512 research outputs found
Solving integral equations in
A dispersive analysis of decays has been performed in the past
by many authors. The numerical analysis of the pertinent integral equations is
hampered by two technical difficulties: i) The angular averages of the
amplitudes need to be performed along a complicated path in the complex plane.
ii) The averaged amplitudes develop singularities along the path of integration
in the dispersive representation of the full amplitudes. It is a delicate
affair to handle these singularities properly, and independent checks of the
obtained solutions are demanding and time consuming. In the present article, we
propose a solution method that avoids these difficulties. It is based on a
simple deformation of the path of integration in the dispersive representation
(not in the angular average). Numerical solutions are then obtained rather
straightforwardly. We expect that the method also works for .Comment: 11 pages, 10 Figures. Version accepted for publication in EPJC. The
ancillary files contain an updated set of fundamental solutions. The
numerical differences to the former set are tiny, see the READMEv2 file for
detail
Quid pro quo:reflections on the value of problem structuring workshops
Attracting clients who are willing to invest in using a problem structuring method (PSM) can be particularly difficult for the emerging generation of modellers. There are many reasons for this, not least that the benefits of a problem structuring intervention are vague and evidence of benefits are often anecdotal for example, claims of constructing a deeper understanding of the problem or building the commitment of a group to implementing an outcome. This paper contributes to the evaluation of problem structuring methods by reflecting on the quid pro quo that a client and problem structuring modeller can enjoy from collaboration. The paper reflects on 21 cases, where Journey Making (a problem structuring method) was used with 16 organizations to help managers agree a suite of actions to tackle a complex strategic issue. The reflections are clustered around those benefits that pertain to: PSMs in general; PSMs that use computer-supported workshops; the Journey Making methodology
Why do Particle Clouds Generate Electric Charges?
Grains in desert sandstorms spontaneously generate strong electrical charges;
likewise volcanic dust plumes produce spectacular lightning displays. Charged
particle clouds also cause devastating explosions in food, drug and coal
processing industries. Despite the wide-ranging importance of granular charging
in both nature and industry, even the simplest aspects of its causes remain
elusive, because it is difficult to understand how inert grains in contact with
little more than other inert grains can generate the large charges observed.
Here, we present a simple yet predictive explanation for the charging of
granular materials in collisional flows. We argue from very basic
considerations that charge transfer can be expected in collisions of identical
dielectric grains in the presence of an electric field, and we confirm the
model's predictions using discrete-element simulations and a tabletop granular
experiment
Note on New KLT relations
In this short note, we present two results about KLT relations discussed in
recent several papers. Our first result is the re-derivation of Mason-Skinner
MHV amplitude by applying the S_{n-3} permutation symmetric KLT relations
directly to MHV amplitude. Our second result is the equivalence proof of the
newly discovered S_{n-2} permutation symmetric KLT relations and the well-known
S_{n-3} permutation symmetric KLT relations. Although both formulas have been
shown to be correct by BCFW recursion relations, our result is the first direct
check using the regularized definition of the new formula.Comment: 15 Pages; v2: minor correction
Efficacy of a family practice-based lifestyle intervention program to increase physical activity and reduce clinical and physiological markers of vascular health in patients with high normal blood pressure and/or high normal blood glucose (SNAC): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Previous interventions to increase physical activity and reduce cardiovascular risk factors have been targeted at individuals with established disease; less attention has been given to intervention among individuals with high risk for disease nor has there been determination of the influence of setting in which the intervention is provided. In particular, family practice represents an ideal setting for the provision and long-term maintenance of lifestyle interventions for patients at risk (ie high-normal blood pressure or impaired glucose tolerance).</p> <p>Methods/design</p> <p>The Staged Nutrition and Activity Counseling (SNAC) study is a randomized clustered design clinical trial that will investigate the effectiveness and efficacy of a multi-component lifestyle intervention on cardiovascular disease risk factors and vascular function in patients at risk in primary care. Patients will be randomized by practice to either a standard of care lifestyle intervention or a behaviourally-based, matched prescriptive physical activity and diet change program. The primary goal is to increase physical activity and improve dietary intake according to Canada's Guides to Physical Activity Healthy Eating over 24 months. The primary intention to treat analysis will compare behavioral, physiological and metabolic outcomes at 6, 12 and 24 months post-randomization including estimation of incident hypertension and/or diabetes.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>The design features of our trial, and the practical problems (and solutions) associated with implementing these design features, particularly those that result in potential delay between recruitment, baseline data collection, randomization, intervention, and assessment will be discussed. Results of the SNAC trial will provide scientific rationale for the implementation of this lifestyle intervention in primary care.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>ISRCTN: <a href="http://www.controlled-trials.com/ISRCTN:42921300">ISRCTN:42921300</a></p
Revisiting soliton contributions to perturbative amplitudes
Open Access funded by SCOAP3. CP is
a Royal Society Research Fellow and partly supported by the U.S. Department of Energy
under grants DOE-SC0010008, DOE-ARRA-SC0003883 and DOE-DE-SC0007897. ABR
is supported by the Mitchell Family Foundation. We would like to thank the Mitchell
Institute at Texas A&M and the NHETC at Rutgers University respectively for hospitality
during the course of this work. We would also like to acknowledge the Aspen Center for
Physics and NSF grant 1066293 for a stimulating research environment
High Energy Bounds on Soft N=4 SYM Amplitudes from AdS/CFT
Using the AdS/CFT correspondence, we study the high-energy behavior of
colorless dipole elastic scattering amplitudes in N=4 SYM gauge theory through
the Wilson loop correlator formalism and Euclidean to Minkowskian analytic
continuation. The purely elastic behavior obtained at large impact-parameter L,
through duality from disconnected AdS_5 minimal surfaces beyond the
Gross-Ooguri transition point, is combined with unitarity and analyticity
constraints in the central region. In this way we obtain an absolute bound on
the high-energy behavior of the forward scattering amplitude due to the
graviton interaction between minimal surfaces in the bulk. The dominant
"Pomeron" intercept is bounded by alpha less than or equal to 11/7 using the
AdS/CFT constraint of a weak gravitational field in the bulk. Assuming the
elastic eikonal approximation in a larger impact-parameter range gives alpha
between 4/3 and 11/7. The actual intercept becomes 4/3 if one assumes the
elastic eikonal approximation within its maximally allowed range L larger than
exp{Y/3}, where Y is the total rapidity. Subleading AdS/CFT contributions at
large impact-parameter due to the other d=10 supergravity fields are obtained.
