Dielectric constant of glasses: first observation of a two-dimensional behavior

The 1kHz real part $\chi'$ of the dielectric constant of a structural glass was measured at low temperature $T$ down to 14 mK. Reducing the sample thickness $h$ to 10 nm suppresses the usual minimum of $\chi'$ for measuring fields $E<.5$ MV/m. This contradicts the Two Level System (TLS) model but is well accounted for by including TLS-TLS interactions where excitations delocalize between TLS's through a $E$-induced mechanism recently designed: for small $h$'s this interaction is reduced, which explains the two-dimensional behavior of $\chi'(T)$. Hence, interactions play a key role in standard thick samples.Comment: latex finesse3.tex, 5 files, 4 figures, 4 pages [SPEC-S02/050], submitted to Phys. Rev. Let

The Virtues of Balm in Late Medieval Literature

This article argues that balm, or balsam, was, by the late medieval period, believed to be a panacea, capable of healing wounds and illnesses, and also preventing putrefaction. Natural history and pharmacological texts on balm from the ancient and late antique periods emphasized specific qualities of balm, especially its heat; these were condensed and repeated in medieval encyclopedias. The rarity and cost of balsam, from antiquity through the medieval period, and the high rate of counterfeiting also demonstrate its high demand and significance in medicine and religious ritual. Travel writing and itineraria from the early and central medieval periods added a new layer to ideas about the capabilities of balsam: that it originated from a Christian miracle and was a particularly Christian plant

The Methyltetrahydro-β-Carbolines in Maca (Lepidium meyenii)

Maca, a plant native to the Peruvian highlands, contains (1R,3S)-1-methyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-β-carboline-3-carboxylic acid (MTCA). The family of the tetrahydro-β-carbolines has been associated with both biologically helpful and harmful compounds. We present evidence that MTCA is a natural constituent of Maca, and on consumption no toxicity is found. This suggests that, when consumed as multi-component, MTCA may loose its adversity as drug action

Magnetic field effect on the dielectric constant of glasses: Evidence of disorder within tunneling barriers

The magnetic field dependence of the low frequency dielectric constant $e_r$(H) of a structural glass a - SiO2 + xCyHz was studied from 400 mK to 50 mK and for H up to 3T. Measurement of both the real and the imaginary parts of $e_r$ is used to eliminate the difficult question of keeping constant the temperature of the sample while increasing H: a non-zero $e_r$(H) dependence is reported in the same range as that one very recently reported on multicomponent glasses. In addition to the recently proposed explanation based on interactions, the reported $e_r$(H) is interpreted quantitatively as a consequence of the disorder lying within the nanometric barriers of the elementary tunneling systems of the glass.Comment: latex Bcorrige1.tex, 5 files, 4 figures, 7 pages [SPEC-S02/009

A narrow band neutrino beam with high precision flux measurements

The ENUBET facility is a proposed narrow band neutrino beam where lepton production is monitored at single particle level in the instrumented decay tunnel. This facility addresses simultaneously the two most important challenges for the next generation of cross section experiments: a superior control of the flux and flavor composition at source and a high level of tunability and precision in the selection of the energy of the outcoming neutrinos. We report here the latest results in the development and test of the instrumentation for the decay tunnel. Special emphasis is given to irradiation tests of the photo-sensors performed at INFN-LNL and CERN in 2017 and to the first application of polysiloxane-based scintillators in high energy physics.Comment: Poster presented at NuPhys2017 (London, 20-22 December 2017). 5 pages, 2 figure

The ENUBET Beamline

The ENUBET ERC project (2016-2021) is studying a narrow band neutrino beam where lepton production can be monitored at single particle level in an instrumented decay tunnel. This would allow to measure $\nu_{\mu}$ and $\nu_{e}$ cross sections with a precision improved by about one order of magnitude compared to present results. In this proceeding we describe a first realistic design of the hadron beamline based on a dipole coupled to a pair of quadrupole triplets along with the optimisation guidelines and the results of a simulation based on G4beamline. A static focusing design, though less efficient than a horn-based solution, results several times more efficient than originally expected. It works with slow proton extractions reducing drastically pile-up effects in the decay tunnel and it paves the way towards a time-tagged neutrino beam. On the other hand a horn-based transferline would ensure higher yields at the tunnel entrance. The first studies conducted at CERN to implement the synchronization between a few ms proton extraction and a horn pulse of 2-10 ms are also described.Comment: Poster presented at NuPhys2018 (London 19-21 December 2018). 4 pages, 3 figure