Violation of the Bjorken Sum Rule in QCD

We show that the Bjorken sum rule for the first moment of the polarized nucleon structure function $g_1$ is not necessarily satisfied in QCD if the axial anomaly is taken into account. We argue that nonperturbative QCD effects should lead to a violation of the sum rule of the order of the percentage isospin violation in current quark masses.Comment: 11 pages, no figures (several typos and a numerical error on pag. 5 corrected

Progress in perturbative QCD

We briefly summarize some recent theoretical developments in perturbative QCD, emphasizing new ideas which have led to widening the domain of applicability of perturbation theory. In particular, it is now possible to calculate efficiently processes with many partons; the high order behavior of perturbation theory can be at least partly understood by going beyond leading twist accuracy; factorization with more than one hard scale (such as in DIS with heavy quarks) can be made consistent with the renormalization group; and large infrared logs can be resummed beyond the renormalization group. The use of the renormalization group to resum large longitudinal scales may allow the use of perturbation theory even in the absence of a large transverse scale.Comment: 10 pages Latex; summary of the theory WG at the DIS97 workshop; typo on pag. 4 correcte

Polarized Structure Functions with Neutrino Beams

We review the potential impact of neutrino data on the determination of the spin structure of the nucleon. We show that a flavour decomposition of the parton structure of the nucleon as required by present-day precision phenomenology could only be achieved at a neutrino factory. We discuss how neutrino scattering data would allow a full resolution of the nucleon spin problem.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figures, plenary talk at SPIN200

Polarized Structure Functions: a Theoretical Update

We review recent developments in the theory and phenomenology of polarized structure functions. We summarize recent experimental data on the proton and deuteron structure function $g_1$, and their impact on the understanding of polarized sum rules. Specifically, we discuss how accurate measurements of the singlet and nonsinglet first moment of $g_1$ test perturbative and nonperturbative QCD, and critically examine the way these measurements are arrived at. We then discuss how the extraction of structure functions from the data can be improved by means of a theoretical analysis of their $x$ and $Q^2$ dependence, and how, conversely, experimental information on this dependence can be used to pin down the polarized parton content of the nucleon.Comment: 20 pages, plain TeX with epsf, 10 figures in compressed postscript. Table 2 updated incorporating a recent correction to the NLO anomalous dimensions of Mertig and van Neerve

An exotic k-essence interpretation of interactive cosmological models

We define a generalization of scalar fields with non-canonical kinetic term which we call exotic k-essence or briefly, exotik. These fields are generated by the global description of cosmological models with two interactive fluids in the dark sector and under certain conditions, they correspond to usual k-essences. The formalism is applied to the cases of constant potential and of inverse square potential and also we develop the purely exotik version for the modified holographic Ricci type of dark energy (MHR), where the equations of state are not constant. With the kinetic function $F=1+mx$ and the inverse square potential we recover, through the interaction term, the identification between k-essences and quintessences of exponential potential, already known for Friedmann-Robertson-Walker and Bianchi type I geometries. Worked examples are shown that include the self-interacting MHR and also models with crossing of the phantom divide line (PDL).Comment: Revised version to be published in European Physical Journal