The Future of Higher Education: Review of Jon McGee’s Breakpoint: The Changing Marketplace for Higher Education

This book review analyzes Jon McGee\u27s Breakpoint, highlighting the importance for higher education institutions to understand their position amidst demographic, economic, and cultural changes. McGee\u27s position as a college administrator and father of a prospective college student offers a unique lens in which to investigate the broader context affecting colleges and universities. Data is strategically incorporated throughout the book, drawing from numerous demographic and economic trends affecting students and institutions. McGee does not promote a singular solution to challenges facing institutions today, but emphasizes applying an informed prospective towards leadership. This is an ideal resource for college administrators and those who work in higher education, as well as prospective students and families who seek an informative guide to the modern higher education marketplace

Electric field control of multiferroic domains in Ni3_3V2_2O8_8 imaged by X-ray polarization enhanced topography

The magnetic structure of multiferroic Ni$_3$V$_2$O$_8$ has been investigated using non-resonant X-ray magnetic scattering. Incident circularly polarized X-rays combined with full polarization analysis of the scattered beam is shown to yield high sensitivity to the components of the cycloidal magnetic order, including their relative phases. New information on the magnetic structure in the ferroelectric phase is obtained, where it is found that the magnetic moments on the "cross-tie" sites are quenched relative to those on the "spine" sites. This implies that the onset of ferroelectricity is associated mainly with spine site magnetic order. We also demonstrate that our technique enables the imaging of multiferroic domains through polarization enhanced topography. This approach is used to image the domains as the sample is cycled by an electric field through its hysteresis loop, revealing the gradual switching of domains without nucleation.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure

A potential sterile neutrino search utilizing spectral distortion in a two-reactor/one-detector configuration

There is an observed deficit of about 6% in the expected rate of anti-neutrino interactions when averaging over many different reactor experiments. While the significance of the deficit is low (98.6 % CL), there is speculation that a non-interacting "sterile" neutrino could be the cause. In this paper we explore the possibility of a two-reactor/one-detector experiment at intermediate distances (100-500 meters) to look for a sterile neutrino in the mass range implied by this deficit. A method for probing m^2 phase space is developed using interference patterns between two oscillated spectra at different baselines. This method is used to investigate the potential sensitivity of the Double Chooz experiment, which has a single Near Detector at distances of 351 m and 465 m from two reactors of identical design. We conclude that Double Chooz could investigate sterile neutrino in the m^2 range of 0.002 to 0.5 eV^2 over 5 years of near detector running.Accepted manuscrip

Profile of the U 5f magnetization in U/Fe multilayers

Recent calculations, concerning the magnetism of uranium in the U/Fe multilayer system have described the spatial dependence of the 5f polarization that might be expected. We have used the x-ray resonant magnetic reflectivity technique to obtain the profile of the induced uranium magnetic moment for selected U/Fe multilayer samples. This study extends the use of x-ray magnetic scattering for induced moment systems to the 5f actinide metals. The spatial dependence of the U magnetization shows that the predominant fraction of the polarization is present at the interfacial boundaries, decaying rapidly towards the center of the uranium layer, in good agreement with predictions.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure

Mammalian behavior and physiology converge to confirm sharper cochlear tuning in humans

Frequency analysis of sound by the cochlea is the most fundamental property of the auditory system. Despite its importance, the resolution of this frequency analysis in humans remains controversial. The controversy persists because the methods used to estimate tuning in humans are indirect and have not all been independently validated in other species. Some data suggest that human cochlear tuning is considerably sharper than that of laboratory animals, while others suggest little or no difference between species. We show here in a single species (ferret) that behavioral estimates of tuning bandwidths obtained using perceptual masking methods, and objective estimates obtained using otoacoustic emissions, both also employed in humans, agree closely with direct physiological measurements from single auditory-nerve fibers. Combined with human behavioral data, this outcome indicates that the frequency analysis performed by the human cochlea is of significantly higher resolution than found in common laboratory animals. This finding raises important questions about the evolutionary origins of human cochlear tuning, its role in the emergence of speech communication, and the mechanisms underlying our ability to separate and process natural sounds in complex acoustic environments

Resonant X-Ray Magnetic Scattering from CoO

We analyze the recent experiment [W. Neubeck {\em et al.}, Phys. Rev. B \vol(60,1999,R9912)] for the resonant x-ray magnetic scattering (RXMS) around the K edge of Co in the antiferromagnet CoO. We propose a mechanism of the RXMS to make the $4p$ states couple to the magnetic order: the intraatomic exchange interaction between the $4p$ and the $3d$ states and the $p$-$d$ mixing to the $3d$ states of neighboring Co atoms. These couplings induce the orbital moment in the $4p$ states and make the scattering tensor antisymmetric. Using a cluster model, we demonstrate that this modification gives rise to a large RXMS intensity in the dipole process, in good agreement with the experiment. We also find that the pre-edge peak is generated by the transition to the $3d$ states in the quadrupole process, with negligible contribution of the dipole process. We also discuss the azimuthal angle dependence of the intensity.Comment: 15 pages, 8 figure

Expression of Interest: The Atmospheric Neutrino Neutron Interaction Experiment (ANNIE)

Submitted for the January 2014 Fermilab Physics Advisory Committee meetingSubmitted for the January 2014 Fermilab Physics Advisory Committee meetingSubmitted for the January 2014 Fermilab Physics Advisory Committee meetingSubmitted for the January 2014 Fermilab Physics Advisory Committee meetingNeutron tagging in Gadolinium-doped water may play a significant role in reducing backgrounds from atmospheric neutrinos in next generation proton-decay searches using megaton-scale Water Cherenkov detectors. Similar techniques might also be useful in the detection of supernova neutrinos. Accurate determination of neutron tagging efficiencies will require a detailed understanding of the number of neutrons produced by neutrino interactions in water as a function of momentum transferred. We propose the Atmospheric Neutrino Neutron Interaction Experiment (ANNIE), designed to measure the neutron yield of atmospheric neutrino interactions in gadolinium-doped water. An innovative aspect of the ANNIE design is the use of precision timing to localize interaction vertices in the small fiducial volume of the detector. We propose to achieve this by using early production of LAPPDs (Large Area Picosecond Photodetectors). This experiment will be a first application of these devices demonstrating their feasibility for Water Cherenkov neutrino detectors