Understanding rostral-caudal auditory cortex contributions to auditory perception

There are functional and anatomical distinctions between the neural systems involved in the recognition of sounds in the environment and those involved in the sensorimotor guidance of sound production and the spatial processing of sound. Evidence for the separation of these processes has historically come from disparate literatures on the perception and production of speech, music and other sounds. More recent evidence indicates that there are computational distinctions between rostral and caudal primate auditory cortex that may underlie functional differences in auditory processing. These functional differences may originate from differences in the response times and temporal profiles of neurons in the rostral and caudal auditory cortex, suggesting that computational accounts of primate auditory pathways should focus on the implications of these temporal response differences

Direct Constraints on Minimal Supersymmetry from Fermi-LAT Observations of the Dwarf Galaxy Segue 1

The dwarf galaxy Segue 1 is one of the most promising targets for the indirect detection of dark matter. Here we examine what constraints 9 months of Fermi-LAT gamma-ray observations of Segue 1 place upon the Constrained Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (CMSSM), with the lightest neutralino as the dark matter particle. We use nested sampling to explore the CMSSM parameter space, simultaneously fitting other relevant constraints from accelerator bounds, the relic density, electroweak precision observables, the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon and B-physics. We include spectral and spatial fits to the Fermi observations, a full treatment of the instrumental response and its related uncertainty, and detailed background models. We also perform an extrapolation to 5 years of observations, assuming no signal is observed from Segue 1 in that time. Results marginally disfavour models with low neutralino masses and high annihilation cross-sections. Virtually all of these models are however already disfavoured by existing experimental or relic density constraints.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figures; added extra scans with extreme halo parameters, expanded introduction and discussion in response to referee's comment

Resonance Effects in the Nonadiabatic Nonlinear Quantum Dimer

The quantum nonlinear dimer consisting of an electron shuttling between the two sites and in weak interaction with vibrations, is studied numerically under the application of a DC electric field. A field-induced resonance phenomenon between the vibrations and the electronic oscillations is found to influence the electronic transport greatly. For initially delocalization of the electron, the resonance has the effect of a dramatic increase in the transport. Nonlinear frequency mixing is identified as the main mechanism that influences transport. A characterization of the frequency spectrum is also presented.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure

Resistência a Septoria lycopersici em espécies de Solanum (Secção Lycopersicon) e em progênies de S. lycopersicum × S. peruvianum

Septoria leaf spot (Septoria lycopersici) is one of the major fungal diseases of tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum) in tropical and subtropical regions with humid climates and/or in areas cultivated under sprinkler irrigation systems. Sources of resistance have been found in accessions of Solanum (section Lycopersicon) species. However, many of the described sources are not effective under Brazilian conditions. The objective of this work was to evaluate wild and cultivated Solanum (section Lycopersicon) germplasm to S. lycopersici isolates. A collection of 124 accessions was initially evaluated under greenhouse conditions. Ten accessions were highly resistance (HR), whereas 33 were classified as having a resistant (R) response to S. lycopersici isolates. Field evaluation was also conducted with a sub-set of accessions identified as either HR or R in the greenhouse experiment. This field evaluation confirmed greenhouse tests and indicated the presence of some potential sources of rate-reducing resistance. One highly resistant and eight resistant S. habrochaites accessions were identified as being resistant under both conditions, confirming that this wild species is one of the most promising sources of resistance to S. lycopersici. Five new sources with high levels of resistance were found in S. peruvianum accessions (PI-306811, CNPH-1036, LA-1910, LA-1984 and LA-2744). One accession derived from an interspecific cross between S. lycopersicum and S. peruvianum was also found to be highly resistant and might be useful to introgress resistance factors from this wild species into cultivated tomato germplasm. However, additional breeding efforts will be necessary to introgress into the cultivated tomato the resistance factors identified in other S. peruvianum accessions due to the presence of natural crossing barriers between the two species.A mancha-de-septória (Septoria lycopersici) é importante doença fúngica do tomateiro (Solanum lycopersicum) em áreas tropicais e subtropicais com alta umidade ou quando esta hortaliça é cultivada sob irrigação por aspersão. Fontes de resistência têm sido encontradas em germoplasma de Solanum (secção Lycopersicon). No entanto, muitas das fontes descritas não funcionam nas condições brasileiras. Avaliou-se uma coleção de germoplasma de tomate cultivado e selvagem (Solanum secção Lycopersicon) visando identificar novas fontes de elevada resistência. Uma coleção de 124 acessos foi inicialmente avaliada sob condições de casa de vegetação. Somente dez acessos foram classificados como altamente resistentes e 33 foram classificados como resistentes. Um ensaio de campo foi também conduzido com um subconjunto de acessos promissores identificados no primeiro experimento. Foi confirmada a resposta da maioria dos acessos avaliados em casa de vegetação e indicou a presença de fontes de resistência capazes de reduzir a taxa de progresso da doença. Um acesso de S. habrochaites com elevada resistência e oito acessos resistentes foram identificados, confirmando que esta espécie representa uma das mais promissoras fontes de genes de resistência a S. lycopersici. Cinco novas fontes com elevados níveis de resistência foram identificadas em acessos da espécie S. peruvianum (PI-306811, CNPH-1036, LA-1910, LA-1984 e LA-2744). Um acesso, derivado de cruzamento interespecífico entre S. lycopersicum e S. peruvianum também mostrou-se altamente resistente e poderá ser útil na introgressão deste(s) gene(s) em germoplasma de tomateiro cultivado. No entanto, esforços adicionais de melhoramento serão necessários para transferir para o tomateiro cultivado os fatores de resistência identificados em outros acessos de S. peruvianum, uma vez que existem barreiras naturais de cruzamentos entre estas duas espécies

