Simulation of a Hybrid Optical/Radio/Acoustic Extension to IceCube for EeV Neutrino Detection

Astrophysical neutrinos at $\sim$EeV energies promise to be an interesting source for astrophysics and particle physics. Detecting the predicted cosmogenic (``GZK'') neutrinos at 10$^{16}$ - 10$^{20}$ eV would test models of cosmic ray production at these energies and probe particle physics at $\sim$100 TeV center-of-mass energy. While IceCube could detect $\sim$1 GZK event per year, it is necessary to detect 10 or more events per year in order to study temporal, angular, and spectral distributions. The IceCube observatory may be able to achieve such event rates with an extension including optical, radio, and acoustic receivers. We present results from simulating such a hybrid detector.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures; to appear in the Proceedings of the 29th ICRC, Pune, Indi

New pixelized Micromegas detector with low discharge rate for the COMPASS experiment

New Micromegas (Micro-mesh gaseous detectors) are being developed in view of the future physics projects planned by the COMPASS collaboration at CERN. Several major upgrades compared to present detectors are being studied: detectors standing five times higher luminosity with hadron beams, detection of beam particles (flux up to a few hundred of kHz/mm^{2}, 10 times larger than for the present Micromegas detectors) with pixelized read-out in the central part, light and integrated electronics, and improved robustness. Two solutions of reduction of discharge impact have been studied, with Micromegas detectors using resistive layers and using an additional GEM foil. Performance of such detectors has also been measured. A large size prototypes with nominal active area and pixelized read-out has been produced and installed at COMPASS in 2010. In 2011 prototypes featuring an additional GEM foil, as well as an resistive prototype, are installed at COMPASS and preliminary results from those detectors presented very good performance. We present here the project and report on its status, in particular the performance of large size prototypes with an additional GEM foil.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, proceedings to the Micro-Pattern Gaseous Detectors conference (MPGD2011), 29-31 August 2011, Kobe, Japa

Risk Sharing When Unemployment Hits: How Policy Design Influences Citizen Support For European Unemployment Risk Sharing (EURS):Policy report

In the aftermath of the Eurozone crisis, proposals to share the risk of unemployment shocks have been high on the political agenda. Welfare states have built-in automatic stabilisers to cushion economic shocks, notably unemployment insurance. The argument with regard to the Eurozone is that a monetary union needs mechanisms to buttress or complement the automatic stabilizers of its member states; support for national unemployment insurance might achieve this. However, are European citizens ready to share the risk of unemployment crises hitting their countries? This report sheds light on that crucial, yet unresolved question by conducting a conjoint survey experiment on public support for European unemployment risk sharing (EURS) among a representative sample of 19641 respondents in 13 European member states in October and November 2018. The conjoint experiment studies citizen preferences for policy proposals, implementing EURS, that vary on six dimensions: (1) generosity, (2) education and training conditions, (3) between-country redistribution, (4) national versus European administration, (5) impact on taxes, and (6) conditions with regard to individual job search effort. Our results show that policy design matters for public support. They also highlight variation across countries and socio-economic and ideological differences among citizens. Most importantly, fundamental opposition to EURS is confined to a small segment of the European population. In all countries in the sample, there are potential majorities for specific policy packages that organize EURS. A summary of the report (15 pp.) is available in German, French, Italian and Dutch. Click EURS Report and you will find, under the heading Materials, these summaries

Evolution of antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella isolates from pigs in Belgium

The aim of the present study was to investigate the antimicrobial sensitivity of Salmonella isolates from pigs between 2011 and 2015. In total, 275 Salmonella isolates from samples originating from pigs sent in for diagnostic examination at Animal Health Care Flanders were tested for their sensitivity against different antimicrobials. Except for colistin, where the disk prediffusion test was used, the disk diffusion test was used. E. coli ATCC 25922 was used as reference isolate and the interpretative breakpoints were based on the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute

Hormonal replacement therapy, prothrombotic mutations and the risk of venous thrombosis

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) increases the risk of venous thrombosis. We investigated whether this risk is affected by carriership of hereditary prothrombotic abnormalities. Therefore, we determined the two most common prothrombotic mutations, factor V Leiden and prothrombin 20210A in women who participated in a case-control study on venous thrombosis. Relative risks were expressed as odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI95). Among 7 7 women aged 45-64 years with a first venous thrombosis, 51% were receiving HRT at the time of thrombosis, compared with 24% of control women (OR = 3.3, CI95 1.8-5.8). Among the patients, 23% had a prothrombotic defect, versus 7% among the control women (OR = 3.8, CI95 1.7- 8.5). Women who had factor V Leiden and used HRT had a 15-fold increased risk (OR = 15.5, CI95 3.1-77), which exceeded the expected joint odds ratio of 6.1 (under an additive model). We conclude that the thrombotic risk of HRT may particularly affect women with prothrombotic mutations. Efforts to avoid HRT in women with increased risk of thrombosis are advisable

New pixelized Micromegas detector for the COMPASS experiment

New Micromegas (Micro-mesh gaseous detectors) are being developed in view of the future physics projects planned by the COMPASS collaboration at CERN. Several major upgrades compared to present detectors are being studied: detectors standing five times higher luminosity with hadron beams, detection of beam particles (flux up to a few hundred of kHz/mm^2, 10 times larger than for the present detectors) with pixelized read-out in the central part, light and integrated electronics, and improved robustness. Studies were done with the present detectors moved in the beam, and two first pixelized prototypes are being tested with muon and hadron beams in real conditions at COMPASS. We present here this new project and report on two series of tests, with old detectors moved into the beam and with pixelized prototypes operated in real data taking condition with both muon and hadron beams.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, proceedings to the Micro-Pattern Gaseous Detectors conference (MPGD2009), 12-15 June 2009, Kolympari, Crete, Greece Minor details added and language corrections don

The PANDA GEM-based TPC Prototype

We report on the development of a GEM-based TPC prototype for the PANDA experiment. The design and requirements of this device will be illustrated, with particular emphasis on the properties of the recently tested GEM-detector, the characterization of the read-out electronics and the development of the tracking software that allows to evaluate the GEM-TPC data.Comment: submitted to NIMA 4 pages, 6 picture