An Intermediate Water Cherenkov Detector at J-PARC

Recent neutrino oscillation results have shown that the existing long baseline experiments have some sensitivity to the effects of CP violation in the neutrino sector. This sensitivity is currently statistically limited, but the next generation of experiments, DUNE and Hyper-K, will provide an order of magnitude more events. To reach the full potential of these datasets we must achieve a commensurate improvement in our understanding of the systematic uncertainties that beset them. This talk describes two proposed intermediate detectors for the current and future long baseline oscillation experiments in Japan, TITUS and NuPRISM. These detectors are discussed in the context of the current T2K oscillation analysis, highlighting the ways in which they could reduce the systematic uncertainty on this measurement. The talk also describes the short baseline oscillation sensitivity of NuPRISM along with the neutrino scattering measurements the detector makes possible.Comment: 11 pages, 15 figures, Proceedings of NuInt2015, Osaka, November 201

Vertical rectus abdominis myocutaneous versus alternative flaps for perineal repair after abdominoperineal excision of the rectum in the era of laparoscopic surgery

Aims: Plastic surgical reconstruction of the perineum is often required after abdominoperineal excision of the rectum. Options for this reconstruction include a vertical rectus abdominis myocutaneous (VRAM) flap, gluteal fasciocutaneous flap, and gracilis myocutaneous flap. Although the VRAM flap is well established at most centers, less experience exists with the gluteal and gracilis flaps. In the era of laparoscopic colorectal resection, plastic surgeons are being forced to use gluteal and gracilis flaps because the VRAM flap must be tunnelled intra-abdominally requiring laparotomy. We therefore aimed to systematically review the evidence comparing VRAM, gluteal, and gracilis flaps. Methods: A comprehensive, structured literature search was conducted using Medline, Google Scholar, and Science Direct. Studies included were randomized control trials and observational studies documenting complication rates associated with the VRAM, gluteal, or gracilis flap. Results: Eleven studies meeting all inclusion and exclusion criteria were identified. When meta-analyzed, the overall rate of any perineal wound or flap complication among VRAM patients (35.8%) was significantly lower than gluteal flap (43.7%) and gracilis flap patients (52.9%) (P = 0.041). Conclusions: The VRAM flap is well established for perineal reconstruction, and this study suggests that it may be superior to the gluteal and gracilis flaps in terms perineal wound and flap complication rates. This should be taken into account when weighing up the risks and benefits of a laparoscopic approach to abdominoperineal excision of the rectum. Large studies making direct comparisons between the flap options should be conducted

An efficient representation of spatial information for expert reasoning in robotic vehicles

The previous generation of robotic vehicles and drones was designed for a specific task, with limited flexibility in executing their mission. This limited flexibility arises because the robotic vehicles do not possess the intelligence and knowledge upon which to make significant tactical decisions. Current development of robotic vehicles is toward increased intelligence and capabilities, adapting to a changing environment and altering mission objectives. The latest techniques in artificial intelligence (AI) are being employed to increase the robotic vehicle's intelligent decision-making capabilities. This document describes the design of the SARA spatial database tool, which is composed of request parser, reasoning, computations, and database modules that collectively manage and derive information useful for robotic vehicles

Learning from Physics Education Research: Lessons for Economics Education

We believe that economists have much to learn from educational research practices and related pedagogical innovations in other disciplines, in particular physics education. In this paper we identify three key features of physics education research that distinguish it from economics education research - (1) the intentional grounding of physics education research in learning science principles, (2) a shared conceptual research framework focused on how students learn physics concepts, and (3) a cumulative process of knowledge-building in the discipline - and describe their influence on new teaching pedagogies, instructional activities, and curricular design in physics education. In addition, we highlight four specific examples of successful pedagogical innovations drawn from physics education - context-rich problems, concept tests, just-in-time teaching, and interactive lecture demonstrations - and illustrate how these practices can be adapted for economic education.Comment: 19 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Journal of Economic Education, also available from Social Science Research Network <http://ssrn.com/abstract=1151430

Design study of a thermocouple power sensor as a monolithic fin-line

Making traceable power measurements above 110 GHz using current measurement technologies is challenging. We investigate a design of power sensor consisting of a thermocouple-based integrated circuit (IC) mounted as a finline component in WR-6 waveguide. The design is original in that it contains an antenna, terminating resistor and thermocouples on-chip. We detail the design and report results from simulations and measurements made on a two-port 16:1 scale model. Our design of scale model provides both insertion and reflection loss measurements. Electromagnetic simulation and easily-calibrated model measurements confirm that the short antenna fins feasible on a monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) can achieve acceptable specifications. The design proves to be relatively insensitive to the value of the terminating resistance or the size of the antenna fins