A Composite Little Higgs Model

We describe a natural UV complete theory with a composite little Higgs. Below a TeV we have the minimal Standard Model with a light Higgs, and an extra neutral scalar. At the TeV scale there are additional scalars, gauge bosons, and vector-like charge 2/3 quarks, whose couplings to the Higgs greatly reduce the UV sensitivity of the Higgs potential. Stabilization of the Higgs mass squared parameter, without finetuning, occurs due to a softly broken shift symmetry--the Higgs is a pseudo Nambu-Goldstone boson. Above the 10 TeV scale the theory has new strongly coupled interactions. A perturbatively renormalizable UV completion, with softly broken supersymmetry at 10 TeV is explicitly worked out. Our theory contains new particles which are odd under an exact "dark matter parity", (-1)^{(2S+3B+L)}. We argue that such a parity is likely to be a feature of many theories of new TeV scale physics. The lightest parity odd particle, or "LPOP", is most likely a neutral fermion, and may make a good dark matter candidate, with similar experimental signatures to the neutralino of the MSSM. We give a general effective field theory analysis of the calculation of corrections to precision electroweak observables.Comment: 28 page

The Intermediate Higgs

Two paradigms for the origin of electroweak superconductivity are a weakly coupled scalar condensate, and a strongly coupled fermion condensate. The former suffers from a finetuning problem unless there are cancelations to radiative corrections, while the latter presents potential discrepancies with precision electroweak physics. Here we present a framework for electroweak symmetry breaking which interpolates between these two paradigms, and mitigates their faults. As in Little Higgs theories, the Higgs is a pseudo-Nambu Goldstone boson, potentially composite. The cutoff sensitivity of the one loop top quark contribution to the effective potential is canceled by contributions from additional vector-like quarks, and the cutoff can naturally be higher than in the minimal Standard Model. Unlike the Little Higgs models, the cutoff sensitivity from one loop gauge contributions is not canceled. However, such gauge contributions are naturally small as long as the cutoff is below 6 TeV. Precision electroweak corrections are suppressed relative to those of Technicolor or generic Little Higgs theories. In some versions of the intermediate scenario, the Higgs mass is computable in terms of the masses of these additional fermions and the Nambu-Goldstone Boson decay constant. In addition to the Higgs, new scalar and pseudoscalar particles are typically present at the weak scale

Superconducting fluctuation corrections to ultrasound attenuation in layered superconductors

We consider the temperature dependence of the sound attenuation and sound velocity in layered impure metals due to superconducting fluctuations of the order parameter above the critical temperature. We obtain the dependence on material properties of these fluctuation corrections in the hydrodynamic limit, where the electron mean free path is much smaller than the wavelength of sound and where the electron collision rate is much larger than the sound frequency. For longitudinal sound propagating perpendicular to the layers, the open Fermi surface condition leads to a suppression of the divergent contributions to leading order, in contrast with the case of paraconductivity. The leading temperature dependent corrections, given by the Aslamazov-Larkin, Maki-Thompson and density of states terms, remain finite as T->Tc. Nevertheless, the sensitivity of new ultrasonic experiments on layered organic conductors should make these fluctuations effects measurable.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figures. Accepted for PRB. Added discussion on incoherent interlayer tunneling and other small modifications suggested by referee

On the Detection of a Scalar Stochastic Background of Gravitational Waves

In the near future we will witness the coming to a full operational regime of laser interferometers and resonant mass detectors of spherical shape. In this work we study the sensitivity of pairs of such gravitational wave detectors to a scalar stochastic background of gravitational waves. Our computations are carried out both for minimal and non minimal coupling of the scalar fields.Comment: 25 pages, 3 figure

The Refederalization of American Health Care

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/69090/2/10.1177_107755878704400103.pd

Leading and higher twists in the proton polarized structure function at large Bjorken x

A phenomenological parameterization of the proton polarized structure function has been developed for x > 0.02 using deep inelastic data up to ~ 50 (GeV/c)**2 as well as available experimental results on both photo- and electro-production of proton resonances. According to the new parameterization the generalized Drell-Hearn-Gerasimov sum rule is predicted to have a zero-crossing point at Q**2 = 0.16 +/- 0.04 (GeV/c)**2. Then, low-order polarized Nachtmann moments have been estimated and their Q**2-behavior has been investigated in terms of leading and higher twists for Q**2 > 1 (GeV/c)**2. The leading twist has been treated at NLO in the strong coupling constant and the effects of higher orders of the perturbative series have been estimated using soft-gluon resummation techniques. In case of the first moment higher-twist effects are found to be quite small for Q**2 > 1 (GeV/c)**2, and the singlet axial charge has been determined to be a0[10 (GeV/c)**2] = 0.16 +/- 0.09. In case of higher order moments, which are sensitive to the large-x region, higher-twist effects are significantly reduced by the introduction of soft gluon contributions, but they are still relevant at Q**2 ~ few (GeV/c)**2 at variance with the case of the unpolarized transverse structure function of the proton. Our finding suggests that spin-dependent correlations among partons may have more impact than spin-independent ones. As a byproduct, it is also shown that the Bloom-Gilman local duality is strongly violated in the region of polarized electroproduction of the Delta(1232) resonance.Comment: revised version to appear in Phys. Rev. D; extended discussion on the generalized DHG sum rul

