LHC and ILC probes of hidden-sector gauge bosons

Intersecting D-brane theories motivate the existence of exotic U(1) gauge bosons that only interact with the Standard Model through kinetic mixing with hypercharge. We analyze an effective field theory description of this effect and describe the implications of these exotic gauge bosons on precision electroweak, LHC and ILC observables.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, RevTex, PRD, v3: expanded discussions, ref

Probing the Green-Schwarz Mechanism at the Large Hadron Collider

We investigate the phenomenology of new abelian gauge bosons, which we denote as $X$ bosons, that suffer a mixed anomaly with the Standard Model, but are made self-consistent by the Green-Schwarz mechanism. A distinguishing aspect of the resulting effective theory is the decay of $X$ bosons into Standard Model gauge bosons, $X\to ZZ, WW, \gamma Z$. We compute the production cross-section of the $X$ boson from vector boson fusion at the Large Hadron Collider. We study the $pp\to X\to ZZ\to 4l$ signal, and analyze the prospects of discovery. We argue that such a discovery could indirectly probe high energies, even up to the string scale.Comment: 14 pages, references adde

Probing CP-violation at colliders through interference effects in diboson production and decay

We define a CP-asymmetric observable that is sensitive to CP-violating interactions in the gauge-boson sector. We illustrate the utility of this observable by studying how well the LHC can measure the coefficient of a particular dimension-six WWZ operator. We find that sensitivity at the 10^{-3} level is possible at the LHC with 100 fb^{-1} of integrated luminosity, which would greatly exceed the sensitivity achieved at LEP, and would rival or may even better the indirect sensitivities inferred from related operators constrained by electric dipole moment experiments.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, LaTe

The Programmer as Player: Uncovering Latent Forms of Digital Play Using Structuration and Actor-Network Theory

Is programming a game considered play? Normally we would say that it is not; play happens when a game is consumed, not when it is produced. But by adopting this perspective we are falling into the trap that popular culture and mass media set when they categorize games as just another entertainment product. What, then, is the true purpose of this division between programming and play? Why do we seem them as different? In this article, I will explore the early history of computer gaming to show how this dichotomy came about. As it turns out, the computer engineers who worked with the earliest computer systems must shoulder much of the blame. Those programmers who created games such as Spacewar identified themselves as proto-hackers, standing a distance apart from those engaged in more "serious" computer work. Engineers such as Douglas Engebart, meanwhile, were thinking about the computer as a tool to solve problems, not a platform for artistic endeavour. These two forces enabled outsiders to consider gaming and programming to be wholly separate activities. For the purposes of this work, both structuration theory and actor-network theory are employed. I found that each methdology offered fresh insights into these issues, which could then be merged to provide a complete picture of this early era in digital computing