6,162 research outputs found
A New Technique for Determining the Properties of a Narrow -channel Resonance at a Muon Collider
We explore an alternative to the usual procedure of scanning for determining
the properties of a narrow -channel resonance. By varying the beam energy
resolution while sitting on the resonance peak, the width and branching ratios
of the resonance can be determined. The statistical accuracy achieved is
superior to that of the usual scan procedure in the case of a light SM-like
Higgs boson with \mh>130\gev or for the lightest pseudogoldstone boson of a
strong electroweak breaking model if \mpzero>150\gev.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur
Modeling the Void H I Column Density Spectrum
The equivalent width distribution function (EWDF) of \hone absorbers specific
to the void environment has been recently derived (Manning 2002), revealing a
large line density of clouds (dN/dz ~500 per unit z for Log (N_HI)> 12.4). I
show that the void absorbers cannot be diffuse (or so-called filamentary)
clouds, expanding with the Hubble flow, as suggested by N-body/hydro
simulations. Absorbers are here modeled as the baryonic remnants of
sub-galactic perturbations that have expanded away from their dark halos in
response to reionization at z ~ 6.5. A 1-D Lagrangian hydro/gravity code is
used to follow the dynamic evolution and ionization structure of the baryonic
clouds for a range of halo circular velocities. The simulation products at z=0
can be combined according to various models of the halo velocity distribution
function to form a column density spectrum that can be compared with the
observed. I find that such clouds may explain the observed EWDF if the halo
velocity distribution function is as steep as that advanced by Klypin (1999),
and the halo mass distribution is closer to isothermal than to NFW.Comment: 21 pages, 15 figures. Paper in press; ApJ 591, n
The Accretion of Lyman Alplha Clouds onto Gas-Rech Protogalaxies; A Scenario for the Formation of Globular Star Clusters
A satisfactory theory for the formation of globular star clusters (GCs) has
long been elusive, perhaps because their true progenitors had not yet been
guessed. In this paper I propose a causal relationship between the strongly
decreasing densities of Lyman alpha (LyA) clouds at high redshift and the
formation of GCs - namely that GCs were created by the accretion of LyA clouds
onto protogalaxies. I describe a scenario which involves an inherently stable
and orderly cycling of compression and cooling in the central cores of clouds
during the extended period of dissipation in the outer regins of gas-rich proto
galaxies, culminating in a burst of efficient star formation. I demonstrate
that the comoving density of GCs is comparable to that of LyA clouds at high
redshift, that the energetic requirements for compression to core GC densities
can be met, and that the time-scale for cooling is within obvious limits
imposed by dynamical stability.
This dissipative process requires there to be a large column of dissipated
gas about the attractor in order to form GCs. In addition, the energy
requirements for compression requires attractor masses greater than that
capable of sustaining circular velocities of ~40 km/s. If this scenario is
supported by numerical simulations, then by implication, the GCs were formed at
modest redshifts of z~1-3. This knowledge could help to break the degeneracy
between lookback time and redshift. The model is consistent with a picture of
hierarchical galaxy growth over time scales of many billions of years.Comment: 7 pages. Accepted, 10 June 1999 Astrophysical Journa
Comparison of artificial neural network analysis with other multimarker methods for detecting genetic association
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Debate remains as to the optimal method for utilising genotype data obtained from multiple markers in case-control association studies. I and colleagues have previously described a method of association analysis using artificial neural networks (ANNs), whose performance compared favourably to single-marker methods. Here, the perfomance of ANN analysis is compared with other multi-marker methods, comprising different haplotype-based analyses and locus-based analyses.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of several methods studied and applied to simulated SNP datasets, heterogeneity testing of estimated haplotype frequencies using asymptotic <it>p </it>values rather than permutation testing had the lowest power of the methods studied and ANN analysis had the highest power. The difference in power to detect association between these two methods was statistically significant (<it>p </it>= 0.001) but other comparisons between methods were not significant. The raw <it>t </it>statistic obtained from ANN analysis correlated highly with the empirical statistical significance obtained from permutation testing of the ANN results and with the <it>p </it>value obtained from the heterogeneity test.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Although ANN analysis was more powerful than the standard haplotype-based test it is unlikely to be taken up widely. The permutation testing necessary to obtain a valid <it>p </it>value makes it slow to perform and it is not underpinned by a theoretical model relating marker genotypes to disease phenotype. Nevertheless, the superior performance of this method does imply that the widely-used haplotype-based methods for detecting association with multiple markers are not optimal and efforts could be made to improve upon them. The fact that the <it>t </it>statistic obtained from ANN analysis is highly correlated with the statistical significance does suggest a possibility to use ANN analysis in situations where large numbers of markers have been genotyped, since the <it>t</it> value could be used as a proxy for the <it>p </it>value in preliminary analyses.</p
Integration of biocontrol agents and food-grade additives for enhancing protection of stored apples from Penicillium expansum.
