178 research outputs found
An Interview on Leadership with Al Carey, CEO, PepsiCo Beverages
Paul T. Barrett, PhD, CPA, is dean and professor of business for the College of Business and Economics, Longwood University, Farmville, VA 23909.
James C. Haug, DBA, is associate professor of management, Longwood University, College of Business and Economics, Farmville, VA 23909.
John N. Gaskins, PhD, currently serves as associate professor of marketing and retailing, Longwood University, College of Business and Economics, Farmville, VA 23909
New Measurements of the Motion of the Zodiacal Dust
Using the Wisconsin H-Alpha Mapper (WHAM), we have measured at high spectral
resolution and high signal-to-noise the profile of the scattered solar Mg I
5184 absorption line in the zodiacal light. The observations were carried out
toward 49 directions that sampled the ecliptic equator from solar elongations
of 48\dg (evening sky) to 334\dg (morning sky) plus observations near +47\dg
and +90\dg ecliptic latitude. The spectra show a clear prograde kinematic
signature that is inconsistent with dust confined to the ecliptic plane and in
circular orbits influenced only by the sun's gravity. In particular, the
broadened widths of the profiles, together with large amplitude variations in
the centroid velocity with elongation angle, indicate that a significant
population of dust is on eccentric orbits. In addition, the wide, flat-bottomed
line profile toward the ecliptic pole indicates a broad distribution of orbital
inclinations extending up to about 30\dg - 40\dg with respect to the ecliptic
plane. The absence of pronounced asymmetries in the shape of the profiles
limits the retrograde population to less than 10% of the prograde population
and also places constraints on the scattering phase function of the particles.
These results do not show the radial outflow or evening--morning velocity
amplitude asymmetry reported in some earlier investigations. The reduction of
the spectra included the discovery and removal of extremely faint, unidentified
terrestrial emission lines that contaminate and distort the underlying Mg I
profile. This atmospheric emission is too weak to have been seen in earlier,
lower signal-to-noise observations, but it probably affected the line centroid
measurements of previous investigations.Comment: 24 pages, 8 figures, 1 table, to appear in ApJ v612; figures appear
low-res only on scree
Analysis of a Large Sample of Neutrino-Induced Muons with the ArgoNeuT Detector
ArgoNeuT, or Argon Neutrino Test, is a 170 liter liquid argon time projection
chamber designed to collect neutrino interactions from the NuMI beam at Fermi
National Accelerator Laboratory. ArgoNeuT operated in the NuMI low-energy beam
line directly upstream of the MINOS Near Detector from September 2009 to
February 2010, during which thousands of neutrino and antineutrino events were
collected. The MINOS Near Detector was used to measure muons downstream of
ArgoNeuT. Though ArgoNeuT is primarily an R&D project, the data collected
provide a unique opportunity to measure neutrino cross sections in the 0.1-10
GeV energy range. Fully reconstructing the muon from these interactions is
imperative for these measurements. This paper focuses on the complete kinematic
reconstruction of neutrino-induced through-going muons tracks. Analysis of this
high statistics sample of minimum ionizing tracks demonstrates the reliability
of the geometric and calorimetric reconstruction in the ArgoNeuT detector
The ArgoNeuT Detector in the NuMI Low-Energy beam line at Fermilab
The ArgoNeuT liquid argon time projection chamber has collected thousands of
neutrino and antineutrino events during an extended run period in the NuMI
beam-line at Fermilab. This paper focuses on the main aspects of the detector
layout and related technical features, including the cryogenic equipment, time
projection chamber, read-out electronics, and off-line data treatment. The
detector commissioning phase, physics run, and first neutrino event displays
are also reported. The characterization of the main working parameters of the
detector during data-taking, the ionization electron drift velocity and
lifetime in liquid argon, as obtained from through-going muon data complete the
present report.Comment: 43 pages, 27 figures, 5 tables - update referenc
Using a game to engage stakeholders in extreme event attribution science
The impacts of weather and climate-related disasters are increasing, and climate change can exacerbate many disasters. Effectively communicating climate risk and integrating science into policy requires scientists and stakeholders to work together. But dialogue between scientists and policymakers can be challenging given the inherently multidimensional nature of the issues at stake when managing climate risks. Building on the growing use of serious games to create dialogue between stakeholders, we present a new game for policymakers called Climate Attribution Under Loss and Damage: Risking, Observing,co-Negotiating (CAULDRON). CAULDRON aims to communicate understanding of the science attributing extreme events to climate change in a memorable and compelling way, and create space for dialogue around policy decisions addressing changing risks and loss and damage from climate change. We describe the process of developing CAULDRON, and draw on observations of players and their feedback to demonstrate its potential to facilitate the interpretation of probabilistic climate information and the understanding of its relevance to informing policy. Scientists looking to engage with stakeholders can learn valuable lessons in adopting similar innovative approaches. The suitability of games depends on the policy context but, if used appropriately, experiential learning can drive co-produced understanding and meaningful dialogue
