Space-Time Evolution of Ultrarelativistic Quantum Dipoles in Quantum Electrodynamics

We discuss space-time evolution of ultrarelativistic quantum dipole in QED. We show that the space-time evolution can be described, in a certain approximation, by means of a regularized wave function, whose parameters are determined by the process of the dipole creation by a local current. We derive using these wave functions the dipole expansion law, that is found to coincide parametrically in the leading order with the one suggested by Farrar, Frankfurt,Liu and Strikman.Comment: 15 page

Radiological risk assessment for the remote-handled transuranic waste storage options at Argonne National Laboratory - East.

Interim storage of the remote-handled transuranic (RH/TRU) waste is needed at Argonne National Laboratory-East (ANL-E). Two on-site facilities, the northwest (NW) vaults in the 317 Area and the converted spent nuclear fuel pool in Building 331, were identified as potential storage locations through previous studies. To assist the decision making process of selecting a storage location, radiological risk assessments were conducted to analyze potential radiation exposures that would be associated with storage of the RH/TRU waste in these two facilities. Three drum storage scenarios (one for the 317 Area and two for Building 331) considering different drum handling procedures and stacking patterns were developed. Time-motion information on worker activities that would occur in the procedures was collected and recorded in spreadsheets. Using the time-motion information, potential external doses were estimated for the involved workers for each step in the procedures. The sum of the potential external doses over all the activity steps gave the total collective dose for each scenario. The results show that during the storage phase, storing waste drums in half-liners in Building 331 would result in the lowest collective radiation exposure; however, it would also require the most human resources. When retrieving waste drums for off-site shipment was considered, storing waste drums in the 317 Area would be the most favorable option because it would require the least amount of human resources and would also result in the lowest collective radiation exposure

Regge poles of the Schwarzschild black hole: a WKB approach

We provide simple and accurate analytical expressions for the Regge poles of the Schwarzschild black hole. This is achieved by using third-order WKB approximations to solve the radial wave equations for spins 0, 1 and 2. These results permit us to obtain analytically the dispersion relation and the damping of the "surface waves" lying on the photon sphere of the Schwarzschild black hole and which generate the weakly damped quasinormal modes of its spectrum. Our results could be helpful in order to simplify considerably the description of wave scattering from the Schwarzschild black hole as well as the analysis of the gravitational radiation created in many black hole processes. Furthermore, the existence of dispersion relations for the photons propagating close to the photon sphere could have also important consequences in the context of gravitational lensing.Comment: v2: Minor corrections and consequences in gravitational lensing briefly discussed. v3: Minor changes to match the published versio

Diffusive limit for a quantum linear Boltzmann dynamics

In this article, I study the diffusive behavior for a quantum test particle interacting with a dilute background gas. The model I begin with is a reduced picture for the test particle dynamics given by a quantum linear Boltzmann equation in which the gas particle scattering is assumed to occur through a hard-sphere interaction. The state of the particle is represented by a density matrix that evolves according to a translation-covariant Lindblad equation. The main result is a proof that the particle's position distribution converges to a Gaussian under diffusive rescaling.Comment: 51 pages. I have restructured Sections 2-4 from the previous version and corrected an error in the proof of Proposition 7.

Advanced Burner Reactor Preliminary NEPA Data Study.

The Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) is a new nuclear fuel cycle paradigm with the goals of expanding the use of nuclear power both domestically and internationally, addressing nuclear waste management concerns, and promoting nonproliferation. A key aspect of this program is fast reactor transmutation, in which transuranics recovered from light water reactor spent fuel are to be recycled to create fast reactor transmutation fuels. The benefits of these fuels are to be demonstrated in an Advanced Burner Reactor (ABR), which will provide a representative environment for recycle fuel testing, safety testing, and modern fast reactor design and safeguard features. Because the GNEP programs will require facilities which may have an impact upon the environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), preparation of a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for GNEP is being undertaken by Tetra Tech, Inc. The PEIS will include a section on the ABR. In support of the PEIS, the Nuclear Engineering Division of Argonne National Laboratory has been asked to provide a description of the ABR alternative, including graphics, plus estimates of construction and operations data for an ABR plant. The compilation of this information is presented in the remainder of this report. Currently, DOE has started the process of engaging industry on the design of an Advanced Burner Reactor. Therefore, there is no specific, current, vendor-produced ABR design that could be used for this PEIS datacall package. In addition, candidate sites for the ABR vary widely as to available water, geography, etc. Therefore, ANL has based its estimates for construction and operations data largely on generalization of available information from existing plants and from the environmental report assembled for the Clinch River Breeder Reactor Plant (CRBRP) design [CRBRP, 1977]. The CRBRP environmental report was chosen as a resource because it thoroughly documents the extensive evaluation which was performed on the anticipated environmental impacts of that plant. This source can be referenced in the open literature and is publicly available. The CRBRP design was also of a commercial demonstration plant size - 975 MWth - which falls in the middle of the range of ABR plant sizes being considered (250 MWth to 2000 MWth). At the time the project was cancelled, the CRBRP had progressed to the point of having completed the licensing application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and was in the process of receiving NRC approval. Therefore, it was felt that [CRBRP, 1977] provides some of the best available data and information as input to the GNEP PEIS work. CRBRP was not the source of all the information in this document. It is also expected that the CRBRP data will be bounding from the standpoint of commodity usage because fast reactor vendors will develop designs which will focus on commodity and footprint reduction to reduce the overall cost per kilowatt electric compared with the CRBR plant. Other sources used for this datacall information package are explained throughout this document and in Appendix A. In particular, see Table A.1 for a summary of the data sources used to generate the datacall information

‘Lower than a Snake’s Belly’ : Discursive Constructions of Dignity and Heroism in Low-Status Garbage Work

