Where the Sidewalk Ends: Jets and Missing Energy Search Strategies for the 7 TeV LHC

This work explores the potential reach of the 7 TeV LHC to new colored states in the context of simplified models and addresses the issue of which search regions are necessary to cover an extensive set of event topologies and kinematic regimes. This article demonstrates that if searches are designed to focus on specific regions of phase space, then new physics may be missed if it lies in unexpected corners. Simple multiregion search strategies can be designed to cover all of kinematic possibilities. A set of benchmark models are created that cover the qualitatively different signatures and a benchmark multiregion search strategy is presented that covers these models.Comment: 30 pages, 8 Figures, 3 Tables. Version accepted at JHEP. Minor changes. Added figur

Bigger, Better, Faster, More at the LHC

Multijet plus missing energy searches provide universal coverage for theories that have new colored particles that decay into a dark matter candidate and jets. These signals appear at the LHC further out on the missing energy tail than two-to-two scattering indicates. The simplicity of the searches at the LHC contrasts sharply with the Tevatron where more elaborate searches are necessary to separate signal from background. The searches presented in this article effectively distinguish signal from background for any theory where the LSP is a daughter or granddaughter of the pair-produced colored parent particle without ever having to consider missing energies less than 400 GeV.Comment: 26 pages, 8 Figures. Minor textual changes, typos fixed and references adde

Mindfulness-based stress reduction in Parkinson’s disease: a systematic review

Background: Mindfulness based stress reduction (MBSR) is increasingly being used to improve outcomes such as stress and depression in a range of long-term conditions (LTCs). While systematic reviews on MBSR have taken place for a number of conditions there remains limited information on its impact on individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Methods: Medline, Central, Embase, Amed, CINAHAL were searched in March 2016. These databases were searched using a combination of MeSH subject headings where available and keywords in the title and abstracts. We also searched the reference lists of related reviews. Study quality was assessed based on questions from the Cochrane Collaboration risk of bias tool. Results: Two interventions and three papers with a total of 66 participants were included. The interventions were undertaken in Belgium (n = 27) and the USA (n = 39). One study reported significantly increased grey matter density (GMD) in the brains of the MBSR group compared to the usual care group. Significant improvements were reported in one study for a number of outcomes including PD outcomes, depression, mindfulness, and quality of life indicators. Only one intervention was of reasonable quality and both interventions failed to control for potential confounders in the analysis. Adverse events and reasons for drop-outs were not reported. There was also no reporting on the costs/benefits of the intervention or how they affected health service utilisation. Conclusion: This systematic review found limited and inconclusive evidence of the effectiveness of MBSR for PD patients. Both of the included interventions claimed positive effects for PD patients but significant outcomes were often contradicted by other results. Further trials with larger sample sizes, control groups and longer follow-ups are needed before the evidence for MBSR in PD can be conclusively judged

The grinch who stole wisdom

Dr. Seuss is wise. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Seuss, 1957) could serve as a parable for our time. It can also be seen as a roadmap for the development of contemplative wisdom. The abiding popularity of How the Grinch Stole Christmas additionally suggests that contemplative wisdom is more readily available to ordinary people, even children, than is normally thought. This matters because from the point of view of contemplatives in any of the world's philosophies or religions, people are confused about wisdom. The content of the nascent field of wisdom studies, they might say, is largely not wisdom at all but rather what it's like to live in a particular kind of prison cell, a well appointed cell perhaps, but not a place that makes possible either personal satisfaction or deep problem solving. I believe that what the contemplative traditions have to say is important; they offer a different orientation to what personal wisdom is, how to develop it, and how to use it in the world than is presently contained in either our popular culture or our sciences. In order to illustrate this I will examine, in some detail, one contemplative path within Buddhism. Buddhism is particularly useful in this respect because its practices are nontheistic and thus avoid many of the cultural landmines associated with the contemplative aspects of Western religions

Diagnosing Spin at the LHC via Vector Boson Fusion

We propose a new technique for determining the spin of new massive particles that might be discovered at the Large Hadron Collider. The method relies on pair-production of the new particles in a kinematic regime where the vector boson fusion production mechanism is enhanced. For this regime, we show that the distribution of the leading jets as a function of their relative azimuthal angle can be used to distinguish spin-0 from spin-1/2 particles. We illustrate this effect by considering the particular cases of (i) strongly-interacting, stable particles and (ii) supersymmetric particles carrying color charge. We argue that this method should be applicable in a wide range of new physics scenarios.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Gluino Decay as a Probe of High Scale Supersymmetry Breaking

A supersymmetric standard model with heavier scalar supersymmetric particles has many attractive features. If the scalar mass scale is O(10 - 10^4) TeV, the standard model like Higgs boson with mass around 125 GeV, which is strongly favored by the LHC experiment, can be realized. However, in this scenario the scalar particles are too heavy to be produced at the LHC. In addition, if the scalar mass is much less than O(10^4) TeV, the lifetime of the gluino is too short to be measured. Therefore, it is hard to probe the scalar particles at a collider. However, a detailed study of the gluino decay reveals that two body decay of the gluino carries important information on the scalar scale. In this paper, we propose a test of this scenario by measuring the decay pattern of the gluino at the LHC.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures; version published in JHE

Physics Opportunities of e+e- Linear Colliders

We describe the anticipated experimental program of an e+e- linear collider in the energy range 500 GeV -- 1.5 TeV. We begin with a description of current collider designs and the expected experimental environment. We then discuss precision studies of the W boson and top quark. Finally, we review the range of models proposed to explain the physics of electroweak symmetry breaking and show, for each case, the central role that the linear collider experiments will play in elucidating this physics. (to appear in Annual Reviews of Nuclear and Particle Science)Comment: 93 pages, latex + 23 figures; typos corrections + 1 reference adde

