How much baseline correction do we need in ERP research? Extended GLM model can replace baseline correction while lifting its limits

Baseline correction plays an important role in past and current methodological debates in ERP research (e.g. the Tanner v. Maess debate in Journal of Neuroscience Methods), serving as a potential alternative to strong highpass filtering. However, the very assumptions that underlie traditional baseline also undermine it, making it statistically unnecessary and even undesirable and reducing signal-to-noise ratio. Including the baseline interval as a predictor in a GLM-based statistical approach allows the data to determine how much baseline correction is needed, including both full traditional and no baseline correction as subcases, while reducing the amount of variance in the residual error term and thus potentially increasing statistical power

Solving CFTs with Weakly Broken Higher Spin Symmetry

The method of large spin perturbation theory allows to analyse conformal field theories (CFT) by turning the crossing equations into an algebraic problem. We apply this method to a generic CFT with weakly broken higher spin (HS) symmetry, to the first non-trivial order in the breaking parameter. We show that the spectrum of broken currents, for any value of the spin, follows from crossing symmetry. After discussing a generic model of a single scalar field, we focus on vector models with $O(N)$ global symmetry. We rediscover the spectrum of several models, including the $O(N)$ Wilson-Fisher model around four dimensions, the large $O(N)$ model in $2<d<4$ and cubic models around six dimensions, not necessarily unitary. We also discuss models where the fundamental field is not part of the spectrum. Examples of this are weakly coupled gauge theories and our method gives an on-shell gauge invariant way to study them. At first order in the coupling constant we show that again the spectrum follows from crossing symmetry, to all values of the spin. Our method provides an alternative to usual perturbation theory without any reference to a Lagrangian.Comment: 30 pages,v2:typos correcte

In quest of "just" the Standard Model on D-branes at a singularity

In this note we explore the possibility of obtaining gauge bosons and fermionic spectrum as close as possible to the Standard Model content, by placing D3-branes at a ZN orbifold-like singularity in the presence of D7-branes. Indeed, we find that this is plausible provided a sufficiently high N is allowed for and the singular point is also fixed by an orientifold action. If extra charged matter is not permitted then the singularity should necessarily be non-supersymmetric. Correct hypercharge assignments require a dependence on some Abelian gauge D7-groups. In achieving such a construction we follow a recent observation made in Ref. [hep-th/0105155] about the possibility that, the three left handed quarks, would present different U(2) transformation properties.Comment: 18 pages, 1 table, no figures, v2: typos correcte

Higher-spin correlators

We analyze the properly normalized three-point correlator of two protected scalar operators and one higher spin twist-two operator in N=4 super Yang-Mills, in the limit of large spin j. The relevant structure constant can be extracted from the OPE of the four-point correlator of protected scalar operators. We show that crossing symmetry of the four point correlator plus a judicious guess for the perturbative structure of the three-point correlator, allow to make a prediction for the structure constant at all loops in perturbation theory, up to terms that remain finite as the spin becomes large. Furthermore, the expression for the structure constant allows to propose an expression for the all loops four-point correlator G(u,v), in the limit u,v -> 0. Our predictions are in perfect agreement with the large j expansion of results available in the literature.Comment: 14 pages,v2:minor changes, refs adde

The superconformal bootstrap for structure constants

We report on non-perturbative bounds for structure constants on N=4 SYM. Such bounds are obtained by applying the conformal bootstrap recently extended to superconformal theories. We compare our results with interpolating functions suitably restricted by the S-duality of the theory. Within numerical errors, these interpolations support the conjecture that the bounds found in this paper are saturated at duality invariant values of the coupling. This extends recent conjectures for the anomalous dimension of leading twist operators.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figure

Conformal Bootstrap With Slightly Broken Higher Spin Symmetry

We consider conformal field theories with slightly broken higher spin symmetry in arbitrary spacetime dimensions. We analyze the crossing equation in the double light-cone limit and solve for the anomalous dimensions of higher spin currents $\gamma_s$ with large spin $s$. The result depends on the symmetries and the spectrum of the unperturbed conformal field theory. We reproduce all known results and make further predictions. In particular we make a prediction for the anomalous dimensions of higher spin currents in the 3d Ising model.Comment: 41 pages, 2 figures, %\draftmod

Generalized bootstrap equations for N=4 SCFT

We study the consistency of four-point functions of half-BPS chiral primary operators of weight p in four-dimensional N=4 superconformal field theories. The resulting conformal bootstrap equations impose non-trivial bounds for the scaling dimension of unprotected local operators transforming in various representations of the R-symmetry group. These bounds generalize recent bounds for operators in the singlet representation, arising from consistency of the four-point function of the stress-energy tensor multiplet.Comment: 18 pages, 3 figure

Effective Superpotentials via Konishi Anomaly

We use Ward identities derived from the generalized Konishi anomaly in order to compute effective superpotentials for SU(N), SO(N) and $Sp(N)$ supersymmetric gauge theories coupled to matter in various representations. In particular we focus on cubic and quartic tree level superpotentials. With this technique higher order corrections to the perturbative part of the effective superpotential can be easily evaluated.Comment: 17 pages, harvma