium

Phonon density-of-states curves were obtained from inelastic neutron scattering spectra from the three crystalline phases of uranium at temperatures from 50 to 1213 K. The alpha -phase showed an unusually large thermal softening of phonon frequencies. Analysis of the vibrational power spectrum showed that this phonon softening originates with the softening of a harmonic solid, as opposed to vibrations in anharmonic potentials. It follows that thermal excitations of electronic states are more significant thermodynamically than are the classical volume effects. For the alpha-beta and beta-gamma phase transitions, vibrational and electronic entropies were comparable

Ward Identities in Non-equilibrium QED

We verify the QED Ward identity for the two- and three -point functions at non-equilibrium in the HTL limit. We use the Keldysh formalism of real time finite temperature field theory. We obtain an identity of the same form as the Ward identity for a set of one loop self-energy and one loop three-point vertex diagrams which are constructed from HTL effective propagators and vertices.Comment: 19 pages, RevTex, 4 PostScript figures, revised version to be published in Phys. Rev.

The Quark-Gluon-Plasma Liquid

The quark-gluon plasma close to the critical temperature is a strongly interacting system. Using strongly coupled, classical, non-relativistic plasmas as an analogy, we argue that the quark-gluon plasma is in the liquid phase. This allows to understand experimental observations in ultrarelativistic heavy-ion collisions and to interpret lattice QCD results. It also supports the indications of the presence of a strongly coupled QGP in ultrarelativistic heavy-ion collisions.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, final version, to bepublished in J. Phys.

Microstructural strain energy of α-uranium determined by calorimetry and neutron diffractometry

The microstructural contribution to the heat capacity of α-uranium was determined by measuring the heat-capacity difference between polycrystalline and single-crystal samples from 77 to 320 K. When cooled to 77 K and then heated to about 280 K, the uranium microstructure released (3±1) J/mol of strain energy. On further heating to 300 K, the microstructure absorbed energy as it began to redevelop microstrains. Anisotropic strain-broadening parameters were extracted from neutron-diffraction measurements on polycrystals. Combining the strain-broadening parameters with anisotropic elastic constants from the literature, the microstructural strain energy is predicted in the two limiting cases of statistically isotropic stress and statistically isotropic strain. The result calculated in the limit of statistically isotropic stress was (3.7±0.5) J/mol K at 77 K and (1±0.5) J/mol at room temperature. In the limit of statistically isotropic strain, the values were (7.8±0.5) J/mol K at 77 K and (4.5±0.5) J/mol at room temperature. In both cases the changes in the microstructural strain energy showed good agreement with the calorimetry

Non-Perturbative Dilepton Production from a Quark-Gluon Plasma

The dilepton production rate from the quark-gluon plasma is calculated from the imaginary part of the photon self energy using a quark propagator that contains the gluon condensate. The low mass dilepton rate obtained in this way exhibits interesting structures (peaks and gaps), which might be observable at RHIC and LHC.Comment: 16 pages, REVTEX, 8 PostScript figure

Wakes in the quark-gluon plasma

Using the high temperature approximation we study, within the linear response theory, the wake in the quark-gluon plasma by a fast parton owing to dynamical screening in the space like region. When the parton moves with a speed less than the average speed of the plasmon, we find that the wake structure corresponds to a screening charge cloud traveling with the parton with one sign flip in the induced charge density resulting in a Lennard-Jones type potential in the outward flow with a short range repulsive and a long range attractive part. On the other hand if the parton moves with a speed higher than that of plasmon, the wake structure in the induced charge density is found to have alternate sign flips and the wake potential in the outward flow oscillates analogous to Cerenkov like wave generation with a Mach cone structure trailing the moving parton. The potential normal to the motion of the parton indicates a transverse flow in the system. We also calculate the potential due to a color dipole and discuss consequences of possible new bound states and $J/\psi$ suppression in the quark-gluon plasma.Comment: 20 pages, 14 figures (high resolution figures available with authors); version accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Screening of a Moving Parton in the Quark-Gluon Plasma

The screening potential of a parton moving through a quark-gluon plasma is calculated using the semi-classical transport theory. An anisotropic potential showing a minimum in the direction of the parton velocity is found. As consequences possible new bound states and J/psi dissociation are discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, final, extended version, to be published in Phys.Rev.

Quark Dispersion Relation and Dilepton Production in the Quark-Gluon Plasma

Under very general assumptions we show that the quark dispersion relation in the quark-gluon plasma is given by two collective branches, of which one has a minimum at a non-vanishing momentum. This general feature of the quark dispersion relation leads to structures (van Hove singularities, gaps) in the low mass dilepton production rate, which might provide a unique signature for the quark-gluon plasma formation in relativistic heavy ion collisions.Comment: 6 pages, Revtex, 2 PostScript figures, revised version to be published in Phys. Rev. Let