In this paper, we consider how dignity is discursively constructed in the context of work dominated by physicality and dirt. Based on semi-structured interviews with garbage workers, our analysis considers how the deprivations they experience are cast through discourses intended to construct their individual and collective worth. We consider the manner in which dignity maybe denied to such workers through popular repudiations of individuality and status. We demonstrate how this positioning arises from contact with physical dirt, and associations with socially dirty work based on ascriptions of servility, abuse and ambivalence. We go on to consider how garbage workers respond to this positioning through discourses of ‘everyday heroism’. Heroism is evoked through three interrelated narratives that speaks to a particular type of masculinity. The first takes the form of a classic process of reframing and recalibration through which workers not only renegotiate their public position and status, but also point to the inherent value to be had in working with dirt as part of that which we identify as a process of ‘affirmation’. The second narrative arises from the imposition of favourable social and occupational comparisons that effectively elevate garbage collectors’ social position. The third discourse—and previously unobserved in respect of garbage work—centres on paternalistic practices of care. Combined, these discourses disrupt the generally held view that dirty work is antithetical to heroism and wounds dignity

‘Lower than a snake’s belly’ : discursive constructions of dignity and heroism in low-status garbage work.

In this paper, we consider how dignity is discursively constructed in the context of work dominated by physicality and dirt. Based on semi-structured interviews with garbage workers, our analysis considers how the deprivations they experience are cast through discourses intended to construct their individual and collective worth. We consider the manner in which dignity maybe denied to such workers through popular repudiations of individuality and status. We demonstrate how this positioning arises from contact with physical dirt, and associations with socially dirty work based on ascriptions of servility, abuse and ambivalence. We go on to consider how garbage workers respond to this positioning through discourses of ‘everyday heroism’. Heroism is evoked through three inter-related narratives that speaks to a particular type of masculinity. The first takes the form of a classic process of reframing and recalibration through which workers not only renegotiate their public position and status, but also point to the inherent value to be had in working with dirt as part of that which we identify as a process of ‘affirmation’. The second narrative arises from the imposition of favourable social and occupational comparisons that effectively elevate garbage collectors’ social position. The third discourse—and previously unobserved in respect of garbage work—centres on paternalistic practices of care. Combined, these discourses disrupt the generally held view that dirty work is antithetical to heroism and wounds dignity

WNT signalling in prostate cancer

Genome sequencing and gene expression analyses of prostate tumours have highlighted the potential importance of genetic and epigenetic changes observed in WNT signalling pathway components in prostate tumours-particularly in the development of castration-resistant prostate cancer. WNT signalling is also important in the prostate tumour microenvironment, in which WNT proteins secreted by the tumour stroma promote resistance to therapy, and in prostate cancer stem or progenitor cells, in which WNT-β-catenin signals promote self-renewal or expansion. Preclinical studies have demonstrated the potential of inhibitors that target WNT receptor complexes at the cell membrane or that block the interaction of β-catenin with lymphoid enhancer-binding factor 1 and the androgen receptor, in preventing prostate cancer progression. Some WNT signalling inhibitors are in phase I trials, but they have yet to be tested in patients with prostate cancer

The impact of type 2 diabetes on health related quality of life in Bangladesh: results from a matched study comparing treated cases with non-diabetic controls

Background Little is known about the association between diabetes and health related quality of life (HRQL) in lower-middle income countries. This study aimed to investigate HRQL among individuals with and without diabetes in Bangladesh. Methods The analysis is based on data of a case-control study, including 591 patients with type 2 diabetes (cases) who attended an outpatient unit of a hospital in Dhaka and 591 age -and sex-matched individuals without diabetes (controls). Information about socio-demographic characteristics, health conditions, and HRQL were assessed in a structured interview. HRQL was measured with the EuroQol (EQ) visual analogue scale (VAS) and the EQ five-dimensional (5D) descriptive system. The association between diabetes status and quality of life was examined using multiple linear and logistic regression models. Results Mean EQ-VAS score of patients with diabetes was 11.5 points lower (95 %-CI: −13.5, −9.6) compared to controls without diabetes. Patients with diabetes were more likely to report problems in all EQ-5D dimensions than controls, with the largest effect observed in the dimensions ‘self-care’ (OR = 5.9; 95 %-CI: 2.9, 11.8) and ‘mobility’ (OR = 4.5; 95 %-CI: 3.0, −6.6). In patients with diabetes, male gender, high education, and high-income were associated with higher VAS score and diabetes duration and foot ulcer associated with lower VAS scores. Other diabetes-related complications were not significantly associated with HRQL. Conclusions Our findings suggest that the impact of diabetes on HRQL in the Bangladeshi population is much higher than what is known from western populations and that unlike in western populations comorbidities/complications are not the driving factor for this effect

An evolutionary approach to international political economy: the case of corporate tax avoidance

Corporate tax avoidance is both widespread and diverse in its practical mechanics. The scope of the phenomenon often leads economists to conclude that in the jungle of economic competition, tax planning (or optimisation) is among the necessary tools to ensure the survival of the fittest. This theory is increasingly associated with a Darwinian theory of economic evolution. In this paper, I develop a contrasting framework of the evolutionary political economy of corporate tax avoidance. Analysing core concepts of Old Institutionalist Economics (OIE), I examine the core drivers of corporate tax avoidance in a globalised system of states. The major contrast, I find, is between that of the corporate and legal personality and the institutional environment in which it operates. Historically, each corporate entity has been considered a separate legal person, yet a series of ‘mutations’ of incorporations laws created a widening gap between theory and reality, and these, in turn, give rise to tax arbitrage. Narrowing this gap, however, impinges on another venerable historical institution, the institution of sovereignty and sovereign inequality