2,911 research outputs found
Investigating Multiple Solutions in the Constrained Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model
Recent work has shown that the Constrained Minimal Supersymmetric Standard
Model (CMSSM) can possess several distinct solutions for certain values of its
parameters. The extra solutions were not previously found by public
supersymmetric spectrum generators because fixed point iteration (the algorithm
used by the generators) is unstable in the neighbourhood of these solutions.
The existence of the additional solutions calls into question the robustness of
exclusion limits derived from collider experiments and cosmological
observations upon the CMSSM, because limits were only placed on one of the
solutions. Here, we map the CMSSM by exploring its multi-dimensional parameter
space using the shooting method, which is not subject to the stability issues
which can plague fixed point iteration. We are able to find multiple solutions
where in all previous literature only one was found. The multiple solutions are
of two distinct classes. One class, close to the border of bad electroweak
symmetry breaking, is disfavoured by LEP2 searches for neutralinos and
charginos. The other class has sparticles that are heavy enough to evade the
LEP2 bounds. Chargino masses may differ by up to around 10% between the
different solutions, whereas other sparticle masses differ at the sub-percent
level. The prediction for the dark matter relic density can vary by a hundred
percent or more between the different solutions, so analyses employing the dark
matter constraint are incomplete without their inclusion.Comment: 30 pages, 12 figures, 2 tables; v2: added discussion on speed of
shooting method, fixed typos, matches published versio
Arsenic: A Roadblock to Potential Animal Waste Management Solutions
The localization and intensification of the poultry industry over the past 50 years have incidentally created a largely ignored environmental management crisis. As a result of these changes in poultry production, concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) produce far more waste than can be managed by land disposal within the regions where it is produced. As a result, alternative waste management practices are currently being implemented, including incineration and pelletization of waste. However, organic arsenicals used in poultry feed are converted to inorganic arsenicals in poultry waste, limiting the feasibility of waste management alternatives. The presence of inorganic arsenic in incinerator ash and pelletized waste sold as fertilizer creates opportunities for population exposures that did not previously exist. The removal of arsenic from animal feed is a critical step toward safe poultry waste management
Formulas and equations for finding scattering data from the Dirichlet-to-Neumann map with nonzero background potential
For the Schrodinger equation at fixed energy with a potential supported in a
bounded domain we give formulas and equations for finding scattering data from
the Dirichlet-to-Neumann map with nonzero background potential. For the case of
zero background potential these results were obtained in [R.G.Novikov,
Multidimensional inverse spectral problem for the equation
-\Delta\psi+(v(x)-Eu(x))\psi=0, Funkt. Anal. i Ego Prilozhen 22(4), pp.11-22,
(1988)]
The Machine Learning Landscape of Top Taggers
Based on the established task of identifying boosted, hadronically decaying
top quarks, we compare a wide range of modern machine learning approaches.
Unlike most established methods they rely on low-level input, for instance
calorimeter output. While their network architectures are vastly different,
their performance is comparatively similar. In general, we find that these new
approaches are extremely powerful and great fun.Comment: Yet another tagger included
Evidence for Pervasive Adaptive Protein Evolution in Wild Mice
The relative contributions of neutral and adaptive substitutions to molecular evolution has been one of the most controversial issues in evolutionary biology for more than 40 years. The analysis of within-species nucleotide polymorphism and between-species divergence data supports a widespread role for adaptive protein evolution in certain taxa. For example, estimates of the proportion of adaptive amino acid substitutions (alpha) are 50% or more in enteric bacteria and Drosophila. In contrast, recent estimates of alpha for hominids have been at most 13%. Here, we estimate alpha for protein sequences of murid rodents based on nucleotide polymorphism data from multiple genes in a population of the house mouse subspecies Mus musculus castaneus, which inhabits the ancestral range of the Mus species complex and nucleotide divergence between M. m. castaneus and M. famulus or the rat. We estimate that 57% of amino acid substitutions in murids have been driven by positive selection. Hominids, therefore, are exceptional in having low apparent levels of adaptive protein evolution. The high frequency of adaptive amino acid substitutions in wild mice is consistent with their large effective population size, leading to effective natural selection at the molecular level. Effective natural selection also manifests itself as a paucity of effectively neutral nonsynonymous mutations in M. m. castaneus compared to humans
Genomics of Divergence along a Continuum of Parapatric Population Differentiation
MM received funding from the Max Planck innovation funds for this project. PGDF was supported by a Marie Curie European Reintegration Grant (proposal nr 270891). CE was supported by German Science Foundation grants (DFG, EI 841/4-1 and EI 841/6-1)
New physiological activities of myosuppressin, sulfakinin and NVP-like peptide in Zophobas atratus beetle
Three neuropeptides Zopat-MS-2 (pEDVDHVFLRFa), Zopat-SK-1 (pETSDDYGHLRFa) and Zopat-NVPL-4trunc. (GRWGGFA), recently isolated from the neuroendocrine system of the Zophobas atratus beetle, were tested for their myotropic and hyperglycaemic activities in this species. These peptides exerted differentiated dose-dependent and tissue specific physiological effects. Zopat-MS-2 inhibited contractions of the isolated heart, ejaculatory duct, oviduct and hindgut of adult beetles and induced bimodal effects in the heart contractile activity of pupae in vivo. It also increased the haemolymph free sugar level in larvae of this species, apart from myotropic activity. Zopat-SK-1 showed myostimulatory action on the isolated hindgut of the adult beetles, but it decreased contractions of the heart, ejaculatory duct and oviduct. Injections of this peptide at a dose of 2 μg also caused delayed cardioinhibitory effects on the heartbeat of the pupae. Together with the ability to increase free sugar level in the haemolymph of larvae these were new physiological activities of sulfakinins in insects. Zopat-NVPL-4trunc. inhibited the muscle contractions of the two organs: hindgut and ejaculatory duct but it was inactive on the oviduct and the heart of the adult beetles. This peptide also increased free sugar level concentration in the haemolymph of Z. atratus larvae. These physiological actions are the first biological activities discovered for this group of the insect peptides. The present work showed pleiotropic activity of three neuropeptides and indicates that the visceral muscle contractions and the haemolymph sugar homeostasis in Z. atratus are regulated by complex mechanisms
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