The Microsoft KINECT: A novel tool for psycholinguistic research

The Microsoft KINECT is a 3D sensing device originally developed for the XBOX. The Microsoft KINECT opens up many exciting new opportunities for conducting experimental research on human behavior. We investigated some of these possibilities within the field of psycholinguistics (specifically: language production) by creating software, using C#, allowing for the KINECT to be used in a typical psycholinguistic experimental setting. The results of a naming experiment using this software confirmed that the KINECT was able to measure the effects of a robust psycholinguistic variable (word frequency) on naming latencies. However, although the current version of the software is able to measure psycholinguistic variables of interest, we also discuss several points where the software can still stand to be improved. The main aim of this paper is to make the software freely available for assessment and use by the psycholinguistic community and to illustrate the KINECT as a potentially valuable tool for investigating human behavior, especially in the field of psycholinguistics

Controlled switching of N\'eel caps in flux-closure magnetic dots

While magnetic hysteresis usually considers magnetic domains, the switching of the core of magnetic vortices has recently become an active topic. We considered Bloch domain walls, which are known to display at the surface of thin films flux-closure features called N\'eel caps. We demonstrated the controlled switching of these caps under a magnetic field, occurring via the propagation of a surface vortex. For this we considered flux-closure states in elongated micron-sized dots, so that only the central domain wall can be addressed, while domains remain unaffected.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Chemical ordering in magnetic FePd / Pd(001) epitaxial thin films induced by annealing

Chemically disordered FePd epitaxial layers are grown at room temperature by molecular beam epitaxy on a Pd(001) buffer layer and then annealed in order to induce the chemically ordered L10 (AuCu I) structure. Contrary to what is observed in the case of ordering during growth above room temperature, the ordered structure appears here with the three possible variants of the L10 phase. The ratio of the three different variant volumes is set by the residual epitaxial strain in the layer before annealing. It thus explains that for long annealing times, the long-range order parameter associated with the L10 variant with c along the (100) growth direction saturates at a value close to 0.65, and never reaches unity. Magnetic consequences of the ordering are studied

The y activity from 11Li beta decay

The energies and absolute intensities of the γ-rays from the β-decay of 11Li are measured. There is no sizable β branch to the 11Be ground state. Only (5.2 ± 1.4) % of the β-decay strength does not lead to β-delayed particle emission. New β-delayed neutron branches to excited states of 10Be are observed and the total delayed neutron emission probability is deduced

Genome scan of Diabrotica virgifera virgifera for genetic variation associated with crop rotation tolerance

Crop rotation has been a valuable technique for control of Diabrotica virgifera virgifera for almost a century. However, during the last two decades, crop rotation has ceased to be effective in an expanding area of the US corn belt. This failure appears to be due to a change in the insect's oviposition behaviour, which, in all probability, has an underlying genetic basis. A preliminary genome scan using 253 amplified fragment-length polymorphism (AFLP) markers sought to identify genetic variation associated with the circumvention of crop rotation. Samples of D. v. virgifera from east-central Illinois, where crop rotation is ineffective, were compared with samples from Iowa at locations that the behavioural variant has yet to reach. A single AFLP marker showed signs of having been influenced by selection for the circumvention of crop rotation. However, this marker was not diagnostic. The lack of markers strongly associated with the trait may be due to an insufficient density of marker coverage throughout the genome. A weak but significant general heterogeneity was observed between the Illinois and Iowa samples at microsatellite loci and AFLP markers. This has not been detected in previous population genetic studies of D. v. virgifera and may indicate a reduction in gene flow between variant and wild-type beetles

Shell Model Study of the Neutron-Rich Nuclei around N=28

We describe the properties of the neutron rich nuclei around N=28 in the shell mode framework. The valence space comprises the $sd$ shell for protons an the $pf$ shell for neutrons without any restriction. Good agreement is found with the available experimental data. The N=28 shell closure, even if eroded due to the large neutron excess, persists. The calculations predict that $^{40}$S and $^{42}$S are deformed with $\beta=0.29$ and $\beta=0.32$ respectively.Comment: 17 pages and 19 figures, LateX, RevTe

Steady states in a structured epidemic model with Wentzell boundary condition

We introduce a nonlinear structured population model with diffusion in the state space. Individuals are structured with respect to a continuous variable which represents a pathogen load. The class of uninfected individuals constitutes a special compartment that carries mass, hence the model is equipped with generalized Wentzell (or dynamic) boundary conditions. Our model is intended to describe the spread of infection of a vertically transmitted disease, for example Wolbachia in a mosquito population. Therefore the (infinite dimensional) nonlinearity arises in the recruitment term. First we establish global existence of solutions and the Principle of Linearised Stability for our model. Then, in our main result, we formulate simple conditions, which guarantee the existence of non-trivial steady states of the model. Our method utilizes an operator theoretic framework combined with a fixed point approach. Finally, in the last section we establish a sufficient condition for the local asymptotic stability of the positive steady state

Spectroscopy of 26^{26}F

The structure of the weakly-bound $^{26}_{\;\;9}$F$_{17}$ odd-odd nucleus, produced from $^{27,28}$Na nuclei, has been investigated at GANIL by means of the in-beam $\gamma$-ray spectroscopy technique. A single $\gamma$-line is observed at 657(7) keV in $^{26}_{9}$F which has been ascribed to the decay of the excited J=$2^+$ state to the J=1$^+$ ground state. The possible presence of intruder negative parity states in $^{26}$F is also discussed.Comment: 3 pages, 1 figure, accepted for publication in Physical Review

Structure and Coulomb dissociation of 23O within the quark-meson coupling model

We study the ground-state structure of nuclei in the vicinity of the one-neutron dripline within the latest version of the quark-meson coupling (QMC) model with a particular emphasis on 23O. For this nucleus the model predicts a [22O(0+) + n (2s_{1/2})] configuration for its ground state, with a one neutron separation energy in close agreement with the corresponding experimental value. The wave function describing the valence neutron-core relative motion was then used to calculate the Coulomb dissociation of 23O on a lead target at a beam energy of 422 MeV/nucleon. The experimental neutron-core relative energy spectrum and the total one-neutron removal cross sections are well described by the calculations. The widths of the longitudinal momentum distributions of the 22O fragment are found to be broad, which do not support the formation of a neutron halo in this nucleus.Comment: Revised and extended version, accepted for publication in Nucl. Phys.

Angular momentum projected analysis of Quadrupole Collectivity in \protect(^{30,32,34}Mg\protect) and \protect(^{32,34,36,38}Si\protect) with the Gogny interaction

A microscopic angular momentum projection after variation is used to describe quadrupole collectivity in (^{30,32,34}Mg) and (^{32,34,36,38}Si). The Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov states obtained in the quadrupole constrained mean field approach are taken as intrinsic states for the projection. Excitation energies of the first (2^{+}) states and the (B(E2,0^{+}\to 2^{+})) transition probabilities are given. A reasonable agreement with available experimental data is obtained. It is also shown that the mean field picture of those nuclei is strongly modified by the projection.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures, to be published in Phys. Lett.