Education and training activities in the Euratom CONFIDENCE project

The education and training activities formed a key part of the CONFIDENCE project and were integrated into the research programme. The activities varied from training courses through to workshops and courses for students, integrating achievements from the CONFIDENCE project. The tasks were developed and realised in collaboration with academic departments’ outwith the CONFIDENCE consortium. Educational materials as well as lectures, round table discussions and table-top exercises have been conducted at universities. In such a way we have reached the next generation of Radiation Protection specialists. Junior scientists, post-doctoral researchers and PhD. students have also been involved in CONFIDENCE’s core research activities. A final dissemination meeting focused on communicating the main achievements of the project

Positrons in Cosmic Rays from Dark Matter Annihilations for Uplifted Higgs Regions in MSSM

We point out that there are regions in the MSSM parameter space which successfully provide a dark matter (DM) annihilation explanation for observed positron excess (e.g. PAMELA), while still remaining in agreement with all other data sets. Such regions (e.g. the uplifted Higgs region) can realize an enhanced neutralino DM annihilation dominantly into leptons via a Breit-Wigner resonance through the CP-odd Higgs channel. Such regions can give the proper thermal relic DM abundance, and the DM annihilation products are compatible with current antiproton and gamma ray observations. This scenario can succeed without introducing any additional degrees of freedom beyond those already in the MSSM.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figure

Future geodesic completeness of some spatially homogeneous solutions of the vacuum Einstein equations in higher dimensions

It is known that all spatially homogeneous solutions of the vacuum Einstein equations in four dimensions which exist for an infinite proper time towards the future are future geodesically complete. This paper investigates whether the analogous statement holds in higher dimensions. A positive answer to this question is obtained for a large class of models which can be studied with the help of Kaluza-Klein reduction to solutions of the Einstein-scalar field equations in four dimensions. The proof of this result makes use of a criterion for geodesic completeness which is applicable to more general spatially homogeneous models.Comment: 18 page

Contextual Object Detection with a Few Relevant Neighbors

A natural way to improve the detection of objects is to consider the contextual constraints imposed by the detection of additional objects in a given scene. In this work, we exploit the spatial relations between objects in order to improve detection capacity, as well as analyze various properties of the contextual object detection problem. To precisely calculate context-based probabilities of objects, we developed a model that examines the interactions between objects in an exact probabilistic setting, in contrast to previous methods that typically utilize approximations based on pairwise interactions. Such a scheme is facilitated by the realistic assumption that the existence of an object in any given location is influenced by only few informative locations in space. Based on this assumption, we suggest a method for identifying these relevant locations and integrating them into a mostly exact calculation of probability based on their raw detector responses. This scheme is shown to improve detection results and provides unique insights about the process of contextual inference for object detection. We show that it is generally difficult to learn that a particular object reduces the probability of another, and that in cases when the context and detector strongly disagree this learning becomes virtually impossible for the purposes of improving the results of an object detector. Finally, we demonstrate improved detection results through use of our approach as applied to the PASCAL VOC and COCO datasets

Visualizing Spacetime Curvature via Gradient Flows I: Introduction

Traditional approaches to the study of the dynamics of spacetime curvature in a very real sense hide the intricacies of the nonlinear regime. Whether it be huge formulae, or mountains of numerical data, standard methods of presentation make little use of our remarkable skill, as humans, at pattern recognition. Here we introduce a new approach to the visualization of spacetime curvature. We examine the flows associated with the gradient fields of invariants derived from the spacetime. These flows reveal a remarkably rich structure, and offer fresh insights even for well known analytical solutions to Einstein's equations. This paper serves as an overview and as an introduction to this approach.Comment: 10 pages twocolumn revtex 4-1 two figures. Final form to appear in Phys Rev

Lessons being learned between the Covid-19 pandemic and radiological emergencies: report from experts’ discussions

