Prospects for Heavy Scalar Searches at the LHeC

In this article we study the prospects of the proposed Large Hadron electron Collider (LHeC) in the search for heavy neutral scalar particles. We consider a minimal model with one additional complex scalar singlet that interacts with the Standard Model (SM) via mixing with the Higgs doublet, giving rise to a SM-like Higgs boson $h_1$ and a heavy scalar particle $h_2$. Both scalar particles are produced via vector boson fusion and can be tested via their decays into pairs of SM particles, analogously to the SM Higgs boson. Using multivariate techniques we show that the LHeC is sensitive to $h_2$ with masses between 200 and 800 GeV down to scalar mixing of $\sin^2 \alpha \sim 10^{-3}$

Awareness and use of m-banking services in agriculture: The case of smallholder farmers in Kenya

Smallholder farmer access to agricultural finance has been a major constraint to agricultural commercialization in developing countries. The ICT revolution in Africa has however brought an opportunity to ease this constraint. The mobile phone-based banking services that started in Kenya urban centers have spread to rural areas and even other countries. Using these services farmers could receive funds invest in agriculture finance transactions. This study examines the awareness and use of m-banking services among rural farmers in Kenya. It also assesses the factors conditioning the use of such services. The study finds high awareness of m-banking services among the smallholder farmers. It also finds that education, distance to a commercial bank, membership to farmer organizations, distance to the m-banking agents, and endowment with physical and financial assets affect the use of m-banking services. It discusses the implications of these findings for policy and practice.Mobile phones, m-banking services, awareness and use, smallholder farmers, Kenya, Financial Economics,

KS3 and KS4 learners' use of Web 2.0 technologies in and out of school - summary

This is a summary of the second report from research commissioned by Becta into Web 2.0 technologies for learning at Key Stages 3 and 4. This report describes findings from data collected using a guided survey of 2,611 Year 8 and Year 10 pupils and 60 focus groups held with approximately 300 learners. The analysis explores learner use of Web 2.0 technologies and their motivations for using social networking sites and the implications of these findings for teachers and providers

Deep reinforcement learning für workload balance und Fälligkeitskontrolle in wafer fabs

Semiconductor wafer fabrication facilities (wafer fabs) often prioritize two operational objectives: work-in-process (WIP) and due date. WIP-oriented and due date-oriented dispatching rules are two commonly used methods to achieve workload balance and on-time delivery, respectively. However, it often requires sophisticated heuristics to achieve both objectives simultaneously. In this paper, we propose a novel approach using deep-Q-network reinforcement learning (DRL) for dispatching in wafer fabs. The DRL approach differs from traditional dispatching methods by using dispatch agents at work-centers to observe state changes in the wafer fabs. The agents train their deep-Q-networks by taking the states as inputs, allowing them to select the most appropriate dispatch action. Additionally, the reward function is integrated with workload and due date information on both local and global levels. Compared to the traditional WIP and due date-oriented rules, as well as heuristics-based rule in literature, the DRL approach is able to produce better global performance with regard to workload balance and on-time delivery

A complete ancient RNA genome : identification, reconstruction and evolutionary history of archaeological Barley Stripe Mosaic Virus

The origins of many plant diseases appear to be recent and associated with the rise of domestication, the spread of agriculture or recent global movements of crops. Distinguishing between these possibilities is problematic because of the difficulty of determining rates of molecular evolution over short time frames. Heterochronous approaches using recent and historical samples show that plant viruses exhibit highly variable and often rapid rates of molecular evolution. The accuracy of estimated evolution rates and age of origin can be greatly improved with the inclusion of older molecular data from archaeological material. Here we present the first reconstruction of an archaeological RNA genome, which is of Barley Stripe Mosaic Virus (BSMV) isolated from barley grain ~750 years of age. Phylogenetic analysis of BSMV that includes this genome indicates the divergence of BSMV and its closest relative prior to this time, most likely around 2000 years ago. However, exclusion of the archaeological data results in an apparently much more recent origin of the virus that postdates even the archaeological sample. We conclude that this viral lineage originated in the Near East or North Africa, and spread to North America and East Asia with their hosts along historical trade routes