Omnivoria e repartição de recursos em águas pobres em nutrientes da Bacia do Rio Negro

Amazonian biodiversity is notorious, this is also valid for the fauna of the mineral-deficient waters of the Rio Negro System. Some 25 years of research on the benthic fauna of Central Amazonian streams resulted in species-rich foodwebs with a high degree of omnivory within dense animal communities. To exemplify the taxonomic range of omnivorous consumers, the detailed resource spectra of 18 consumer species, including Protozoa (2 species), Platyhelminthes (1 species), insects (2 species), fish (6 species) and shrimps (Decapoda, 7 species), associated primarily with the benthic habitats of Rio Negro tributaries, are presented. Special features of omnivory are characterized, and the importance of litter-decomposing fungi as essential energy input into the foodwebs is documented. It is shown that general omnivory -diverse omnivore consumers sharing most of the resource types- is a prevalent feature. The relevance of this general omnivory for the maintenance of biodiversity is discussed.A biodiversidade do Amazonas é notório e isto também é válido para as águas pobres em nutrientes da bacia do Rio Negro. Uma pesquisa de 25 anos da fauna béntica de igarapés da Amazônia Central resultou em redes alimentares caraterizadas por alta diversidade de espécies, por intensa omnivoria e por alta densidade populacional. Para demonstrar a generalidade taxonômica de omnivoria no bentos dos igarapés, são apresentados as listas de presas / recursos de 18 espécies de consumidores, sendo Protozoa (2 epécies), Platyhelminthes (1 espécie), insetos (2 espécies), peixes (6 espécies) e camarões (Decapoda, 7 espécies). Diferentes categorias de omnivoria são apresentados, e a importância de fungos decompositores da liteira submersa como input básico de energia nas redes alimentares é demonstrada. É prevalente a omnivoria geral, sendo que as diferentes espécies omnívoros estão utilizando os mesmos recursos. Considera- se a relevância desta omnivoria geral para a manutenção da biodiversidade

Interpretation of plasma amino acids in the follow-up of patients: the impact of compartmentation

Results of plasma or urinary amino acids are used for suspicion, confirmation or exclusion of diagnosis, monitoring of treatment, prevention and prognosis in inborn errors of amino acid metabolism. The concentrations in plasma or whole blood do not necessarily reflect the relevant metabolite concentrations in organs such as the brain or in cell compartments; this is especially the case in disorders that are not solely expressed in liver and/or in those which also affect nonessential amino acids. Basic biochemical knowledge has added much to the understanding of zonation and compartmentation of expressed proteins and metabolites in organs, cells and cell organelles. In this paper, selected old and new biochemical findings in PKU, urea cycle disorders and nonketotic hyperglycinaemia are reviewed; the aim is to show that integrating the knowledge gained in the last decades on enzymes and transporters related to amino acid metabolism allows a more extensive interpretation of biochemical results obtained for diagnosis and follow-up of patients and may help to pose new questions and to avoid pitfalls. The analysis and interpretation of amino acid measurements in physiological fluids should not be restricted to a few amino acids but should encompass the whole quantitative profile and include other pathophysiological markers. This is important if the patient appears not to respond as expected to treatment and is needed when investigating new therapies. We suggest that amino acid imbalance in the relevant compartments caused by over-zealous or protocol-driven treatment that is not adjusted to the individual patient's needs may prolong catabolism and must be correcte

The PHENIX Experiment at RHIC

The physics emphases of the PHENIX collaboration and the design and current status of the PHENIX detector are discussed. The plan of the collaboration for making the most effective use of the available luminosity in the first years of RHIC operation is also presented.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure. Further details of the PHENIX physics program available at http://www.rhic.bnl.gov/phenix

Toward an internally consistent astronomical distance scale

Accurate astronomical distance determination is crucial for all fields in astrophysics, from Galactic to cosmological scales. Despite, or perhaps because of, significant efforts to determine accurate distances, using a wide range of methods, tracers, and techniques, an internally consistent astronomical distance framework has not yet been established. We review current efforts to homogenize the Local Group's distance framework, with particular emphasis on the potential of RR Lyrae stars as distance indicators, and attempt to extend this in an internally consistent manner to cosmological distances. Calibration based on Type Ia supernovae and distance determinations based on gravitational lensing represent particularly promising approaches. We provide a positive outlook to improvements to the status quo expected from future surveys, missions, and facilities. Astronomical distance determination has clearly reached maturity and near-consistency.Comment: Review article, 59 pages (4 figures); Space Science Reviews, in press (chapter 8 of a special collection resulting from the May 2016 ISSI-BJ workshop on Astronomical Distance Determination in the Space Age