Amplitudes at Weak Coupling as Polytopes in AdS_5

We show that one-loop scalar box functions can be interpreted as volumes of geodesic tetrahedra embedded in a copy of AdS_5 that has dual conformal space-time as boundary. When the tetrahedron is space-like, it lies in a totally geodesic hyperbolic three-space inside AdS_5, with its four vertices on the boundary. It is a classical result that the volume of such a tetrahedron is given by the Bloch-Wigner dilogarithm and this agrees with the standard physics formulae for such box functions. The combinations of box functions that arise in the n-particle one-loop MHV amplitude in N=4 super Yang-Mills correspond to the volume of a three-dimensional polytope without boundary, all of whose vertices are attached to a null polygon (which in other formulations is interpreted as a Wilson loop) at infinity.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figure

Impact of tetrachloroethylene-contaminated drinking water on the risk of breast cancer: Using a dose model to assess exposure in a case-control study

BACKGROUND: A population-based case-control study was undertaken in 1997 to investigate the association between tetrachloroethylene (PCE) exposure from public drinking water and breast cancer among permanent residents of the Cape Cod region of Massachusetts. PCE, a volatile organic chemical, leached from the vinyl lining of certain water distribution pipes into drinking water from the late 1960s through the early 1980s. The measure of exposure in the original study, referred to as the relative delivered dose (RDD), was based on an amount of PCE in the tap water entering the home and estimated with a mathematical model that involved only characteristics of the distribution system. METHODS: In the current analysis, we constructed a personal delivered dose (PDD) model that included personal information on tap water consumption and bathing habits so that inhalation, ingestion, and dermal absorption were also considered. We reanalyzed the association between PCE and breast cancer and compared the results to the original RDD analysis of subjects with complete data. RESULTS: The PDD model produced higher adjusted odds ratios than the RDD model for exposures > 50(th )and >75(th )percentile when shorter latency periods were considered, and for exposures < 50(th )and >90(th )percentile when longer latency periods were considered. Overall, however, the results from the PDD analysis did not differ greatly from the RDD analysis. CONCLUSION: The inputs that most heavily influenced the PDD model were initial water concentration and duration of exposure. These variables were also included in the RDD model. In this study population, personal factors like bath and shower temperature, bathing frequencies and durations, and water consumption did not differ greatly among subjects, so including this information in the model did not significantly change subjects' exposure classification

Spatial-temporal analysis of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in the NCI-SEER NHL case-control study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Exploring spatial-temporal patterns of disease incidence through cluster analysis identifies areas of significantly elevated or decreased risk, providing potential clues about disease risk factors. Little is known about the etiology of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), or the latency period that might be relevant for environmental exposures, and there are no published spatial-temporal cluster studies of NHL.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We conducted a population-based case-control study of NHL in four National Cancer Institute (NCI)-Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) centers: Detroit, Iowa, Los Angeles, and Seattle during 1998-2000. Using 20-year residential histories, we used generalized additive models adjusted for known risk factors to model spatially the probability that an individual had NHL and to identify clusters of elevated or decreased NHL risk. We evaluated models at five different time periods to explore the presence of clusters in a time frame of etiologic relevance.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The best model fit was for residential locations 20 years prior to diagnosis in Detroit, Iowa, and Los Angeles. We found statistically significant areas of elevated risk of NHL in three of the four study areas (Detroit, Iowa, and Los Angeles) at a lag time of 20 years. The two areas of significantly elevated risk in the Los Angeles study area were detected only at a time lag of 20 years. Clusters in Detroit and Iowa were detected at several time points.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We found significant spatial clusters of NHL after allowing for disease latency and residential mobility. Our results show the importance of evaluating residential histories when studying spatial patterns of cancer.</p

Measurement of the ratio of branching fractions BR(B0 -> K*0 gamma)/BR(Bs0 -> phi gamma)

The ratio of branching fractions of the radiative B decays B0 -> K*0 gamma and Bs0 -> phi gamma has been measured using 0.37 fb-1 of pp collisions at a centre of mass energy of sqrt(s) = 7 TeV, collected by the LHCb experiment. The value obtained is BR(B0 -> K*0 gamma)/BR(Bs0 -> phi gamma) = 1.12 +/- 0.08 ^{+0.06}_{-0.04} ^{+0.09}_{-0.08}, where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second systematic and the third is associated to the ratio of fragmentation fractions fs/fd. Using the world average for BR(B0 -> K*0 gamma) = (4.33 +/- 0.15) x 10^{-5}, the branching fraction BR(Bs0 -> phi gamma) is measured to be (3.9 +/- 0.5) x 10^{-5}, which is the most precise measurement to date.Comment: 15 pages, 1 figure, 2 table

