ISR physics at BABAR

We present a review of BaBar results on e+e- annihilations into exclusive hadronic final states using the initial state radiation technique. Cross sections over the sqrt{s} range from threshold to 4.5 GeV, with very small point-to-point systematic errors, are presented for the 3pi, 2(pi+ pi-), 3(pi+ pi-), 2(pi+ pi-)2pi0, K+ K- pi+ pi-, 2(K+ K-) and p anti-p final states. The proton form factor and the ratio of its electric and magnetic components are also presented.Comment: 5 pages, 11 figures, to be published in the Proceedings of the 12th Lomonosov Conference on Elementary Particle Physics (Moscow State University, Moscow, 25 - 31 August 2005

Enhancement of the transverse non-reciprocal magneto-optical effect

The origin and properties of the transverse non-reciprocal magneto-optical (nMO) effect were studied. The transverse nMO effect occurs in the case when light propagates perpendicularly to the magnetic field. It was demonstrated that light can experience the transverse nMO effect only when it propagates in the vicinity of a boundary between two materials and the optical field at least in one material is evanescent. The transverse nMO effect is pronounced in the cases of surface plasmons and waveguiding modes. The magnitude of the transverse nMO effect is comparable to or greater than the magnitude of the longitudinal nMO effect. In the case of surface plasmons propagating at a boundary between the transition metal and the dielectric it is possible to magnify the transverse nMO effect and the magneto-optical figure-of-merit may increase from a few percents to above 100%. The scalar dispersion relation, which describes the transverse MO effect in cases of waveguide modes and surface plasmons propagating in a multilayer MO slab, was derived

An Assessment of the Economic Performance of the EU Baltic Region States

The paper explores how the common economic space, a product of the EU, influenced the economies of the Baltic Sea Region states in 1995-2015. The authors investigate changes in the economic performance of the developed (Germany, Denmark, Finland, and Sweden) and Eastern European countries (Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia) during the integration of the latter states into the EU. Performance dynamics is analyzed for eight EU Baltic Sea Region countries. Three Russian Baltic regions constitute a control group. The authors conduct a production-function-based comparative analysis of development dynamics in individual countries to identify distinctive features for each group. Despite a rapid growth of Eastern European economies, the difference between the region’s eastern and western countries remains substantial. Economic convergence between eastern and western EU countries in terms of investment does not lead to convergence in labour efficiency. The capital-labour ratio and the growth rate of labour efficiency in the Russian Baltic are close to the Eastern European average

The sea factor in the federal regulation of Russia's spatial development: post-Soviet experience and current priorities

Current geoeconomic and geopolitical transformations project on Russian society and its spatial organisation, highlighting the problems of spatial socioeconomic development and its governmental regulation. This article examines the theoretical and applied aspects of the incorporation into the national regional policy of the sea factor, understood as a combination of location and resources, which is determined by a country's jurisdiction over coasts and waters, its maritime activities and coastalisation potential, including the economic, settlement-­related and psychological elements of the latter. The article describes the key influences of the sea factor on the spatial development of post-­Soviet Russia. The steadily growing impact of maritime activities on the spatial-­economic and settlement dynamics has been given a new impetus by the rising geostrategic, resource and transport-­logistic significance of the World Ocean, as well as its water and water-land substructures, amid increasing military-­strategic confrontation and geoeconomic regionalisation. The article presents a retrospective analysis of the role of the sea factor in Russia’s regional policy and identifies its stages. The authors emphasise the need for a synergy between maritime and spatial policies and proposes ways of achieving it