Forty-nine compounds currently used as additives in foods were tested in combination with three biocontrol agents, the yeasts Rhodotorula glutinis, Cryptococcus laurentii, and the yeastlike fungus Aureobasidium pullulans, to increase their antagonistic activity against Penicillium expansum, the causal agent of blue mold on apples. Twelve additives dramatically improved the antagonistic activity of one or more of the tested biocontrol agents. In a two-way factorial experiment with these selected additives the percentage of P. expansum rots on apples was significantly influenced by the antagonist and the additive as well as by their interaction. The combination of the biocontrol agents and some additives resulted in a significantly higher activity with respect to the single treatments applied separately, producing additive or synergistic effects. Some of the selected additives combined with a low yeast concentration (106 cells per ml) had comparable or higher efficacy than the biocontrol agents applied alone at a 100-fold higher concentration (10(8) cells per ml). Some organic and inorganic calcium salts, natural gums, and some antioxidants displayed the best results. In general, the effect of each additive was specific to the biocontrol isolate used in the experiments. Possible mechanisms involved in the activity of these beneficial additives and their potential application in effective formulations of postharvest biofungicides are discussed
Probing the central black hole in M87 with gamma-rays
Recent high-sensitivity observation of the nearby radio galaxy M87 have
provided important insights into the central engine that drives the large-scale
outflows seen in radio, optical and X-rays. This review summarizes the
observational status achieved in the high energy (HE;<100 GeV) and very high
energy (VHE; >100 GeV) gamma-ray domains, and discusses the theoretical
progress in understanding the physical origin of this emission and its relation
to the activity of the central black hole.Comment: Invited compact review to be published in Modern Physics Letters A;
19 pages, 4 figure
Magnetized Accretion-Ejection Structures: 2.5D MHD simulations of continuous Ideal Jet launching from resistive accretion disks
We present numerical magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of a magnetized
accretion disk launching trans-Alfvenic jets. These simulations, performed in a
2.5 dimensional time-dependent polytropic resistive MHD framework, model a
resistive accretion disk threaded by an initial vertical magnetic field. The
resistivity is only important inside the disk, and is prescribed as eta =
alpha_m V_AH exp(-2Z^2/H^2), where V_A stands for Alfven speed, H is the disk
scale height and the coefficient alpha_m is smaller than unity. By performing
the simulations over several tens of dynamical disk timescales, we show that
the launching of a collimated outflow occurs self-consistently and the ejection
of matter is continuous and quasi-stationary. These are the first ever
simulations of resistive accretion disks launching non-transient ideal MHD
jets. Roughly 15% of accreted mass is persistently ejected. This outflow is
safely characterized as a jet since the flow becomes super-fastmagnetosonic,
well-collimated and reaches a quasi-stationary state. We present a complete
illustration and explanation of the `accretion-ejection' mechanism that leads
to jet formation from a magnetized accretion disk. In particular, the magnetic
torque inside the disk brakes the matter azimuthally and allows for accretion,
while it is responsible for an effective magneto-centrifugal acceleration in
the jet. As such, the magnetic field channels the disk angular momentum and
powers the jet acceleration and collimation. The jet originates from the inner
disk region where equipartition between thermal and magnetic forces is
achieved. A hollow, super-fastmagnetosonic shell of dense material is the
natural outcome of the inwards advection of a primordial field.Comment: ApJ (in press), 32 pages, Higher quality version available at
http://www-laog.obs.ujf-grenoble.fr/~fcass
Chiral symmetry breaking in dimensionally regularized nonperturbative quenched QED
In this paper we study dynamical chiral symmetry breaking in dimensionally
regularized quenched QED within the context of Dyson-Schwinger equations. In D
< 4 dimensions the theory has solutions which exhibit chiral symmetry breaking
for all values of the coupling. To begin with, we study this phenomenon both
numerically and, with some approximations, analytically within the rainbow
approximation in the Landau gauge. In particular, we discuss how to extract the
critical coupling alpha_c = pi/3 relevant in four dimensions from the D
dimensional theory. We further present analytic results for the chirally
symmetric solution obtained with the Curtis-Pennington vertex as well as
numerical results for solutions exhibiting chiral symmetry breaking. For these
we demonstrate that, using dimensional regularization, the extraction of the
critical coupling relevant for this vertex is feasible. Initial results for
this critical coupling are in agreement with cut-off based work within the
currently achievable numerical precision.Comment: 24 pages, including 5 figures; submitted to Phys. Rev.
Chiral Symmetry Breaking in Quenched Massive Strong-Coupling QED
We present results from a study of subtractive renormalization of the fermion
propagator Dyson-Schwinger equation (DSE) in massive strong-coupling quenched
QED. Results are compared for three different fermion-photon proper vertex
{\it Ans\"{a}tze\/}: bare , minimal Ball-Chiu, and
Curtis-Pennington. The procedure is straightforward to implement and
numerically stable. This is the first study in which this technique is used and
it should prove useful in future DSE studies, whenever renormalization is
required in numerical work.Comment: REVTEX 3.0, 15 pages plus 7 uuencoded PostScript figure
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