Shannon entropy and particle decays

We deploy Shannon's information entropy to the distribution of branching fractions in a particle decay. This serves to quantify how important a given new reported decay channel is, from the point of view of the information that it adds to the already known ones. Because the entropy is additive, one can subdivide the set of channels and discuss, for example, how much information the discovery of a new decay branching would add; or subdivide the decay distribution down to the level of individual quantum states (which can be quickly counted by the phase space). We illustrate the concept with some examples of experimentally known particle decay distributions.Comment: 12 pages, 18 plots; to appear in Nuclear Physics

Board Independence And Firm Performance: The Moderating Effect Of Institutional Context

This study proposes a new research approach to examine the relationship between board independence and corporate performance, measured by technical efficiency. Moreover, this paper examines the moderating role that institutional factors exert on this relationship through the legal system—the content of law and its enforcement. The research questions are examined using an international sample of 2185 firms from 2006 to 2015, applying truncated regression models for panel data and employing data envelopment analysis to examine efficiency as a measure of performance. This paper supports that board independence increases the firm's technical efficiency. Even more, greater legal and judicial protection exerts a positive moderating effect on the previous relationship by protecting private benefits for insiders, among other aspects. Thus, the positive impact of independent directors on efficiency is greater when firms operate in countries with a greater extent of law and enforcement. Our findings include endogeneity checks using instrumental variables

PAH removal by simultaneous and sequential inoculation of Pseudomonas monteilii P26 and Gordonia sp. H19 in the presence of biostimulants

Biostimulation and bioaugmentation have been proposed as sustainable alternatives to physicochemical treatments for the environmental decontamination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). PAH-removing Pseudomonas monteilii P26 and Gordonia sp. H19, alone or combined with organic and inorganic biostimulants, were previously proposed as candidates to be included in biotechnological products to be used in eco-friendly decontamination processes. This work aims to study the effect of biostimulants on the growth, cell hydrophobicity and emulsifying activity of P. monteilii P26 and Gordonia sp. H19, and to evaluate the influence of selected biostimulants and bacterial inoculation procedure on PAH bioremoval. A complete factorial experimental design was applied to determine the effect of KNO3, K2HPO4, corn steep liquor (CSL) and a PAH mixture on the growth, cell hydrophobicity and bioemulsifying activity of bacterial cultures. The kinetics of PAH bioremoval was evaluated in simultaneous and sequential cultures of P. monteilii P26 and Gordonia sp. H19 in the presence of selected biostimulants. CSL was the only nutrient that exerted positive effects on all responses evaluated, although these effects were not significant in all cases. In mixed cultures, maximum bioremoval of phenanthrene and pyrene was evidenced when the bacterial strains were simultaneously inoculated, independently of the presence or absence of CSL. These results support the biotechnological characterization of two PAH-removing autochthonous Patagonian strains.Fil: Juárez Tomás, María Silvina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; ArgentinaFil: Carrasco, Marina Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán; ArgentinaFil: Lobo, Constanza Belén. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; ArgentinaFil: Alessandrello, Mauricio Javier. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; ArgentinaFil: Sanchez, Leandro Arturo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; ArgentinaFil: Ferrero, Marcela Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán; Argentin