Testing Gravity-Driven Collapse of the Wavefunction via Cosmogenic Neutrinos

It is pointed out that the Diosi-Penrose ansatz for gravity-induced quantum state reduction can be tested by observing oscillations in the flavor ratios of neutrinos originated at cosmological distances. Since such a test would be almost free of environmental decoherence, testing the ansatz by means of a next generation neutrino detector such as IceCube would be much cleaner than by experiments proposed so far involving superpositions of macroscopic systems. The proposed microscopic test would also examine the universality of superposition principle at unprecedented cosmological scales.Comment: 4 pages; RevTeX4; Essentially the version published in PR

Muon Pair Production by Electron-Photon Scatterings

The cross section for muon pair productions by electrons scattering over photons, $\sigma_{MPP}$, is calculated analytically in the leading order. It is pointed out that for the center-of-mass energy range, $s \geq 5 m^{2}_{\mu}$, the cross section for $\sigma_{MPP}$ is less than $1 \mu$b. The differential energy spectrum for either of the resulting muons is given for the purpose of high-energy neutrino astronomy. An implication of our result for a recent suggestion concerning the high-energy cosmic neutrino generation through this muon pair is discussed.Comment: a comment added, to appear in Phys. Rev. D, Rapid Communicatio

Effect of feed cycling on specific growth rate, condition factor and RNA/DNA ratio of Labeo rohita

A study was conducted to evaluate the effect of feed cycling on specific growth rate, condition factor and RNA/DNA ratio of Labeo rohita. Fingerling L. rohita were randomly collected from Qadria Fish Farm and Hatchery, Multan, Pakistan and divided into control, 5 days and 10 days feed cycling groups. Specific growth rate (% g day-1), body composition, condition factor, and RNA/DNA ratio of individual fish and of each group were calculated. There was a highly significant (

Neutral Current induced π0\pi^0 production and neutrino magnetic moment

We have studied the total cross section, $Q^2$, momentum and angular distributions for pions in the $\nu$($\bar \nu$) induced $\pi^0$ production from nucleons. The calculations have been done for the weak production induced by the neutral current in the standard model and the electromagnetic production induced by neutrino magnetic moment. It has been found that with the present experimental limits on the muon neutrino magnetic moment $\mu_{\nu_\mu}$, the electromagnetic contribution to the cross section for the $\pi^0$ production is small. The neutrino induced neutral current production of $\pi^{0}$, while giving an alternative method to study the magnetic moment of neutrino $\mu_{\nu_\mu}$, does not provide any improvement over the present experimental limit on $\mu_{\nu_\mu}$ from the observation of this process in future experiments at T2K and NO$\nu$A.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure

Relationship between the levels of Serum Thyroid Hormones and the Risk of Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is still one of the leading causes of cancer death in women, but there has been a sustained decline in mortality rates over the last decades the relationship between breast cancer and thyroid diseases is controversial many works have been done in past also. The relation between autoimmune and non-autoimmune thyroid diseases has been investigated in patients with breast cancer and age-matched control individuals without breast or thyroid disease. Determination of serum thyroid hormone and antibody levels was done in 100 breast cancer patients and 75 control individuals. The mean values for thyroid hormones and anti-thyroid peroxidase antibodies were significantly higher in breast cancer patients than in control individuals. Our results indicate an increased prevalence of autoimmune and non-autoimmune thyroid diseases in breast cancer patients. Keywords: breast, cancer, autoimmune thyroid diseases

High Energy Neutrino Signals of Four Neutrino Mixing

We evaluate the upward shower and muon event rates for two characteristic four neutrino mixing models for extragalactic neutrinos, as well as for the atmospheric neutrinos, with energy thresholds of 1 TeV, 10 TeV and 100 TeV. We show that by comparing the shower to muon event rates, one can distinguish between oscillation and no-oscillation models. By measuring shower and muon event rates for energy thresholds of 10 TeV and 100 TeV, and by considering their ratio, it is possible to use extragalactic neutrino sources to determine the type of four-flavor mixing pattern. We find that one to ten years of data taking with kilometer-size detector has a very good chance of providing valuable information about the physics beyond the Standard Model.Comment: version accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Neutrino Induced Upward Going Muons from a Gamma Ray Burst in a Neutrino Telescope of Km^2 Area

