Are Light Sterile Neutrinos Preferred or Disfavored by Cosmology?

We find that the viability of a cosmological model that incorporates 2 sterile neutrinos with masses around 1 eV each, as favored by global neutrino oscillation analyses including short baseline results, is significantly dependent on the choice of datasets included in the analysis and the ability to control the systematic uncertainties associated with these datasets. Our analysis includes a variety of cosmological probes including the cosmic microwave background (WMAP7+SPT), Hubble constant (HST), galaxy power spectrum (SDSS-DR7), and supernova distances (SDSS and Union2 compilations). In the joint observational analysis, our sterile neutrino model is equally favored as a LCDM model when using the MLCS light curve fitter for the supernova measurements, and strongly disfavored by the data at \Delta\chi^2 ~ 18 when using the SALT2 fitter. When excluding the supernova measurements, the sterile neutrino model is disfavored by the other datasets at \Delta\chi^2 ~ 12, and at best becomes mildly disfavored at \Delta\chi^2 ~ 3 when allowing for curvature, evolving dark energy, additional relativistic species, running of the spectral index, and freedom in the primordial helium abundance. No single additional parameter accounts for most of this effect. Therefore, if laboratory experiments continue to favor a scenario with roughly eV mass sterile neutrinos, and if this becomes decisively disfavored by cosmology, then a more exotic cosmological model than explored here may become necessary.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures. Minor refinements, reflects version accepted for publication in PR

Pengaruh relationship marketing terhadap loyalitas pelanggan Alfamidi Malang

INDONESIA: Dengan tingkat persaingan yang semakin ketat, banyak bisnis retail pada saat ini tidak hanya memfokuskan strategi pemasarannya untuk menjaring pelanggan baru saja namun juga berupaya menjaga hubungan yang baik dengan pelanggannya. Salah satu srategi yang ditempuh Alfamidi Malang untuk menjadi jaringan ritel yang mampu menyatu dengan masyarakat dengan menggunakan relationship marketing. Tujuan penelitian ini untuk mengetahui variabel relationship marketing yang terdiri dari financial benefits, social benefits, structural benefits yang berpengaruh secara simultan, parsial dan variabel yang dominan terhadap loyalitas pelanggan. Penelitian ini menggunakan teknik accidental sampling dengan sampel sebanyak 90 responden. Analisis yang digunakan adalah analisis regresi linier berganda. Dari hasil penelitian ini menunjukan bahwa variabel relationship marketing berpengaruh secara simultan terhadap loyalitas pelanggan dengan nilai Fhitung sebessar 10,805 signifikansi 0,000. Sedangkan secara parsial variabel financial benefits, social benefits berpengaruh signifikan terhadap loyalitas pelanggan Alfamidi Malang. Variabel yang berpengaruh dominan terhadap loyalitas pelanggan adalah structural benefits dengan nilai thitung 3,548 dengan signifikan t sebesar 0,001. ENGLISH: In the high level of competition, many retail businesses are not only focusing on marketing strategy to get new customers, but also maintain a good relationship with their customers. One strategy that is pursued by Alfamidi Malang to be a network retail that is able to blend with society is relationship marketing. The purpose of the research are to determine the influence of marketing variables consisting of financial benefit, social benefit, structural benefit that influence simultaneously , partially and dominant variables on customer loyalty. This study uses accidental sampling technique with a number sample of 90 respondents. The analysis used is multiple linear regression analysis. The result of the research indicates that the relationship marketing variables influence simultaneously on customer’s loyalty with value 10.805 0.000 significance of F value. Whereas partially financial benefit, social benefit have a significant effect on customer’s loyalty Alfamidi Malang. The dominant variable is the structural benefits of customer’s loyalty with significant t count 3,548 and 0,001 t

Brane worlds and dark matter

Two problems related to dark matter is considered in the context of a brane world model in which the confinement of gauge fields on the brane is achieved by invoking a confining potential. First, we show that the virial mass discrepancy can be addressed if the conserved geometrical term appearing in this model is considered as an energy momentum tensor of an unknown type of matter, the so-called X-matter whose equation of state is also obtained. Second, the galaxy rotation curves are explained by assuming an anisotropic energy momentum tensor for the X-matter.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figure, to appear in IJMP

Accuracy of linear measurement using cone-beam computed tomography at different reconstruction angles

Purpose: This study was performed to evaluate the effect of changing the orientation of a reconstructed image on the accuracy of linear measurements using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). Materials and Methods: Forty-two titanium pins were inserted in seven dry sheep mandibles. The length of these pins was measured using a digital caliper with readability of 0.01 mm. Mandibles were radiographed using a CBCT device. When the CBCT images were reconstructed, the orientation of slices was adjusted to parallel (i.e., 0°), +10°, +12°, -12°, and -10° with respect to the occlusal plane. The length of the pins was measured by three radiologists, and the accuracy of these measurements was reported using descriptive statistics and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA); p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The differences in radiographic measurements ranged from -0.64 to +0.06 at the orientation of -12°, -0.66 to -0.11 at -10°, -0.51 to +0.19 at 0°, -0.64 to +0.08 at +10°, and -0.64 to +0.1 at +12°. The mean absolute values of the errors were greater at negative orientations than at the parallel position or at positive orientations. The observers underestimated most of the variables by 0.5-0.1 mm (83.6%). In the second set of observations, the reproducibility at all orientations was greater than 0.9. Conclusion: Changing the slice orientation in the range of -12°to +12°reduced the accuracy of linear measurements obtained using CBCT. However, the error value was smaller than 0.5 mm and was, therefore, clinically acceptable. © 2014 by Korean Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology