Isolated tau leptons in events with large missing transverse momentum at HERA

A search for events containing isolated tau leptons and large missing transverse momentum, not originating from the tau decay, has been performed with the ZEUS detector at the electron-proton collider HERA, using 130 pb^-1 of integrated luminosity. A search was made for isolated tracks coming from hadronic tau decays. Observables based on the internal jet structure were exploited to discriminate between tau decays and quark- or gluon-induced jets. Three tau candidates were found, while 0.40 +0.12 -0.13 were expected from Standard Model processes, such as charged current deep inelastic scattering and single W-boson production. To search for heavy-particle decays, a more restrictive selection was applied to isolate tau leptons produced together with a hadronic final state with high transverse momentum. Two candidate events survive, while 0.20 +-0.05 events are expected from Standard Model processes.Comment: 28 pages, 4 figures, 3 tables, accepted by Phys. Lett. B. Updated with minor changes to the text requested by the journal refere

Observation of Scaling Violations in Scaled Momentum Distributions at HERA

Charged particle production has been measured in deep inelastic scattering (DIS) events over a large range of $x$ and $Q^2$ using the ZEUS detector. The evolution of the scaled momentum, $x_p$, with $Q^2,$ in the range 10 to 1280 $GeV^2$, has been investigated in the current fragmentation region of the Breit frame. The results show clear evidence, in a single experiment, for scaling violations in scaled momenta as a function of $Q^2$.Comment: 21 pages including 4 figures, to be published in Physics Letters B. Two references adde

Measurement of the open-charm contribution to the diffractive proton structure function

Production of D*+/-(2010) mesons in diffractive deep inelastic scattering has been measured with the ZEUS detector at HERA using an integrated luminosity of 82 pb^{-1}. Diffractive events were identified by the presence of a large rapidity gap in the final state. Differential cross sections have been measured in the kinematic region 1.5 < Q^2 < 200 GeV^2, 0.02 < y < 0.7, x_{IP} < 0.035, beta 1.5 GeV and |\eta(D*+/-)| < 1.5. The measured cross sections are compared to theoretical predictions. The results are presented in terms of the open-charm contribution to the diffractive proton structure function. The data demonstrate a strong sensitivity to the diffractive parton densities.Comment: 35 pages, 11 figures, 6 table

A systematic review of tests of empathy in medicine

Abstract Background Empathy is frequently cited as an important attribute in physicians and some groups have expressed a desire to measure empathy either at selection for medical school or during medical (or postgraduate) training. In order to do this, a reliable and valid test of empathy is required. The purpose of this systematic review is to determine the reliability and validity of existing tests for the assessment of medical empathy. Methods A systematic review of research papers relating to the reliability and validity of tests of empathy in medical students and doctors. Journal databases (Medline, EMBASE, and PsycINFO) were searched for English-language articles relating to the assessment of empathy and related constructs in applicants to medical school, medical students, and doctors. Results From 1147 citations, we identified 50 relevant papers describing 36 different instruments of empathy measurement. As some papers assessed more than one instrument, there were 59 instrument assessments. 20 of these involved only medical students, 30 involved only practising clinicians, and three involved only medical school applicants. Four assessments involved both medical students and practising clinicians, and two studies involved both medical school applicants and students. Eight instruments demonstrated evidence of reliability, internal consistency, and validity. Of these, six were self-rated measures, one was a patient-rated measure, and one was an observer-rated measure. Conclusion A number of empathy measures available have been psychometrically assessed for research use among medical students and practising medical doctors. No empathy measures were found with sufficient evidence of predictive validity for use as selection measures for medical school. However, measures with a sufficient evidential base to support their use as tools for investigating the role of empathy in medical training and clinical care are available.</p

Evidence for a narrow baryonic state decaying to K0Sp and KOSp in deep inelastic scattering at HERA

A resonance search has been made in the K0Sp and KOSp invariant-mass spectrum measured with the ZEUS detector at HERA using an integrated luminosity of 121 pb−1. The search was performed in the central rapidity region of inclusive deep inelastic scattering at an ep centre-of-mass energy of 300–318 GeV for exchanged photon virtuality, Q2, above 1 GeV2. Recent results from fixed-target experiments give evidence for a narrow baryon resonance decaying to K+n and K0Sp, interpreted as a pentaquark. The results presented here support the existence of such state, with a mass of 1521.5±1.5(stat.)+2.8−1.7(syst.) MeV and a Gaussian width consistent with the experimental resolution of 2 MeV. The signal is visible at high Q2 and, for Q2>20 GeV2, contains 221±48 events. The probability of a similar signal anywhere in the range 1500–1560 MeV arising from fluctuations of the background is below 6×10−5

Gastric pseudoaneurysm in the setting of Loey’s Dietz Syndrome

Loey’s Dietz syndrome is a disorder of connective tissue caused by a mutation in the genes that encode transforming growth factor (TGF) beta receptor 1 and 2. It is an autosomal dominant disorder similar to Marfan’s syndrome but with a more aggressive clinical course. Patients with Loey’s-Dietz syndrome have progressive dilatation of the aortic root that can lead to aortic dissection and rupture. The location of non-aortic arterial aneurysms may be wide spread but often occur in the head and neck vessels.peer-reviewe

Search for QCD-instanton induced events in deep inelastic ep scattering at HERA

A search for QCD-instanton-induced events in deep inelastic ep scattering has been performed with the ZEUS detector at the HERA collider, using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 38 pb-1. A kinematic range defined by cuts on the photon virtuality, Q2 > 120 GeV2, and on the Bjorken scaling variable, x > 10-3, has been investigated. The QCD-instanton induced events were modelled by the Monte Carlo generator QCDINS. A background-independent, conservative 95% confidence level upper limit for the instanton cross section of 26 pb is obtained, to be compared with the theoretically expected value of 8.9 pb