The number of neutrino induced upward going muons from a single Gamma Ray Burst (GRB) expected to be detected by the proposed kilometer scale IceCube detector at the South Pole location has been calculated. The effects of the Lorentz factor, total energy of the GRB emitted in neutrinos and its distance from the observer (red shift) on the number of neutrino events from the GRB have been examined. The present investigation reveals that there is possibility of exploring the early Universe with the proposed kilometer scale IceCube neutrino telescope.Comment: 18pages, 5 figures. Physical Review D in pres

Neutrino Observatories Can Characterize Cosmic Sources and Neutrino Properties

Neutrino telescopes that measure relative fluxes of ultrahigh-energy $\nu_{e}, \nu_{\mu}, \nu_{\tau}$ can give information about the location and characteristics of sources, about neutrino mixing, and can test for neutrino instability and for departures from CPT invariance in the neutrino sector. We investigate consequences of neutrino mixing for the neutrino flux arriving at Earth, and consider how terrestrial measurements can characterize distant sources. We contrast mixtures that arise from neutrino oscillations with those signaling neutrino decays. We stress the importance of measuring $\nu_{e}, \nu_{\mu}, \nu_{\tau}$ fluxes in neutrino observatories.Comment: 9 RevTeX pages, 4 figure

Clarity on frequently asked questions about drought measurements in plant physiology

Drought, or environmental water deficit, is one of the major limiting factors affecting crop yield worldwide. Development of drought-resistant crop cultivars is a major research and development challenge. Drought-related experiments are performed usually to understand the physiological and molecular mechanisms of drought tolerance. Such experiments are also performed to develop transgenics or crop cultivars resistant to drought using physiological and molecular markers. Drought-related experiments are executed in growth chambers, growth rooms, greenhouses, wire net-houses or in research fields. However, a plethora of research publications investigating drought has experimental weaknesses and flaws with respect to the approaches used. It is, therefore, necessary for agronomists, plant breeders, plant physiologists, and molecular biologists to be aware of common pitfalls and have the minimum knowledge required for drought measurements. There are several questions that are often asked by students and professionals alike, and these questions often appear on academic social media platforms. This article summarises the questions we have been asked about drought measurements personally and those asked on academic social media platforms. It also addresses ambiguous questions arising from published literature. We aim to respond to them to the best of our knowledge in order to provide a reference point for a beginner interested in performing drought-related experiments. This article will only focus on drought in relation to plant physiology and will not cover the usage of the term or drought measurements in other contexts

Efficacy of noninvasive cardiac imaging tests in diagnosis and management of stable coronary artery disease

Ify R Mordi,1,2 Athar A Badar,2 R John Irving,2 Jonathan R Weir-McCall,1 J Graeme Houston,1 Chim C Lang1,2 1Division of Molecular and Clinical Medicine, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK; 2Department of Cardiology, Ninewells Hospital and Medical School, Dundee, UK Abstract: The aim of this review was to discuss the current literature regarding the utility of noninvasive imaging in diagnosis and management of stable coronary artery disease (CAD) including recent data from large randomized trials assessing diagnosis and prognosis. Current guidelines recommend revascularization in patients with refractory angina and in those with potential prognostic benefit. Appropriate risk stratification through noninvasive assessment is important in ensuring patients are not exposed to unnecessary invasive coronary angiograms. The past 20 years have seen an unprecedented expansion in noninvasive imaging modalities for the assessment of stable CAD, with cardiovascular magnetic resonance and computed tomography complementing established techniques such as myocardial perfusion imaging, echocardiography and exercise electrocardiogram. In this review, we examine the current state-of-the-art in noninvasive imaging to provide an up-to-date analysis of current investigation and management options. Keywords: angina, noninvasive imaging, SPECT, stress echo, cardiovascular magnetic resonance, CT coronary angiograph