Double distributions: Loose ends

We point out that double distributions need not vanish at their boundary. Boundary terms do not change the ambiguity inherent in defining double distributions; instead, boundary conditions must be satisfied in order to switch between different decompositions. We analyze both the spin zero and spin one-half cases.Comment: 4 pages, 0 figures, RevTex 4, Brief Repor

Hadron annihilation into two photons and backward dVCS in the scaling regime of QCD

We study the scaling regime of hadron-(anti)-hadron annihilation into a deeply virtual photon and a real photon, H anti-H -> gamma^* gamma, and deep backward virtual Compton scattering, gamma^* H -> H gamma. We advocate that there is a kinematical region where the scattering amplitude factorizes into a short-distance matrix element and a long-distance dominated object: a transition distribution amplitude which describes the hadron to photon transition.Comment: 4 pages, 1 .eps figure, to be published in Phys. Rev. D Rapid Com

Casimir energy density in closed hyperbolic universes

The original Casimir effect results from the difference in the vacuum energies of the electromagnetic field, between that in a region of space with boundary conditions and that in the same region without boundary conditions. In this paper we develop the theory of a similar situation, involving a scalar field in spacetimes with compact spatial sections of negative spatial curvature.Comment: 10 pages. Contribution to the "Fifth Alexander Friedmann International Seminar on Gravitation and Cosmology," Joao Pessoa, Brazil, 2002. Revised version, with altered Abstract and one new referenc

A role for doctors in assisted dying? An analysis of legal regulations and medical professional positions in six European countries

An extensive debate about assisted suicide and euthanasia has been taking place in westernized countries during the last twenty years. Traditionally, the medical profession has maintained a clear distance from euthanasia and assisted suicide, but this distance can no longer be justified by simply referring to the law. This paper analyses the legal and, in particular, medical professional positions with respect to the doctor’s role in assisted dying in certain Western European countries (Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, United Kingdom) and discusses their implications for doctors

On a differential inclusion related to the Born-Infeld equations

We study a partial differential relation that arises in the context of the Born-Infeld equations (an extension of the Maxwell's equations) by using Gromov's method of convex integration in the setting of divergence free fields

Unfolding and unzipping of single-stranded DNA by stretching

We present a theoretical study of single-stranded DNA under stretching. Within the proposed framework, the effects of basepairing on the mechanical response of the molecule can be studied in combination with an arbitrary underlying model of chain elasticity. In a generic case, we show that the stretching curve of ssDNA exhibits two distinct features: the second-order "unfolding" phase transition, and a sharp crossover, reminiscent of the first-order "unzipping" transition in dsDNA. We apply the theory to the particular cases of Worm-like Chain (WLC) and Freely-Joint Chain (FJC) models, and discuss the universal and model--dependent features of the mechanical response of ssDNA. In particular, we show that variation of the width of the unzipping crossover with interaction strength is very sensitive to the energetics of hairpin loops. This opens a new way of testing the elastic properties of ssDNA.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, substantially revised versio

Calorons in SU(3) lattice gauge theory

We examine the semiclassical content of SU(3) Yang Mills theory on the lattice at finite temperature. Employing the cooling method, a set of classical fields is generated from a Monte Carlo ensemble. Various operators are used to inspect this set with respect to topological properties. We find pseudoparticle fields, so-called caloron solutions, possessing the remarkable features of (superpositions of) Kraan-van Baal solutions, i.e. extensions of Harrington-Shepard calorons to generic values of the holonomy.Comment: 14 pages, 16 figure