Testing Spontaneous Parity Violation at the LHC

We construct a supersymmetric SU(2)_L X SU(2)_R X U(1)_B-L model in which a discrete symmetry (C-parity) implements strict left-right symmetry in the scalar (Higgs) sector. Although two electroweak bidoublets are introduced to accommodate the observed fermion masses and mixings, a natural missing partner mechanism insures that a single pair of MSSM Higgs doublets survives below the left-right symmetry breaking scale. If this scale happens to lie in the TeV range, several new particles potentially much lighter than the SU(2)_R charged gauge bosons W_R^+- will be accessible at the LHC.Comment: 12 pages, REVTex

Fermion Masses and Mixings in GUTs with Non-Canonical U(1)_Y

We discuss fermion masses and mixings in models derived from orbifold GUTs such that gauge coupling unification is achieved without low energy supersymmetry by utilizing a non-canonical U(1)_Y. A gauged U(1)_X flavor symmetry plays an essential role, and the Green-Schwarz mechanism is invoked in anomaly cancellations. Models containing vector-like particles with masses close to M_{GUT} are also discussed.Comment: 18 page

Kaluza-Klein Excitations of W and Z at the LHC?

Deviations from standard electroweak physics arise in the framework of a Randall-Sundrum model, with matter and gauge fields in the bulk and the Higgs field localized on the TeV brane. We focus in particular on modifications associated with the weak mixing angle. Comparison with the electroweak precision data yields a rather stringent lower bound of about 10 TeV on the masses of the lowest Kaluza-Klein excitation of the W and Z bosons. With some optimistic assumptions the bound could be lowered to about 7 TeV.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, comments and references adde

Thermal treatment of wood using vegetable oils: a review

Wood is an ideal building material as it is renewable and green. However, low dimensional stability and durability might restrict its usage in structural application. Therefore, modification is needed to improve the aforementioned issues. As an environmentally friendly wood modification method, heat treatment of wood using oil as a heating medium has brought to researcher’s attention to the fact that it might serve as an excellent treatment procedure in treating wood. This paper presents a review about the effects of oil heat treatment on the properties of wood such as colour stability, dimensional stability, mechanical strength and durability against termites and fungi as well as its potential to be used as construction and building materials. The pros and cons of using oil as a heating medium in wood treatment are discussed. This review shows discrepancies between the treatment methods or procedures and its resultant findings. Moreover, the effectiveness of the treatment is governed by several factors such as the type of oils used and wood species. The objective of the present paper is to conduct a review of the published literatures regarding the properties of wood modified by oil heat treatment and the results obtained were compared systematically

Thermal treatment of wood using vegetable oils: a review

Wood is an ideal building material as it is renewable and green. However, low dimensional stability and durability might restrict its usage in structural application. Therefore, modification is needed to improve the aforementioned issues. As an environmentally friendly wood modification method, heat treatment of wood using oil as a heating medium has brought to researcher’s attention to the fact that it might serve as an excellent treatment procedure in treating wood. This paper presents a review about the effects of oil heat treatment on the properties of wood such as colour stability, dimensional stability, mechanical strength and durability against termites and fungi as well as its potential to be used as construction and building materials. The pros and cons of using oil as a heating medium in wood treatment are discussed. This review shows discrepancies between the treatment methods or procedures and its resultant findings. Moreover, the effectiveness of the treatment is governed by several factors such as the type of oils used and wood species. The objective of the present paper is to conduct a review of the published literatures regarding the properties of wood modified by oil heat treatment and the results obtained were compared systematically

Family Unification, Exotic States and Light Magnetic Monopoles

Models with fermions in bifundamental representations can lead naturally to family unification as opposed to family replication. Such models typically predict (exotic) color singlet states with fractional electric charge, and magnetic monopoles with multiple Dirac charge. The exotics may be at the TeV scale, and relatively light magnetic monopoles (greater than about 10^7 GeV) can be present in the galaxy with abundance near the Parker bound. We focus on three family SU(4)XSU(3)XSU(3) models.Comment: 37 page

SU(4)_C X SU(2)_L X SU(2)_R Models With C-parity

We construct supersymmetric SU(4)_C X SU(2)_L X SU(2)_R models with spontaneously broken left-right symmetry (C-parity). The minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM) can be recovered at low scales by exploiting the missing partner mechanism. The field content is compatible with realistic fermion masses and mixings, proton lifetime is close to or exceeds the current experimental bounds, and supersymmetric hybrid inflation can be implemented to take care of C-parity domain walls as well as magnetic monopoles, and to realize the observed baryon asymmetry via non-thermal leptogenesis.Comment: 10 page

Thermal treatment of wood using vegetable oils:a review

Wood is an ideal building material as it is renewable and green. However, low dimensional stability and durability might restrict its usage in structural application. Therefore, modification is needed to improve the aforementioned issues. As an environmentally friendly wood modification method, heat treatment of wood using oil as a heating medium has brought to researcher’s attention to the fact that it might serve as an excellent treatment procedure in treating wood. This paper presents a review about the effects of oil heat treatment on the properties of wood such as colour stability, dimensional stability, mechanical strength and durability against termites and fungi as well as its potential to be used as construction and building materials. The pros and cons of using oil as a heating medium in wood treatment are discussed. This review shows discrepancies between the treatment methods or procedures and its resultant findings. Moreover, the effectiveness of the treatment is governed by several factors such as the type of oils used and wood species. The objective of the present paper is to conduct a review of the published literatures regarding the properties of wood modified by oil heat treatment and the results obtained were compared systematically

Low Energy Consequences of Five Dimensional SO(10)

We consider five dimensional (5D) supersymmetric SO(10) compactified on the orbifold $S^1/(Z_2\times Z_2')$ such that the SO(10) gauge symmetry is broken on both fixed points (branes), and the residual gauge symmetry is $SU(3)_c\times SU(2)_L\times U(1)_Y\times U(1)_X$. We explore one example in which the gauge symmetries on the two branes are respectively $SU(5)\times U(1)_X$ and $SU(4)_c\times SU(2)_L\times SU(2)_R$, and the MSSM gauge symmetry is recovered by the usual Higgs mechanism. We discuss how fermion masses and mixings can be understood in this framework by introducing a flavor $U(1)_F$ symmetry. Unification of the MSSM gauge couplings and proton stability are also considered. An order of magnitude increase in sensitivity could reveal proton decay.Comment: 1+23 pages, 2 figures, comments added, version to appear in NP