Fourth workshop on Experiments and Detectors for a Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider

We present a description of an experiment which can be used to search for effects of strong electromagnetic fields on the production of e(sup +) e(sup -) pairs in the elastic scattering of two heavy ions at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). A very brief discussion of other possible studies of electromagnetic phenomena at RHIC is also presented

Preconscious control of stereotype activation through chronic egalitarian goals

This research shows stereotype activation is controlled by chronic egalitarian goals. In the first 2 studies it was found that the stereotype of women is equally available to individuals with and without chronic goals, and the discriminant validity of the concept of egalitarian goals was established. In the next 2 experiments, differences in stereotype activation as a function of this individual difference were found. In Study 3, participants read attributes following stereotypical primes. Facilitated response times to stereotypical attributes were found for nonchronics but not for chronics. This lack of facilitation occurred at stimulus onset asynchronies (SOAs) where effortful correction processes could not operate, demonstrating preconscious control of stereotype activation due to chronic goals. In Study 4, inhibition of the stereotype was found at an SOA where effortful processes of stereotype suppression could not operate. The data reveal that goals are activated and used preconsciously to prevent stereotype activation, demonstrating both the controllability of stereotype activation and the implicit role of goals in cognitive control. The current research addresses an important question for understanding both the nature of stereotyping and the nature of cognitive control: Can one's commitment to a goal lead to control over th

Magnetic Properties of Magnetotactic Bacteria

This paper reports on the magnetic properties of magnetosomes in the freshwater magnetotactic bacterium Aquaspirillum magnetotacticum. The magnetosomes are well crystallized particles of magnetite with dimensions of 40 to 50 nm, which are arranged within the cells in a single linear chain and are within the single-magnetic-domain (SD) size range for magnetite. A variety of magnetic properties have been measured for two samples of dispersions of freeze-dried cells consisting of (1) whole cells (M-1) and (2) magnetosomes chains separated from cells (M-2). An important result is that the acquisition and demagnetization of various type of remanent magnetizations are markedly different for the two samples and suggest that remanence is substantially affected by magnetostatic interactions. Interactions are likely to be much more important in M-2 because the extracted magnetosome chains are no longer separated from one another by the cell membrane and cytoplasm. Other experimental data for whole cells agree with predictions based on the chain of spheres model for magnetization reversal. This model is consistent with the unique linear arrangement of equidimensional particles in A. magnetotacticum. The magnetic properties of bacterial and synthetic magnetites are compared and the paleomagnetic implications are discussed

Passive States for Essential Observers

The aim of this note is to present a unified approach to the results given in \cite{bb99} and \cite{bs04} which also covers examples of models not presented in these two papers (e.g. $d$-dimensional Minkowski space-time for $d\geq 3$). Assuming that a state is passive for an observer travelling along certain (essential) worldlines, we show that this state is invariant under the isometry group, is a KMS-state for the observer at a temperature uniquely determined by the structure constants of the Lie algebra involved and fulfills (a variant of) the Reeh-Schlieder property. Also the modular objects associated to such a state and the observable algebra of an observer are computed and a version of weak locality is examined.Comment: 27 page

Human decision making anticipates future performance in motor learning.

It is well-established that people can factor into account the distribution of their errors in motor performance so as to optimize reward. Here we asked whether, in the context of motor learning where errors decrease across trials, people take into account their future, improved performance so as to make optimal decisions to maximize reward. One group of participants performed a virtual throwing task in which, periodically, they were given the opportunity to select from a set of smaller targets of increasing value. A second group of participants performed a reaching task under a visuomotor rotation in which, after performing a initial set of trials, they selected a reward structure (ratio of points for target hits and misses) for different exploitation horizons (i.e., numbers of trials they might be asked to perform). Because movement errors decreased exponentially across trials in both learning tasks, optimal target selection (task 1) and optimal reward structure selection (task 2) required taking into account future performance. The results from both tasks indicate that people anticipate their future motor performance so as to make decisions that will improve their expected future reward

Retinal, visual, and refractive development in retinopathy of prematurity

The pivotal role of the neurosensory retina in retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) disease processes has been amply demonstrated in rat models. We have hypothesized that analogous cellular processes are operative in human ROP and have evaluated these presumptions in a series on non-invasive investigations of the photoreceptor and post-receptor peripheral and central retina in infants and children. Key results are slowed kinetics of phototransduction and deficits in photoreceptor sensitivity that persist years after ROP has completely resolved based on clinical criteria. On the other hand, deficits in post-receptor sensitivity are present in infancy regardless of the severity of the ROP but are not present in older children if the ROP was so mild that it never required treatment and resolved without a clinical trace. Accompanying the persistent deficits in photoreceptor sensitivity, there is increased receptive field size and thickening of the post-receptor retinal laminae in the peripheral retina of ROP subjects. In the late maturing central retina, which mediates visual acuity, attenuation of multifocal electroretinogram activity in the post-receptor retina led us to the discovery of a shallow foveal pit and significant thickening of the post-receptor retinal laminae in the macular region; this is most likely due to failure of the normal centrifugal movement of the post-receptor cells during foveal development. As for refractive development, myopia, at times high, is more common in ROP subjects than in control subjects, in accord with refractive findings in other populations of former preterms. This information about the neurosensory retina enhances understanding of vision in patients with a history of ROP, and taken as a whole, raises the possibility that the neurosensory retina is a target for therapeutic intervention