The prevalence and experience of Australian naturopaths and Western herbalists working within community pharmacies

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Naturopaths and Western herbal medicine (WHM) practitioners were surveyed to identify their extent, experience and roles within the community pharmacy setting and to explore their attitudes to integration of complementary medicine (CM) practitioners within the pharmacy setting.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>Practising naturopaths and WHM practitioners were invited to participate in an anonymous, self-administered, on-line survey. Participants were recruited using the mailing lists and websites of CM manufacturers and professional associations.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>479 practitioners participated. 24% of respondents (n = 111) reported they had worked in community pharmacy, three-quarters for less than 5 years. Whilst in this role 74% conducted specialist CMs sales, 62% short customer consultations, 52% long consultations in a private room and 51% staff education. This was generally described as a positive learning experience and many appreciated the opportunity to utilise their specialist knowledge in the service of both customers and pharmacy staff. 14% (n = 15) did not enjoy the experience of working in pharmacy at all and suggested pharmacist attitude largely influenced whether the experience was positive or not. Few practitioners were satisfied with the remuneration received. 44% of the total sample provided comment on the issue of integration into pharmacy, with the main concern being the perceived incommensurate paradigms of practice between pharmacy and naturopathy. Of the total sample, 38% reported that they would consider working as a practitioner in retail pharmacy in future.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The level of integration of CM into pharmacy is extending beyond the mere stocking of supplements. Naturopaths and Western Herbalists are becoming utilised in pharmacies</p

On measurement of top polarization as a probe of ttˉt \bar t production mechanisms at the LHC

In this note we demonstrate the use of top polarization in the study of $t \bar t$ resonances at the LHC, in the possible case where the dynamics implies a non-zero top polarization. As a probe of top polarization we construct an asymmetry in the decay-lepton azimuthal angle distribution (corresponding to the sign of $\cos\phi_\ell$) in the laboratory. The asymmetry is non-vanishing even for a symmetric collider like the LHC, where a positive $z$ axis is not uniquely defined. The angular distribution of the leptons has the advantage of being a faithful top-spin analyzer, unaffected by possible anomalous $tbW$ couplings, to linear order. We study, for purposes of demonstration, the case of a $Z'$ as might exist in the little Higgs models. We identify kinematic cuts which ensure that our asymmetry reflects the polarization in sign and magnitude. We investigate possibilities at the LHC with two energy options: $\sqrt{s} = 14$ TeV and $\sqrt{s} = 7$ TeV, as well as at the Tevatron. At the LHC the model predicts net top quark polarization of the order of a few per cent for $M_{Z'} \simeq 1200$ GeV, being as high as $10$ for a smaller mass of the $Z'$ of $700$ GeV and for the largest allowed coupling in the model, the values being higher for the $7$ TeV option. These polarizations translate to a deviation from the standard-model value of azimuthal asymmetry of up to about $4$ ($7$) for $14$ ($7$) TeV LHC, whereas for the Tevatron, values as high as $12$ are attained. For the $14$ TeV LHC with an integrated luminosity of 10 fb$^{-1}$, these numbers translate into a $3 \sigma$ sensitivity over a large part of the range $500 \lesssim M_{Z'} \lesssim 1500$ GeV.Comment: 28 page, LaTeX, requires JHEP style file, 12 figures. Typos corrected and references adde

A randomized controlled pilot study of a brief web-based mindfulness training

Background: Mindfulness has been shown to be effective in treating various medical and mental problems. Especially its incorporation in cognitive-behavioural interventions has improved long-term outcomes of those treatments. It has also been shown, that brief mindfulness-based trainings are effective in reducing distress. There have been few web-based interventions incorporating mindfulness techniques in their manual and it remains unclear whether a brief web-based mindfulness intervention is feasible. Methods: Out of 50 adults (different distress levels; exclusion criteria: < 18 years, indication of psychotic or suicidal ideation in screening) who were recruited via e-mail and screened online, 49 were randomized into an immediate 2-weeks-treatment group (N = 28) or a waitlist-control group (N = 21), starting with a 2-week delay. Distress (BSI), perceived stress (PSQ), mindfulness (FMI), as well as mood and emotion regulation (PANAS/SEK-27) were measured at pre-, post- and 3-month follow-up (3MFU). Intention-to-treat analyses using MI for missing data and per-protocol analyses (≥ 50% attendance) were performed. Results: 26 participants of the treatment group completed post-measures. Most measures under ITT-analysis revealed no significant improvement for the treatment group, but trends with medium effect sizes for PSQ (d = 0.46) and PANASneg (d = 0.50) and a small, non-significant effect for FMI (d = 0.29). Per-protocol analyses for persons who participated over 50% of the time revealed significant treatment effects for PSQ (d = 0.72) and PANASneg (d = 0.77). Comparing higher distressed participants with lower distressed participants, highly distressed participants seemed to profit more of the training in terms of distress reduction (GSI, d = 0.85). Real change (RCI) occurred for PSQ in the treatment condition (OR = 9). Results also suggest that participants continued to benefit from the training at 3MFU. Conclusion: This study of a brief web-based mindfulness training indicates that mindfulness can be taught online and may improve distress, perceived stress and negative affect for regular users. Although there were no significant improvements, but trends, for most measures under ITT, feasibility of such a program was demonstrated and also that persons continued to use techniques of the training in daily life