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available on open access from IOP Publishing via the DOI in this recordIn order to examine what lessons radiological emergency management may offer to the Covid-19 pandemic management and vice versa, a series of three online webinars were conducted with leading experts, scholars and practitioners from a wide range of disciplines essential for emergency management and long-term risk governance. The first webinar debated the lessons we are learning from the Covid-19 pandemic for radiological risk communication, the second explored issues around longer-term outcomes of a crisis and how to balance these with short-term actions whilst the third focused on the key challenges of the 'transition phase', using learning from Chernobyl (1986) and Fukushima Daichii (2011) accidents. This paper reviews the discussion and provides valuable lessons for the radiation protection community. Results of the discussion indicated that: i) non-radiological and non-epidemiological consequences of emergencies, e.g. psychological (mental health), societal and economic, should not be underestimated; ii) multidisciplinary expertise is imperative for communication efforts and for effective emergency management, including decision-making in the application of protective measures; iii) stakeholder engagement, including the involvement of the potentially affected population, should be encouraged from an early stage and iv) trust is increased if policy-makers and main science agencies show a unified voice

A new proof of the Bianchi type IX attractor theorem

We consider the dynamics towards the initial singularity of Bianchi type IX vacuum and orthogonal perfect fluid models with a linear equation of state. The `Bianchi type IX attractor theorem' states that the past asymptotic behavior of generic type IX solutions is governed by Bianchi type I and II vacuum states (Mixmaster attractor). We give a comparatively short and self-contained new proof of this theorem. The proof we give is interesting in itself, but more importantly it illustrates and emphasizes that type IX is special, and to some extent misleading when one considers the broader context of generic models without symmetries.Comment: 26 pages, 5 figure

Eating Pathology Symptoms Inventory – Clinician Rated Version (EPSI-CRV)

The files in this record contain supplemental information about the EPSI-CRV including: a copy of the EPSI-CRV, suggested training plan, training videos with an example of completed ratings, and a list of items that were removed during the final development process.The Eating Pathology Symptoms Inventory – Clinician Rated Version (EPSI-CRV) is a semi-structured interview that was designed to assess dimensional constructs of eating-disorder psychopathology and generate current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual- Fifth Edition (DSM-5) eating-disorder diagnoses. The EPSI-CRV is based on the self-report version of the EPSI (Forbush et al., 2013). There are 13 modules (or sections) within the EPSI-CRV. Eight modules measure content that is assessed in the self-report version of the EPSI, including: Body Dissatisfaction, Binge Eating, Cognitive Restraint, Excessive Exercise, Restricting, Purging, Muscle Building, and Negative Attitudes Towards Obesity. Five additional modules are included to derive DSM-5 diagnoses. The five DSM-5 modules include: Subjective Binge Episodes, Binge Eating Disorder, Low Weight, Overvaluation of Weight and Shape, and Fear of Weight Gain. The average administration time is approximately 38 minutes. The EPSI-CRV is designed to be used by clinicians and researchers working with adults with eating disorders across a range of settings. The interview may be useful for making admissions decisions, treatment planning, and discharge planning, as well as for research studies

Antiproton constraints on dark matter annihilations from internal electroweak bremsstrahlung

If the dark matter particle is a Majorana fermion, annihilations into two fermions and one gauge boson could have, for some choices of the parameters of the model, a non-negligible cross-section. Using a toy model of leptophilic dark matter, we calculate the constraints on the annihilation cross-section into two electrons and one weak gauge boson from the PAMELA measurements of the cosmic antiproton-to-proton flux ratio. Furthermore, we calculate the maximal astrophysical boost factor allowed in the Milky Way under the assumption that the leptophilic dark matter particle is the dominant component of dark matter in our Universe. These constraints constitute very conservative estimates on the boost factor for more realistic models where the dark matter particle also couples to quarks and weak gauge bosons, such as the lightest neutralino which we also analyze for some concrete benchmark points. The limits on the astrophysical boost factors presented here could be used to evaluate the prospects to detect a gamma-ray signal from dark matter annihilations at currently operating IACTs as well as in the projected CTA.Comment: 32 pages; 13 figure