Search for CP violation in D+→K−K+π+D^{+} \to K^{-}K^{+}\pi^{+} decays

A model-independent search for direct CP violation in the Cabibbo suppressed decay $D^+ \to K^- K^+\pi^+$ in a sample of approximately 370,000 decays is carried out. The data were collected by the LHCb experiment in 2010 and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 35 pb$^{-1}$. The normalized Dalitz plot distributions for $D^+$ and $D^-$ are compared using four different binning schemes that are sensitive to different manifestations of CP violation. No evidence for CP asymmetry is found.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Observation of excited Lambda_b0 baryons

Using pp collision data corresponding to 1.0 fb-1 integrated luminosity collected by the LHCb detector, two narrow states are observed in the Lambda_b0pi+pi- spectrum with masses 5911.97 +- 0.12(stat) +- 0.02(syst) +- 0.66(Lambda_b0 mass) MeV/c^2 and 5919.77 +- 0.08(stat) +- 0.02(syst) +- 0.66(Lambda_b0 mass) MeV/c^2. The significances of the observations are 5.2 and 10.2 standard deviations, respectively. These states are interpreted as the orbitally-excited Lambda_b0 baryons, Lambda_b*0(5912) and Lambda_b*0(5920).Comment: Replaced by version published in Phys. Rev. Lett, modified fit with better mass resolution treatmen

Measurement of the relative rate of prompt χc0, χc1 and χc2 production at √s=7TeV

Prompt production of charmonium χc0, χc1 and χc2 mesons is studied using proton-proton collisions at the LHC at a centre-of-mass energy of √s=7TeV. The χc mesons are identified through their decay to J/ψγ, with J/ψ→μ+mu− using photons that converted in the detector. A data sample, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.0fb−1 collected by the LHCb detector, is used to measure the relative prompt production rate of χc1 and χc2 in the rapidity range 2.0<y<4.5 as a function of the J/ψ transverse momentum from 3 to 20 GeV/c. First evidence for χc0 meson production at a hadron collider is also presented

Opposite-side flavour tagging of B mesons at the LHCb experiment

The calibration and performance of the oppositeside flavour tagging algorithms used for the measurements of time-dependent asymmetries at the LHCb experiment are described. The algorithms have been developed using simulated events and optimized and calibrated with B + →J/ψK +, B0 →J/ψK ∗0 and B0 →D ∗− μ + νμ decay modes with 0.37 fb−1 of data collected in pp collisions at √ s = 7 TeV during the 2011 physics run. The oppositeside tagging power is determined in the B + → J/ψK + channel to be (2.10 ± 0.08 ± 0.24) %, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic

Observation of two new Ξb−\Xi_b^- baryon resonances

Two structures are observed close to the kinematic threshold in the $\Xi_b^0 \pi^-$ mass spectrum in a sample of proton-proton collision data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3.0 fb$^{-1}$ recorded by the LHCb experiment. In the quark model, two baryonic resonances with quark content $bds$ are expected in this mass region: the spin-parity $J^P = \frac{1}{2}^+$ and $J^P=\frac{3}{2}^+$ states, denoted $\Xi_b^{\prime -}$ and $\Xi_b^{*-}$. Interpreting the structures as these resonances, we measure the mass differences and the width of the heavier state to be $m(\Xi_b^{\prime -}) - m(\Xi_b^0) - m(\pi^{-}) = 3.653 \pm 0.018 \pm 0.006$ MeV$/c^2$, $m(\Xi_b^{*-}) - m(\Xi_b^0) - m(\pi^{-}) = 23.96 \pm 0.12 \pm 0.06$ MeV$/c^2$, $\Gamma(\Xi_b^{*-}) = 1.65 \pm 0.31 \pm 0.10$ MeV, where the first and second uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively. The width of the lighter state is consistent with zero, and we place an upper limit of $\Gamma(\Xi_b^{\prime -}) < 0.08$ MeV at 95% confidence level. Relative production rates of these states are also reported.Comment: 17 pages, 2 figure