125 research outputs found
Spectral Inversion of Multi-Line Full-Disk Observations of Quiet Sun Magnetic Fields
Spectral inversion codes are powerful tools to analyze spectropolarimetric
observations, and they provide important diagnostics of solar magnetic fields.
Inversion codes differ by numerical procedures, approximations of the
atmospheric model, and description of radiative transfer. Stokes Inversion
based on Response functions (SIR) is an implementation widely used by the solar
physics community. It allows to work with different atmospheric components,
where gradients of different physical parameters are possible, e.g., magnetic
field strength and velocities. The spectropolarimetric full-disk observations
were carried out with the Stokesmeter of the Solar Telescope for Operative
Predictions (STOP) at the Sayan Observatory on 3 February 2009, when neither an
active region nor any other extended flux concentration was present on the Sun.
In this study of quiet Sun magnetic fields, we apply the SIR code
simultaneously to 15 spectral lines. A tendency is found that weaker magnetic
field strengths occur closer to the limb. We explain this finding by the fact
that close to the limb, we are more sensitive to higher altitudes in an
expanding flux tube, where the field strength should be smaller since the
magnetic flux is conserved with height. Typically, the inversions deliver two
populations of magnetic elements: (1) high magnetic field strengths (1500-2000
G) and high temperatures (5500-6500 K) and (2) weak magnetic fields (50-150 G)
and low temperatures (5000-5300 K).Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, accepted for Solar Physic
Characterization of host tolerance to Striga hermonthica
One of the most promising control options against the parasitic weed Striga hermonthica is the use of crop varieties that combine resistance with high levels of tolerance. The aim of this study was to clarify the relation between Striga infestation level, Striga infection level and relative yield loss of sorghum and to use this insight for exploring the options for a proper screening procedure for tolerance. In three pot experiments, conducted in Mali (2003) and The Netherlands (2003, 2004), four sorghum genotypes were exposed to a range of Striga infestation levels, ranging from 0.0625 to 16 seeds cmâ3. Observations included regular Striga emergence counts and sorghum grain yield at maturity.
There were significant genotype, infestation and genotype Ă infestation effects on sorghum yield. The relation between infestation level and infection level was density dependent. Furthermore, the relation between Striga infection level and relative yield loss was non-linear, though for the most resistant genotype Framida only the linear part of the relation was obtained, as even at high infestation levels only moderate infection levels were achieved. The results suggest that for resistant genotypes, tolerance can best be quantified as a reduced relative yield loss per aboveground Striga plant, whereas for less resistant genotypes the maximum relative yield loss can best be used. Whether both expressions of tolerance are interrelated could not be resolved. Complications of screening for tolerance under field conditions are discussed
The Nursing Worklife Model: Extending and Refining a New Theory
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75205/1/j.1365-2834.2007.00670.x.pd
Weak Isospin Violations in Charged and Neutral Higgs Couplings from SUSY Loop Corrections
Supersymmetric QCD and supersymmetric electroweak loop corrections to the
violations of weak isospin to Yukawa couplings are investigated. Specifically
it involves an analysis of the supersymmetric loop corrections to the Higgs
couplings to the third generation quarks and leptons. Here we analyze the SUSY
loop corrections to the charged Higgs couplings which are then compared with
the supersymmetric loop corrections to the neutral Higgs couplings previously
computed. It is found that the weak isospin violations can be quite
significant, i.e, as much as 40-50% or more of the total loop correction to the
Yukawa coupling. The effects of CP phases are also studied and it is found that
these effects can either enhance or suppress the weak isospin violations. We
also investigate the weak isospin violation effects on the branching ratio
and show that the effects
are sensitive to CP phases. Thus an accurate measurement of this branching
ratio along with the branching ratio of the neutral Higgs boson decays can
provide a measure of weak isospin violation along with providing a clue to the
presence of supersymmetry.Comment: 20 pages, 9 figure
The anomalous Higgs-top couplings in the MSSM
The anomalous couplings of the top quark and the Higgs boson has been studied
in an effective theory resulting in the framework of the minimal supersymmetric
extension of the standard model (MSSM) when the heavy fields are integrated
out. Constraints on the parameters of the model from the experimental data on
the ratio are derived.Comment: Latex, 26 pages + 13 ps figures, final version in PR
Neutralino Dark Matter, b-tau Yukawa Unification and Non-Universal Sfermion Masses
