Top mass dependent alpha_s^3 corrections to B-meson mixing in the MSSM

We compute the top mass dependent NLO strong interaction matching conditions to the Delta F=2 effective Hamiltonian in the general MSSM. We study the relevance of such corrections, comparing its size with that of previously known NLO corrections in the limit mt->0, in scenarios with degeneracy, alignment, and hierarchical squarks. We find that, while these corrections are generally small, there are regions in the parameter space where the contributions to the Wilson coefficients C1 and C4 could partially overcome the expected suppression m_t/M_SUSY.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figure

Natural SUSY and Kaon Mixing in view of recent results from Lattice QCD

Lattice results are available for Delta S=2 matrix elements for the first time in full QCD, which improve considerably the status of hadronic uncertainties in K-Kbar mixing with respect to earlier phenomenological studies. Using an average of the ETMC and RBC results, we analyze epsilonK in Natural SUSY. This scenario arises as a consistent BSM framework after the latest results from the LHC. The analysis is improved with respect to previous studies including next-to-leading order matching conditions of order (alpha_s)^3. We derive new bounds for SUSY mass insertions in the scenario with a light third generation and study the implications for squark and gluino masses, compared with direct searches at the LHC. Assuming natural values for the flavor violating SUSY couplings of both chiralities, we find that the sbottom must be heavier than 3 TeV for a gluino mass up to 10 TeV. In this scenario no natural values for squark and gluino masses can satisfy the flavor bounds.Comment: v3: Results updated with the latest (September 2012) lattice QCD results. Version published in Physical Review

Updated NNLO QCD predictions for the weak radiative B-meson decays

Weak radiative decays of the B mesons belong to the most important flavor changing processes that provide constraints on physics at the TeV scale. In the derivation of such constraints, accurate standard model predictions for the inclusive branching ratios play a crucial role. In the current Letter we present an update of these predictions, incorporating all our results for the O(alpha_s^2) and lower-order perturbative corrections that have been calculated after 2006. New estimates of nonperturbative effects are taken into account, too. For the CP- and isospin-averaged branching ratios, we find B_{s gamma} = (3.36 +_ 0.23) * 10^-4 and B_{d gamma} = 1.73^{+0.12}_{-0.22} * 10^-5, for E_gamma > 1.6GeV. Both results remain in agreement with the current experimental averages. Normalizing their sum to the inclusive semileptonic branching ratio, we obtain R_gamma = ( B_{s gamma} + B_{d gamma})/B_{c l nu} = (3.31 +_ 0.22) * 10^-3. A new bound from B_{s gamma} on the charged Higgs boson mass in the two-Higgs-doublet-model II reads M_{H^+} > 480 GeV at 95%C.L.Comment: journal version, 5 pages, no figure

Development of new remediation technologies for contaminated soils based on the application of zero-valent iron nanoparticles and bioremediation with compost

This study aimed to develop new techniques for the remediation of contaminated soils based on the applicationof zero-valent iron nanoparticles (nZVI) and bioremediation with compost from organic wastesand a mixed technique of both. An assessment of the effectiveness of remediation in two soils contaminatedwith hydrocarbons and heavy metals was carried out, with the aim of looking for positive synergiesby combining the two techniques, and demonstrating their viability on an industrial scale. The applicationof nZVI for in situ immobilization of As and Cr in two different soils (Soil I from a contaminatedindustrial site and Soil II, contaminated artificially) showed a decrease in the concentration of As in SoilI and Soil II, as well as a decrease in Cr concentration for Soil I and Soil II in the leachate of both soils.The addition of compost and nanoparticles under uncontrolled environmental conditions in biopiles wasable to produce a decrease in the concentration of aliphatic hydrocarbons of up to 60% in the two soils.Especially, degradation and transformation of longer chains occurred. A significant reduction of ecotoxicitywas observed throughout the process in the biopile of soil II, not reaching the LC50 even with 100%of the sample after the treatment, in both earthworm and seeds growth tests

Bd^0(t)->pi^+pi^- and Bs^0(t)-> K^+ K^- Decays: A Tool to Measure New-Physics Parameters

If physics beyond the standard model is present in B decays, experimental measurements seem to suggest that it principally affects those processes with significant b->s penguin amplitudes. It was recently argued that, in general, such new-physics (NP) effects can be parametrized in terms of a single NP amplitude A^q and phase \Phi_q, for q=u,d,s,c. In this paper, we show that the study of the decays Bs(t) -> K^+ K^- and Bd(t) -> \pi^+\pi^- allows one to measure the NP parameters A^u and \Phi_u. We examine the implications for this method of the latest experimental results on these decays. If NP is found in Bs(t) -> K^+ K^-, it can be partially identified through measurements of Bs(t)-> K^0 \bar K^0.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures, LaTeX. Changed reference

Maritime Spatial Planning Transboundary Pilot Projects and their implication in the national process in Spain