Building 830 Gamma Irradiation Facility Evaluation of Options for its Future Disposition

In the spring of 1997, the Suffolk County Department of Health Services audited the BNL site, and identified the Building 830 Gamma Irradiation Facility (GIF) as an underground tank regulated under Suffolk County Health Code, Article 12. As a result of this audit, a project was initiated to review the GIF and to collect information to develop an options list for its future disposition. The overall objective of this task was to evaluate the decontamination and decommissioning (D&D) of the GIF, including the proper disposal of the cobalt-60 sources currently located in the GIF. This objective was accomplished through the performance of the following subtasks. (1) Characterize the GIF and the cobalt-60 sources: (a) Compile available data on the physical and radiological characteristics of the gamma sources; (b) Conduct underwater surveys to verify visually the physical state of the sources, and if possible, their activity levels (curie content); and (c) Prepare the pool, to the extent possible, for removal of the sources. (2) Identify options for future disposition: (a) Contact other gamma facilities and find out their experiences with recycling, disposal, and D&D; and (b) Contact vendors for the disposal or recycling of the cobalt-60 sources. Identify options and factors affecting them, such as costs, regulatory issues, health and safety requirements, equipment availability. This report summarizes the results of these subtasks. The remainder of this introductory section gives a description of the GIF, provides a brief history of the facility, and discusses the applicable Article 12 requirements. Section 2 focuses on the sources themselves, and the current facility configuration. Contacts with other gamma facilities are summarized in Section 3. Section 4 presents the options developed from these contacts and from BNL experience, and their estimated costs. Costs are tabulated and compared in Section 5, and Section 6 presents conclusions

Noncovalent Interactions by QMC: Speedup by One-Particle Basis-Set Size Reduction

While it is empirically accepted that the fixed-node diffusion Monte-Carlo (FN-DMC) depends only weakly on the size of the one-particle basis sets used to expand its guiding functions, limits of this observation are not settled yet. Our recent work indicates that under the FN error cancellation conditions, augmented triple zeta basis sets are sufficient to achieve a benchmark level of 0.1 kcal/mol in a number of small noncovalent complexes. Here we report on a possibility of truncation of the one-particle basis sets used in FN-DMC guiding functions that has no visible effect on the accuracy of the production FN-DMC energy differences. The proposed scheme leads to no significant increase in the local energy variance, indicating that the total CPU cost of large-scale benchmark noncovalent interaction energy FN-DMC calculations may be reduced.Comment: ACS book chapter, accepte

Unique and Overlapping Symptoms in Schizophrenia Spectrum and Dissociative Disorders in Relation to Models of Psychopathology:A Systematic Review

Schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs) and dissociative disorders (DDs) are described in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM-5) and tenth edition of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10) as 2 categorically distinct diagnostic categories. However, several studies indicate high levels of co-occurrence between these diagnostic groups, which might be explained by overlapping symptoms. The aim of this systematic review is to provide a comprehensive overview of the research concerning overlap and differences in symptoms between schizophrenia spectrum and DDs. For this purpose the PubMed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science databases were searched for relevant literature. The literature contained a large body of evidence showing the presence of symptoms of dissociation in SSDs. Although there are quantitative differences between diagnoses, overlapping symptoms are not limited to certain domains of dissociation, nor to nonpathological forms of dissociation. In addition, dissociation seems to be related to a history of trauma in SSDs, as is also seen in DDs. There is also evidence showing that positive and negative symptoms typically associated with schizophrenia may be present in DD. Implications of these results are discussed with regard to different models of psychopathology and clinical practice

Low Temperature Magnetic Properties of Siderite and Magnetite in Marine Sediments

Low temperature magnetic techniques provide useful tools to detect the presence of magnetite and pyrrhotite in sediments through identification of their low temperature transitions, to determine the amount of ultrafine-grained (superparamagnetic) material in sediments, and can potentially detect the presence of certain types of magnetotactic bacteria. Application of these types of experiments to nannofossil chalks from beneath the Barbados accretionary prism led to some unusual results, which are attributed to the presence of siderite. Thermal demagnetization of low-temperature remanence after cooling in zero field and in a 2.5 T field both displayed large remanence losses from 20 K to 40 K. Below 40 K, the magnetization of the chalks was much higher in the field-cooled experiments than in the zero-field-cooled experiments. Low temperature hysteresis experiments, made after cooling in a 2.5 T field, displayed offsets in magnetization parallel to the direction of the initial applied field, when measured below 40 K. The offset loops can be due to either an exchange anisotropy between siderite and magnetite phases in the sediments, a defect moment in the siderites, or a canted moment in the siderites. Apparent similarity between the low-temperature thermal demagnetization results from these siderite-bearing sediments, pure siderite, and pure rhodochrosite samples and the well-known 34 K transition in pyrrhotite should lead to caution in identification of pyrrhotite in marine sediments based on low-temperature remanence studies alone