Neutrino-electron processes in a strongly magnetized thermal plasma

We present a new method of calculating the rate of neutrino-electron interactions in a strong magnetic field based on finite temperature field theory. Using this method, in which the effect of the magnetic field on the electron states is taken into account exactly, we calculate the rates of all of the lowest order neutrino-electron interactions in a plasma. As an example of the use of this technique, we explicitly calculate the rate at which neutrinos and antineutrinos annihilate in a highly magnetized plasma, and compare that to the rate in an unmagnetized plasma. The most important channel for energy deposition is the gyromagnetic absorption of a neutrino-antineutrino pair on an electron or positron in the plasma ($\nu\bar{\nu} e^\pm\leftrightarrow e^\pm$). Our results show that the rate of annihilation increases with the magnetic field strength once it reaches a certain critical value, which is dependent on the incident neutrino energies and the ambient temperature of the plasma. It is also shown that the annihilation rates are strongly dependent on the angle between the incident particles and the direction of the magnetic field. If sufficiently strong fields exist in the regions surrounding the core of a type II supernovae or in the central engines of gamma ray bursts, these processes will lead to more efficient plasma heating mechanism than in an unmagnetized medium, and moreover, one which is intrinsically anisotropic.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figures, minor corrections, references added, to be published in Phys. Rev.

The efficacy of occlusal splints in the treatment of bruxism : A systematic review

Funding This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.Peer reviewedPostprin

Unequal a priori Probability Multiple Hypothesis Testing in Space Domain Awareness with the Space Surveillance Telescope

This paper investigates the ability to improve Space Domain Awareness (SDA) by increasing the number of detectable Resident Space Objects (RSOs) from space surveillance sensors. With matched filter based techniques, the expected impulse response, or Point Spread Function (PSF), is compared against the received data. In the situation where the images are spatially undersampled, the modeled PSF may not match the received data if the RSO does not fall in the center of the pixel. This aliasing can be accounted for with a Multiple Hypothesis Test (MHT). Previously, proposed MHTs have implemented a test with an equal a priori prior probability assumption. This paper investigates using an unequal a priori probability MHT. To determine accurate a priori probabilities, three metrics are computed; they are correlation, physical distance, and empirical. Using the calculated a priori probabilities, a new algorithm is developed, and images from the Space Surveillance Telescope (SST) are analyzed. The number of detected objects by both an equal and unequal prior probabilities are compared while keeping the false alarm rate constant. Any additional number of detected objects will help improve SDA capabilities. Abstract © 2016 Optical Society of Americ

Anthropometric and physiological factors affecting batted ball speed of adolescent baseball players

Fifty-seven junior baseball players performed eight swings off a tee to record ball exit speed, as well as tests of grip strength, standing broad jump, lateral-to-medial (LM) jumps, chin-ups and chest pass with a medicine ball. The height, weight and age of each participant was also recorded. All anthropometric and physiological tests were significantly positively correlated with ball speed (p \u3c 0.05). Collinearity between variables meant that only chest pass (R² = 0.70, p = 0.000), body mass (ΔR² = 0.03, Δp = 0.021) and LM jump (ΔR² = 0.04, Δp = 0.005) made independent contributions to a stepwise linear regression. These findings corroborate the expectation that upper body power is a major determinant of batting speed, with leg power adding an additional, independent contribution to performance

Student led social work clinic hub: Increasing capacity in challenging contexts

Social work and human services (SWHS) field education continues to experience challenges in securing quality practicums. Increasing competition through multiple schools of SW&HS, increased enrolments, government cut backs to services resulting in ongoing insecurity around roles and the future of services and their capacity, have all created a landscape where organisational capacity to offer practicums continues to reduce. Added to this is the availability of appropriately qualified on site social workers to supervise students. Student led clinics are not a new concept; they provide an innovative and creative way to provide quality and meaningful placement experiences for students while also creating increased capacity in services offered. In this presentation we discuss the progress of a newly developed Social Work student hub based with the QUT Health Clinics at QUT as part of the School of Public Health and Social Work. The Social Work student hub will commence in July 2014 with a significant focus on the Vision Rehabilitation Centre. The aim of introducing social work services was to increase the capacity of existing psychosocial service offerings in the Vision Rehabilitation Centre and introduce services to the QUT Health Clinics, including provision of outreach services to community organisations

Working group written presentation: Trapped radiation effects

The results of the Trapped Radiation Effects Panel for the Space Environmental Effects on Materials Workshop are presented. The needs of the space community for new data regarding effects of the space environment on materials, including electronics are listed. A series of questions asked of each of the panels at the workshop are addressed. Areas of research which should be pursued to satisfy the requirements for better knowledge of the environment and better understanding of the effects of the energetic charged particle environment on new materials and advanced electronics technology are suggested

Number-Theoretic Nature of Communication in Quantum Spin Systems

The last decade has witnessed substantial interest in protocols for transferring information on networks of quantum mechanical objects. A variety of control methods and network topologies have been proposed, on the basis that transfer with perfect fidelity --- i.e. deterministic and without information loss --- is impossible through unmodulated spin chains with more than a few particles. Solving the original problem formulated by Bose [Phys. Rev. Lett. 91, 207901 (2003)], we determine the exact number of qubits in unmodulated chains (with XY Hamiltonian) that permit the transfer with fidelity arbitrarily close to 1, a phenomenon called pretty good state transfer. We prove that this happens if and only if the number of nodes is n=p-1, 2p-1, where p is a prime, or n=2^{m}-1. The result highlights the potential of quantum spin system dynamics for reinterpreting questions about the arithmetic structure of integers, and, in this case, primality.Comment: 6 pages, 1 EPS figur

The effect of preexercise expiratory muscle loading on exercise tolerance in healthy men

Purpose Acute non-fatiguing inspiratory muscle loading transiently increases diaphragm excitability and global inspiratory muscle strength, and may improve subsequent exercise performance. We investigated the effect of acute expiratory muscle loading on expiratory muscle function and exercise tolerance in healthy men. Methods Ten males cycled at 90% of peak power output to the limit of tolerance (TLIM) after: 1) 2 × 30 expiratory efforts against a pressure-threshold load of 40% maximal expiratory gastric pressure (PgaMAX) (EML-EX); and 2) 2 × 30 expiratory efforts against a pressure-threshold load of 10% PgaMAX (SHAM-EX). Changes in expiratory muscle function were assessed by measuring the mouth pressure (PEMAX) and PgaMAX responses to maximal expulsive efforts, and magnetically evoked (1-Hz) gastric twitch pressure (Pgatw). Results Expiratory loading at 40% of PgaMAX increased PEMAX (10 ± 5%, P = 0.001) and PgaMAX (9 ± 5%, P = 0.004). Conversely, there was no change in PEMAX (166 ± 40 vs. 165 ± 35 cmH2O, P = 1.000) or PgaMAX (196 ± 38 vs. 192 ± 39 cmH2O, P = 0.215) from before to after expiratory loading at 10% of PgaMAX. Exercise time was not different in EML-EX vs. SHAM-EX (7.91 ± 1.96 vs. 8.09 ± 1.77 min, 95% CI = −1.02 to 0.67, P = 0.651). Similarly, exercise-induced expiratory muscle fatigue was not different in EML-EX vs. SHAM-EX (−28 ± 12 vs. −26 ± 7% reduction in Pgatw amplitude, P = 0.280). Perceptual ratings of dyspnea and leg discomfort were not different during EML-EX vs. SHAM-EX. Conclusion Acute expiratory muscle loading enhances expiratory muscle function but does not improve subsequent severe-intensity exercise tolerance in healthy men