Los procesos de Ordenación del Espacio Marítimo (OEM) ya se están aplicando en muchas partes del mundo siendo Europa un punto caliente debido a la aprobación de la Directiva 2014/89/UE del Parlamento Europeo y del Consejo, de 23 de julio de 2014, por la que se establece un marco para la OEM, que obligaba a todos los Estados miembros costeros a tener planes aprobados para marzo de 2021. Para facilitar esto, se asignan fondos europeos específicos para apoyar el desarrollo de proyectos transfronterizos de ordenación del espacio marítimo entre países vecinos. Estos proyectos tienen principalmente dos objetivos, uno es proporcionar a los Estados conocimientos, capacidad y metodologías para aplicarlos en los procesos nacionales de ordenación del territorio, y otro es facilitar la coherencia entre los planes de los países que comparten la misma cuenca marítima. Este trabajo presenta una visión general del proceso español de MSP, y cómo algunos de los resultados que surgieron de estos proyectos piloto pueden ser incorporados al proceso nacional

Development of new remediation technologies for contaminated soils based on the application of zero-valent iron nanoparticles and bioremediation with compost

This study aimed to develop new techniques for the remediation of contaminated soils based on the application of zero-valent iron nanoparticles (nZVI) and bioremediation with compost from organic wastes and a mixed technique of both. An assessment of the effectiveness of remediation in two soils contaminated with hydrocarbons and heavy metals was carried out, with the aim of looking for positive synergies by combining the two techniques, and demonstrating their viability on an industrial scale. The application of nZVI for in situ immobilization of As and Cr in two different soils (Soil I from a contaminated industrial site and Soil II, contaminated artificially) showed a decrease in the concentration of As in Soil I and Soil II, as well as a decrease in Cr concentration for Soil I and Soil II in the leachate of both soils. The addition of compost and nanoparticles under uncontrolled environmental conditions in biopiles was able to produce a decrease in the concentration of aliphatic hydrocarbons of up to 60% in the two soils. Especially, degradation and transformation of longer chains occurred. A significant reduction of ecotoxicity was observed throughout the process in the biopile of soil II, not reaching the LC50 even with 100% of the sample after the treatment, in both earthworm and seeds growth tests. [All rights reserved Elsevier]

Pedogenic, mineralogical and land-use controls on organic carbon stabilization in two contrasting soils

UPNa. Departamento de Ciencias del Medio Natural. Área de Edafología y Química AgrícolaOrgano-mineral complexation in soils is strongly controlled by pedogenesis, but the mechanisms controlling it and its interaction with cultivation are not yet well understood. We compared the mineralogy and quality of organic carbon (C) among organo-mineral fractions from two soils with contrasting pedogenic origin. Sequential density fractionation (SDF; using 1.6, 1.8, 2.1, 2.4 and 2.6 g mL(-1) sodium polytungstate solutions) followed by thermal analysis was applied to a Chernozem from Ellerslie, Alberta, and a Luvisol from Breton, Alberta, each under native and cultivated land uses. Similar clay mineralogy suggested that pedogenic controls on organic C stabilization were related to long-term vegetation cover. In addition to large differences in total organic C quantities, bulk soil and isolated fractions showed significant differences in organic C quality. Samples under native vegetation revealed greater organo-mineral complexation at Ellerslie compared with Breton, as expressed by less solubilisation, more organic C recovered in intermediate-density fractions, and exothermic differential scanning calorimetry peak signals associated with more stable forms of organic C. Long-term cultivation resulted in an overall shift to more stable organo-mineral complexes. The proportion of soil C in the 2.1-2.4 g mL(-1) fraction increased under cultivation from 21 to 32% in Breton samples, and from 6 to 16% in Ellerslie samples. The quality of inherited pedogenic soil organic C stored in a soil thus appears to determine its response to long-term cultivation

The significance of cheese sampling in the determination of histamine concentration: Distribution pattern of histamine in ripened cheeses

Cheeses are becoming a major safety and public health concern: cheeses available in supermarkets occasionally contain high histamine concentrations that can have negative effects on consumer health. In this study, we have attempted to assess the histamine distribution pattern in ripened cheeses, with the purpose of establishing a correct cheese sampling strategy for the quantification of histamine. To this aim, histamine was determined in four distinct areas of twelve long-ripened hard cheeses: the external and internal rind, along with the outer and inner core of the wedge. The concentrations measured were remarkably different: histamine accumulated in the central core, whereas the lowest amount was found in the peripheral rind. To explain this heterogenous distribution, histamine producers were determined in the four areas by identifying the hdc sequences obtained from cheese samples. Non-starter bacteria were identified as main histamine producers; however, these microbiota were homogeneously distributed throughout the wedge. Nevertheless, the analysis of psychochemical properties of the different areas revealed an observable trend: histamine tended to accumulate in the saltier, more humid, and less oxidized areas in a wedge. Overall, this study highlights the significance of a correct sampling strategy when histamine is quantified in cheese

Complete Anatomy of B -> K*ll and its angular distribution

We present a complete and optimal set of observables for the exclusive 4-body B meson decay B -> K*(->K pi) l+l- in the low dilepton mass region, that contains a maximal number of clean observables. This basis of observables is built in a systematic way. We show that all the previously defined observables and any observable that one can construct, can be expressed as a function of this basis. This set of observables contains all the information that can be extracted from the angular distribution in the cleanest possible way. We provide explicit expressions for the full and the uniangular distributions in terms of this basis. The conclusions presented here can be easily extended to the large-q^2 region. We study the sensitivity of the observables to right-handed currents and scalars. Finally, we present for the first time all the symmetries of the full distribution including massive terms and scalar contributions.Comment: 37 pages, 12 Figures. Corrected typo in Eqs. (29) and (44). Results and conclusions unchange