Boundary S-matrix for the Tricritical Ising Model

The Tricritical Ising model perturbed by the subleading energy operator \Phi_(3/5) was known to be an Integrable Scattering Theory of massive kinks and in fact preserves supersymmetry. We consider here the model defined on the half-plane with a boundary and computed the associated factorizable boundary S-matrix. The conformal boundary conditions of this model were identified and the corresponding S-matrices were found. We also show how some of these S-matrices can be perturbed and generate ``flows'' between different boundary conditions.Comment: 30 pages, 14 figure

The Effect of Distractions on Task Performance and Enjoyment as Moderated by Regulatory Fit

Every day, distractions keep people from maintaining focus and productivity. Music, in particular, is a distraction that can easily disrupt individuals mentally and physically. However, what if common distractions like music had the power to motivate people towards a goal rather than deter them from it? Regulatory Focus Theory offers an explanation for how this is possible. It posits two motivational foci: promotion and prevention. If individuals are promotion-focused, they seek positive outcomes, and if individuals are prevention-focused, they try to avoid negative outcomes. The current study tested the assumption that avoiding distractions during goal pursuit matched the behavior of someone with a prevention focus better than someone with a promotion focus and simply being in a prevention focus when completing a task could increase an individual’s task enjoyment and performance when distractions were present. Participants were first given a questionnaire to determine their regulatory focus. Then their task was to solve math problems in the presence or absence of music which served as the distraction. The results of 150 participants did not support the hypotheses and showed that, regardless of whether a distraction was present or not, promotion-focused participants performed better and enjoyed the task more than their prevention-focused counterparts

The odd primary order of the commutator on low rank Lie groups

Let $G$ be a simply-connected, compact, simple Lie group of low rank relative to a fixed prime $p$. After localization at $p$, there is a space $A$ which "generates" $G$ in a certain sense. Assuming $G$ satisfies a homotopy nilpotency condition relative to $p$, we show that the Samelson product $\langle Id_G, Id_G\rangle$ of the identity of $G$ equals the order of the Samelson product $\langle\imath,\imath\rangle$ of the inclusion $\imath:A\to G$. Applying this result, we calculate the orders of $\langle Id_G,Id_G\rangle$ for all $p$-regular Lie groups and give bounds on the orders of $\langle Id_G,Id_G\rangle$ for certain quasi-$p$-regular Lie groups.Comment: 18 pages; Accepted by Topology and its Application

The Narrative Coherence Standard and Child Patients' Capacity to Consent

Aryeh Goldberg compellingly argues for a Narrative Coherence Standard (NCS) to bolster existing methods of assessing patients' mental capacity. But his account fails to distinguish between the cognitive abilities of children and adults; consequently, worries may be raised about the scope of the NCS, in particular when we consider child patients. In this article, I argue the NCS cannot plausibly apply to children. Since children's self-conception does not arrive fully formed — but rather is a product of both incomplete cognitive development and socializing factors — I claim children may not possess a sufficiently intimate knowledge of self, and therefore a sufficiently coherent sense of self, as Goldberg demands. Therefore, we should either revise the NCS to accommodate children, adopt an incremental view of consent, or revert to the relevant form of the MacArthur competence criteria to establish children’s capacity to consent

Madness in Southern China : illness as metaphor in Su Tong\u27s The tale of the siskins and Madwoman on the bridge

In Su Tong’s novels, the term madness is more than a medical term and it carries metaphorical meanings. In The Tale of the Siskins and “Madwoman on the Bridge,” Su Tong uses madness as a metaphor to challenge the dichotomy between normality and abnormality, and draws an analogy between mental hospitals and contemporary society. Unlike Yu Hua’s 余華 (1960-) novels, which intertwine sanguinary violence with madness, Su Tong depicts madness mainly to unveil the absurdity of the Mahogany Street. This paper analyses the use of patients’ illnesses in mental hospitals as metaphors in these two stories. In “Madwoman on the Bridge,” Su Tong displaces the role of doctors and madmen. In The Tale of the Siskins, Su Tong dismantles the clear-cut distinction between normality and abnormality. By reversing the two signifying concepts of normality and abnormality, Su Tong leads us to re-assess a variety of conventions, customs and acts we deem reasonable and legitimate in contemporary society