736 research outputs found
Traduction et validation française du Questionnaire de Répression de Weinberger
International audienceL'objectif de ce travail a été de réaliser une étude préliminaire de validation de la version française d'un questionnaire de répression émotionnelle (WAI, Weinberger Adjustment Inventory, 1989). Ses relations ont été explorées avec des évaluations de l'anxiété, de la dépression et de l'alexithymie
A survey on tidal analysis and forecasting methods for Tsunami detection
Accurate analysis and forecasting of tidal level are very important tasks for human activities in oceanic and coastal areas. They can be crucial in catastrophic situations like occurrences of Tsunamis in order to provide a rapid alerting to the human population involved and to save lives. Conventional tidal forecasting methods are based on harmonic analysis using the least squares method to determine harmonic parameters. However, a large number of parameters and long-term measured data are required for precise tidal level predictions with harmonic analysis. Furthermore, traditional harmonic methods rely on models based on the analysis of astronomical components and they can be inadequate when the contribution of non-astronomical components, such as the weather, is significant. Other alternative approaches have been developed in the literature in order to deal with these situations and provide predictions with the desired accuracy, with respect also to the length of the available tidal record. These methods include standard high or band pass filtering techniques, although the relatively deterministic character and large amplitude of tidal signals make special techniques, like artificial neural networks and wavelets transform analysis methods, more effective. This paper is intended to provide the communities of both researchers and practitioners with a broadly applicable, up to date coverage of tidal analysis and forecasting methodologies that have proven to be successful in a variety of circumstances, and that hold particular promise for success in the future. Classical and novel methods are reviewed in a systematic and consistent way, outlining their main concepts and components, similarities and differences, advantages and disadvantages
Physical mechanisms generating spontaneous symmetry breaking and a hierarchy of scales
We discuss the phase transition in 3+1 dimensional lambda Phi^4 theory from a
very physical perspective. The particles of the symmetric phase (`phions')
interact via a hard-core repulsion and an induced, long-range -1/r^3
attraction. If the phion mass is sufficiently small, the lowest-energy state is
not the `empty' state with no phions, but is a state with a non-zero density of
phions Bose-Einstein condensed in the zero-momentum mode. The condensate
corresponds to the spontaneous-symmetry-breaking vacuum with neq 0 and
its excitations ("phonons" in atomic-physics language) correspond to Higgs
particles. The phase transition happens when the phion's physical mass m is
still positive; it does not wait until m^2 passes through zero and becomes
negative. However, at and near the phase transition, m is much, much less than
the Higgs mass M_h. This interesting physics coexists with `triviality;' all
scattering amplitudes vanish in the continuum limit, but the vacuum condensate
becomes infinitely dense. The ratio m/M_h, which goes to zero in the continuum
limit, can be viewed as a measure of non-locality in the regularized theory. An
intricate hierarchy of length scales naturally arises. We speculate about the
possible implications of these ideas for gravity and inflation.Comment: 27 pages plus 2 files of figure
The Non-Trivial Effective Potential of the `Trivial' lambda Phi^4 Theory: A Lattice Test
The strong evidence for the `triviality' of (lambda Phi^4)_4 theory is not
incompatible with spontaneous symmetry breaking. Indeed, for a `trivial' theory
the effective potential should be given exactly by the classical potential plus
the free-field zero-point energy of the shifted field; i.e., by the one-loop
effective potential. When this is renormalized in a simple, but nonperturbative
way, one finds, self-consistently, that the shifted field does become
non-interacting in the continuum limit. For a classically scale-invariant (CSI)
lambda Phi^4 theory one finds m_h^2 = 8 pi^2 v^2, predicting a 2.2 TeV Higgs
boson. Here we extend our earlier work in three ways: (i) we discuss the
analogy with the hard-sphere Bose gas; (ii) we extend the analysis from the CSI
case to the general case; and (iii) we propose a test of the predicted shape of
the effective potential that could be tested in a lattice simulation.Comment: 22 pages, LaTeX, DE-FG05-92ER40717-
Leptonic Decays of the W-Boson in a Strong Electromagnetic Field
The probability of W-boson decay into a lepton and a neutrino in a strong
electromagnetic field is calculated. On the basis of the method for deriving
exact solutions to relativistic wave equations for charged particles, an exact
analytic expression is obtained for the partial W-decay width at an arbitrary
value of the external field strength. It is found that, in the region of
comparatively weak fields, field-induced corrections to the standard decay
width of the W-boson in a vacuum are about a few percent. In these conditions
at first we observe the decrease of the W-boson partial decay width with the
increase of the external field strength parameter. At absolute minimum the
W-width deviates from the corresponding vacuum value by a factor 0,926. Then
with further augmentation of the background field intensity the W-boson decay
width grows monotonously. In superstrong fields the partial W-width is greater
than the corresponding one in vacuum in a dozen of times.Comment: LaTex file, 19 pages, 2 Postscript figur
Parameters controlling stiffness and strength of artificially cemented soils
The treatment of soils with cement is an attractive technique when a project requires improvement of the local soil for the construction of subgrades for rail tracks, for roads, as a support layer for shallow foundations, and to prevent sand liquefaction. This paper advances understanding of the key parameters for the control of strength and stiffness of cemented soils by testing two soils with different gradings and quantifying the influence of porosity/cement ratio on both initial shear modulus (G(0)) and unconfined compressive strength (q(u)). It is shown that the porosity/cement ratio is an appropriate parameter to assess both the initial stiffness and the unconfined compressive strength of the soil-cement mixtures studied. Each soil matrix has a unique relationship for G(0)/q(u) against adjusted porosity/cement ratio, linking initial stiffness and strength
Fish community in a surf zone of the northern Sicilian coast (Mediterranean Sea): diversity and functional guild composition
Fish assemblage in a surf zone of the southern Tyrrhenian Sea was investigated for the first time. Samples were collected during four surveys by a modified beach-seine, from June 2005 to May 2006. Overall, 42 species belonging to 19 families were recorded. Among them, Sardina pilchardus showed the highest abundance values, while Mugilids (Oedalechilus labeo and Liza aurata) were the most frequently caught species. The fish community was dominated by pelagic and gregarious species using this habitat as a foraging ground and recruitment area. Juveniles and early adults made up the largest proportion of the ichthyofauna. Fishes inhabiting the surf zone were mainly strictly benthic invertebrate feeders and invertivorous/piscivorous fish; strictly planktivorous were represented by few species but strongly dominant in terms of catch per unit effort; strictly piscivorous fish were poorly represented. Fish composition varied over the study period with the greatest abundance in May and December, and the highest richness and diversity in October
Gli atteggiamenti degli insegnanti di scuola elementare nelle scienze biologico-naturalistiche
This paper stresses the need of coherence between the science teachers training and the emergent constructivist model of science learning
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