We study the implications of minimal non-Universal Boundary Conditions in the
sfermion Soft SUSY Breaking (SSB) masses of mSUGRA. We impose asymptotic b-tau
Yukawa coupling Unification and we resort to a parameterization of the
deviation from Universality in the SSB motivated by the multiplet structure of
SU(5) GUT. A set of cosmo-phenomenological constraints, including the recent
results from WMAP, determines the allowed parameter space of the models under
consideration. We highlight a new coannihilation corridor where
neutralino-sbottom and neutralino-tau sneutrino-stau coannihilations
significantly contribute to the reduction of the neutralino relic density.Comment: 38 pages, 27 Figures, Latex; Version accepted for publication in PR
Star Formation and Dynamics in the Galactic Centre
The centre of our Galaxy is one of the most studied and yet enigmatic places
in the Universe. At a distance of about 8 kpc from our Sun, the Galactic centre
(GC) is the ideal environment to study the extreme processes that take place in
the vicinity of a supermassive black hole (SMBH). Despite the hostile
environment, several tens of early-type stars populate the central parsec of
our Galaxy. A fraction of them lie in a thin ring with mild eccentricity and
inner radius ~0.04 pc, while the S-stars, i.e. the ~30 stars closest to the
SMBH (<0.04 pc), have randomly oriented and highly eccentric orbits. The
formation of such early-type stars has been a puzzle for a long time: molecular
clouds should be tidally disrupted by the SMBH before they can fragment into
stars. We review the main scenarios proposed to explain the formation and the
dynamical evolution of the early-type stars in the GC. In particular, we
discuss the most popular in situ scenarios (accretion disc fragmentation and
molecular cloud disruption) and migration scenarios (star cluster inspiral and
Hills mechanism). We focus on the most pressing challenges that must be faced
to shed light on the process of star formation in the vicinity of a SMBH.Comment: 68 pages, 35 figures; invited review chapter, to be published in
expanded form in Haardt, F., Gorini, V., Moschella, U. and Treves, A.,
'Astrophysical Black Holes'. Lecture Notes in Physics. Springer 201
Were Adolescent Sexual Offenders Children with Sexual Behavior Problems?
This article compares responses of three groups of incarcerated adolescents who admitted to sexual offending in an anonymous survey project on measures of trauma, sexual offending, the relationship between trauma and perpetration, and adjudication status. The first group admitted to sexual offending before the age of 12 only ( n = 48), the second after the age of 12 only ( n = 130), and the third before and after the age of 12 ( n = 65). More than 46% of the sexually aggressive adolescents began their deviant behaviors before the age of 12. Level and complexity of perpetration acts were more severe for the continuous offenders than for the other groups. Victimization and perpetration were significantly correlated for all three groups. This study supports a social learning hypothesis for the development of sexual offending by adolescents. Implications for research and clinical practice are drawn.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/45557/1/11194_2004_Article_220864.pd
Resolving Fermi, PAMELA and ATIC anomalies in split supersymmetry without R-parity
A long-lived decaying dark matter as a resolution to Fermi, PAMELA and ATIC
anomalies is investigated in the framework of split supersymmetry (SUSY)
without R-parity, where the neutralino is regarded as the dark matter and the
extreme fine-tuned couplings for the long-lived neutralino are naturally evaded
in the usual approach.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures. Erroneous results concerning the cascade
processes removed. Main results unchange
The effect of autonomy, training opportunities, age and salaries on job satisfaction in the South East Asian retail petroleum industry
South East Asian petroleum retailers are under considerable pressure to improve service quality by reducing turnover. An empirical methodology from this industry determined the extent to which job characteristics, training opportunities, age and salary influenced the level of job satisfaction, an indicator of turnover. Responses are reported on a random sample of 165 site employees (a 68% response rate) of a Singaporean retail petroleum firm. A restricted multivariate regression model of autonomy and training opportunities explained the majority (35.4%) of the variability of job satisfaction. Age did not moderate these relationships, except for employees >21 years of age, who reported enhanced job satisfaction with additional salary. Human Capital theory, Life Cycle theory and Job Enrichment theory are invoked and explored in the context of these findings in the South East Asian retail petroleum industry. In the South East Asian retail petroleum industry, jobs providing employees with the opportunity to undertake a variety of tasks that enhanced the experienced meaningfulness of work are likely to promote job satisfaction, reduce turnover and increase the quality of service
- âŠ