A divergence in the real part of the tachyonic KK scalar is cured by
analyticity but signals the need for a theoretical completion of the AdS/CFT
scheme.Comment: 25 pages, 3 eps figure
On renormalization group flows and the a-theorem in 6d
We study the extension of the approach to the a-theorem of Komargodski and
Schwimmer to quantum field theories in d=6 spacetime dimensions. The dilaton
effective action is obtained up to 6th order in derivatives. The anomaly flow
a_UV - a_IR is the coefficient of the 6-derivative Euler anomaly term in this
action. It then appears at order p^6 in the low energy limit of n-point
scattering amplitudes of the dilaton for n > 3. The detailed structure with the
correct anomaly coefficient is confirmed by direct calculation in two examples:
(i) the case of explicitly broken conformal symmetry is illustrated by the free
massive scalar field, and (ii) the case of spontaneously broken conformal
symmetry is demonstrated by the (2,0) theory on the Coulomb branch. In the
latter example, the dilaton is a dynamical field so 4-derivative terms in the
action also affect n-point amplitudes at order p^6. The calculation in the
(2,0) theory is done by analyzing an M5-brane probe in AdS_7 x S^4.
Given the confirmation in two distinct models, we attempt to use dispersion
relations to prove that the anomaly flow is positive in general. Unfortunately
the 4-point matrix element of the Euler anomaly is proportional to stu and
vanishes for forward scattering. Thus the optical theorem cannot be applied to
show positivity. Instead the anomaly flow is given by a dispersion sum rule in
which the integrand does not have definite sign. It may be possible to base a
proof of the a-theorem on the analyticity and unitarity properties of the
6-point function, but our preliminary study reveals some difficulties.Comment: 41 pages, 5 figure
Interface localization near criticality
The theory of interface localization in near-critical planar systems at phase
coexistence is formulated from first principles. We show that mutual delocalization of two
interfaces, amounting to interfacial wetting, occurs when the bulk correlation length crit-
ical exponent \u3bd is larger than or equal to 1. Interaction with a boundary or defect line
involves an additional scale and a dependence of the localization strength on the distance
from criticality. The implications are particularly rich in the boundary case, where de-
localization proceeds through different renormalization patterns sharing the feature that
the boundary field becomes irrelevant in the delocalized regime. The boundary delocal-
ization (wetting) transition is shown to be continuous, with surface specific heat and layer
thickness exponents which can take values that we determine
A case of mistaken identity: HSPs are no DAMPs but DAMPERs
Until recently, the immune system was seen solely as a defense system with its primary task being the elimination of unwanted microbial invaders. Currently, however, the functional significance of the immune system has obtained a much wider perspective, to include among others the maintenance and restoration of homeostasis following tissue damage. In this latter aspect, there is a growing interest in the identification of molecules involved, such as the so-called danger or damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), also called alarmins. Since heat shock proteins are archetypical molecules produced under stressful conditions, such as tissue damage or inflammation, they are frequently mentioned as prime examples of DAMPs (Bianchi, J Leukoc Biol 81:1–5, 2007; Kono and Rock, Nat Rev Immunol 8:279–289, 2008; Martin-Murphy et al., Toxicol Lett 192:387–394, 2010). See for instance also a recent review (Chen and Nunez, Science 298:1395–1401, 2010). Contrary to this description, we recently presented some of the arguments against a role of heat shock protein as DAMPs (Broere et al., Nat Rev Immunol 11:565-c1, 2011). With this perspective and reflection article, we hope to elaborate on this debate and provide additional thoughts to further ignite this discussion on this critical and evolving issue
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