First Measurements of Inclusive Muon Neutrino Charged Current Differential Cross Sections on Argon
The ArgoNeuT collaboration presents the first measurements of inclusive muon
neutrino charged current differential cross sections on argon. Obtained in the
NuMI neutrino beamline at Fermilab, the results are reported in terms of
outgoing muon angle and momentum. The data are consistent with the Monte Carlo
expectation across the full range of kinematics sampled,
and 0 GeV/c. Along with
confirming the viability of liquid argon time projection chamber technology for
neutrino detection, the measurements allow tests of low energy neutrino
scattering models important for interpreting results from long baseline
neutrino oscillation experiments designed to investigate CP violation and the
orientation of the neutrino mass hierarchy.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Measurement of the production of a W boson in association with a charm quark in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector
The production of a W boson in association with a single charm quark is studied using 4.6 fb−1 of pp collision data at s√ = 7 TeV collected with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. In events in which a W boson decays to an electron or muon, the charm quark is tagged either by its semileptonic decay to a muon or by the presence of a charmed meson. The integrated and differential cross sections as a function of the pseudorapidity of the lepton from the W-boson decay are measured. Results are compared to the predictions of next-to-leading-order QCD calculations obtained from various parton distribution function parameterisations. The ratio of the strange-to-down sea-quark distributions is determined to be 0.96+0.26−0.30 at Q 2 = 1.9 GeV2, which supports the hypothesis of an SU(3)-symmetric composition of the light-quark sea. Additionally, the cross-section ratio σ(W + +c¯¯)/σ(W − + c) is compared to the predictions obtained using parton distribution function parameterisations with different assumptions about the s−s¯¯¯ quark asymmetry
Experimental Observation of Quantum Chaos in a Beam of Light
The manner in which unpredictable chaotic dynamics manifests itself in
quantum mechanics is a key question in the field of quantum chaos. Indeed, very
distinct quantum features can appear due to underlying classical nonlinear
dynamics. Here we observe signatures of quantum nonlinear dynamics through the
direct measurement of the time-evolved Wigner function of the quantum-kicked
harmonic oscillator, implemented in the spatial degrees of freedom of light.
Our setup is decoherence-free and we can continuously tune the semiclassical
and chaos parameters, so as to explore the transition from regular to
essentially chaotic dynamics. Owing to its robustness and versatility, our
scheme can be used to experimentally investigate a variety of nonlinear quantum
phenomena. As an example, we couple this system to a quantum bit and
experimentally investigate the decoherence produced by regular or chaotic
dynamics.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure
Recommendations for a step-wise comparative approach to the evaluation of new screening tests for colorectal cancer
BACKGROUND: New screening tests for colorectal cancer continue to emerge, but the evidence needed to justify their adoption in screening programs remains uncertain.METHODS: A review of the literature and a consensus approach by experts was undertaken to provide practical guidance on how to compare new screening tests with proven screening tests.RESULTS: Findings and recommendations from the review included the following: Adoption of a new screening test requires evidence of effectiveness relative to a proven comparator test. Clinical accuracy supported by programmatic population evaluation in the screening context on an intention-to-screen basis, including acceptability, is essential. Cancer-specific mortality is not essential as an endpoint provided that the mortality benefit of the comparator has been demonstrated and that the biologic basis of detection is similar. Effectiveness of the guaiac-based fecal occult blood test provides the minimum standard to be achieved by a new test. A 4-phase evaluation is recommended. An initial retrospective evaluation in cancer cases and controls (Phase 1) is followed by a prospective evaluation of performance across the continuum of neoplastic lesions (Phase 2). Phase 3 follows the demonstration of adequate accuracy in these 2 prescreening phases and addresses programmatic outcomes at 1 screening round on an intention-to-screen basis. Phase 4 involves more comprehensive evaluation of ongoing screening over multiple rounds. Key information is provided from the following parameters: the test positivity rate in a screening population, the true-positive and false-positive rates, and the number needed to colonoscope to detect a target lesion.CONCLUSIONS: New screening tests can be evaluated efficiently by this stepwise comparative approach. Cancer 2016;122:826-39. © 2016 The Authors. Cancer published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Cancer Society.</p
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