Measurement of the partial widths of the Z into up- and down-type quarks

Using the entire OPAL LEP1 on-peak Z hadronic decay sample, Z -> qbarq gamma decays were selected by tagging hadronic final states with isolated photon candidates in the electromagnetic calorimeter. Combining the measured rates of Z -> qbarq gamma decays with the total rate of hadronic Z decays permits the simultaneous determination of the widths of the Z into up- and down-type quarks. The values obtained, with total errors, were Gamma u = 300 ^{+19}_{-18} MeV and Gamma d = 381 ^{+12}_{-12} MeV. The results are in good agreement with the Standard Model expectation.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figures, Submitted to Phys. Letts.

Search for R-Parity Violating Decays of Scalar Fermions at LEP

A search for pair-produced scalar fermions under the assumption that R-parity is not conserved has been performed using data collected with the OPAL detector at LEP. The data samples analysed correspond to an integrated luminosity of about 610 pb-1 collected at centre-of-mass energies of sqrt(s) 189-209 GeV. An important consequence of R-parity violation is that the lightest supersymmetric particle is expected to be unstable. Searches of R-parity violating decays of charged sleptons, sneutrinos and squarks have been performed under the assumptions that the lightest supersymmetric particle decays promptly and that only one of the R-parity violating couplings is dominant for each of the decay modes considered. Such processes would yield final states consisting of leptons, jets, or both with or without missing energy. No significant single-like excess of events has been observed with respect to the Standard Model expectations. Limits on the production cross- section of scalar fermions in R-parity violating scenarios are obtained. Constraints on the supersymmetric particle masses are also presented in an R-parity violating framework analogous to the Constrained Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model.Comment: 51 pages, 24 figures, Submitted to Eur. Phys. J.

Measurement of the Hadronic Photon Structure Function F_2^gamma at LEP2

The hadronic structure function of the photon F_2^gamma is measured as a function of Bjorken x and of the factorisation scale Q^2 using data taken by the OPAL detector at LEP. Previous OPAL measurements of the x dependence of F_2^gamma are extended to an average Q^2 of 767 GeV^2. The Q^2 evolution of F_2^gamma is studied for average Q^2 between 11.9 and 1051 GeV^2. As predicted by QCD, the data show positive scaling violations in F_2^gamma. Several parameterisations of F_2^gamma are in agreement with the measurements whereas the quark-parton model prediction fails to describe the data.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, to appear in the proceedings of Photon 2001, Ascona, Switzerlan

Heavy Quarks and Heavy Quarkonia as Tests of Thermalization

We present here a brief summary of new results on heavy quarks and heavy quarkonia from the PHENIX experiment as presented at the "Quark Gluon Plasma Thermalization" Workshop in Vienna, Austria in August 2005, directly following the International Quark Matter Conference in Hungary.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, Quark Gluon Plasma Thermalization Workshop (Vienna August 2005) Proceeding

Genuine Correlations of Like-Sign Particles in Hadronic Z0 Decays

Correlations among hadrons with the same electric charge produced in Z0 decays are studied using the high statistics data collected from 1991 through 1995 with the OPAL detector at LEP. Normalized factorial cumulants up to fourth order are used to measure genuine particle correlations as a function of the size of phase space domains in rapidity, azimuthal angle and transverse momentum. Both all-charge and like-sign particle combinations show strong positive genuine correlations. One-dimensional cumulants initially increase rapidly with decreasing size of the phase space cells but saturate quickly. In contrast, cumulants in two- and three-dimensional domains continue to increase. The strong rise of the cumulants for all-charge multiplets is increasingly driven by that of like-sign multiplets. This points to the likely influence of Bose-Einstein correlations. Some of the recently proposed algorithms to simulate Bose-Einstein effects, implemented in the Monte Carlo model PYTHIA, are found to reproduce reasonably well the measured second- and higher-order correlations between particles with the same charge as well as those in all-charge particle multiplets.Comment: 26 pages, 6 figures, Submitted to Phys. Lett.

Search for displaced vertices arising from decays of new heavy particles in 7 TeV pp collisions at ATLAS

We present the results of a search for new, heavy particles that decay at a significant distance from their production point into a final state containing charged hadrons in association with a high-momentum muon. The search is conducted in a pp-collision data sample with a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV and an integrated luminosity of 33 pb^-1 collected in 2010 by the ATLAS detector operating at the Large Hadron Collider. Production of such particles is expected in various scenarios of physics beyond the standard model. We observe no signal and place limits on the production cross-section of supersymmetric particles in an R-parity-violating scenario as a function of the neutralino lifetime. Limits are presented for different squark and neutralino masses, enabling extension of the limits to a variety of other models.Comment: 8 pages plus author list (20 pages total), 8 figures, 1 table, final version to appear in Physics Letters