The Static Potential to O(\alpha^2) in Lattice Perturbation Theory

We present a calculation of Wilson loops, and the static inter-quark potential to $O(\alpha^2)$ in lattice perturbation theory. This is carried out with the Wilson, Symanzik-Weisz, and Iwasaki gauge actions and the Wilson, Sheikholeslami-Wohlert, and Kogut-Susskind dynamical fermion action for small Wilson loops, and with the Wilson gauge action and each of the dynamical quark actions in the case of the static potential.Comment: Lattice2001(improvement) 3 pages, 3 figure

Doing the Business? Newspaper reporting of the business of football

This research draws upon a growing interest within media sociology in the ways in which news is shaped by information flows between sources; it focuses on how the media, and newspapers in particular, report on the business aspects of the UK football industry. Media interest in the workings of the City and issues of corporate governance extend beyond the conventional business pages to encompass the sports pages, commentary and even editorializing. The case study in this article centres on the Scottish club, Celtic, and serves to illustrate how public interest in sport can help illuminate aspects of how financial news is produced and reported in the print media. The article argues that much of the growing and complex business side of the game goes largely unreported and that there is evidence of an over-reliance on celebrity sources by journalists and a lack of knowledge or experience among sports reporters in reporting business stories

Toward improved calibration of hydrologic models: Combining the strengths of manual and automatic methods

Automatic methods for model calibration seek to take advantage of the speed and power of digital computers, while being objective and relatively easy to implement. However, they do not provide parameter estimates and hydrograph simulations that are considered acceptable by the hydrologists responsible for operational forecasting and have therefore not entered into widespread use. In contrast, the manual approach which has been developed and refined over the years to result in excellent model calibrations is complicated and highly labor-intensive, and the expertise acquired by one individual with a specific model is not easily transferred to another person (or model). In this paper, we propose a hybrid approach that combines the strengths of each. A multicriteria formulation is used to "model" the evaluation techniques and strategies used in manual calibration, and the resulting optimization problem is solved by means of a computerized algorithm. The new approach provides a stronger test of model performance than methods that use a single overall statistic to aggregate model errors over a large range of hydrologic behaviors. The power of the new approach is illustrated by means of a case study using the Sacramento Soil Moisture Accounting model

Testing Inflation: A Bootstrap Approach

We note that the essential idea of inflation, that the universe underwent a brief period of accelerated expansion followed by a long period of decelerated expansion, can be encapsulated in a "closure condition" which relates the amount of accelerated expansion during inflation to the amount of decelerated expansion afterward. We present a protocol for systematically testing the validity of this condition observationally.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, matches Phys. Rev. Lett. versio

Effects of husbandry and low-dose lipopolysaccharide challenge on the acute phase response of young pigs

End of project reportIn recent years, concern has grown for the welfare of domesticated animals in different production systems (Appleby and Hughes, 1997). Poor welfare can result in poor performance and productivity. However, the consumers are also requesting more welfare-friendly systems, as reflected by the importance that ‘organic’ and ‘free-range’ products have gained in our markets. Furthermore, there are ethical reasons for safeguarding the welfare of animals in our care. Thus, it is scientists’ task to be able to develop methods and techniques that can help to assess the welfare objectively. Traditionally, welfare assessment relied on the study of behaviour and the measurement of endocrine parameters. Acute phase response mediators and products, such as pro-inflammatory cytokines and acute phase proteins, emerged recently as potential indicators of infection and herd health status (Eckersall, 2000; Petersen et al., 2004). Thus, investigating the effects of husbandry and low-dose lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge on the acute phase response of young pigs can give valuable information on the use of these immune parameters as health and welfare indicators in pigs.Teagasc acknowledges the support of National Development Programme Funds (NDP) in the financing of this research projec

Comparison of a quasi-3D analysis and experimental performance for three compact radial turbines

An experimental aerodynamic evaluation of three compact radial turbine builds was performed. Two rotors which were 40 to 50 percent shorter in axial length than conventional state of the art radial rotors were tested. A single nozzle design was used. One rotor was tested with the nozzle at two stagger angle settings. A second rotor was tested with the nozzle in only the closed down setting. Experimental results were compared to predict results from a quasi-3D inviscid and boundary layer analysis, called Meridl/Tsonic/Blayer (MTSB). This analysis was used to predict turbine performance. It has previously been calibrated only for axial, not radial, turbomachinery. The predicted and measured efficiencies were compared at the design point for the three turbines. At the design points the analysis overpredicted the efficiency by less than 1.7 points. Comparisons were also made at off-design operating points. The results of these comparisons showed the importance of an accurate clearance model for efficiency predictions and also that there are deficiencies in the incidence loss model used

The environments of intermediate-redshift QSOs: 0.3 < z < 0.7

An angular correlation of low significance (2 sigma) is observed between 0.3 < z < 0.5 QSOs and V < 23 galaxies. Overall, the cross-correlation function between 82 intermediate-redshift (0.3 < z < 0.7), X-ray selected QSOs and V < 24 galaxies is investigated, but no signal is detected for the z > 0.5 QSOs. After converting to an excess of galaxies physically associated with the QSO, this lack of strong correlation is shown to be consistent with the clustering of normal galaxies at the same moderate redshifts. Combined with previous observations, these results imply that the environments of radio-quiet QSOs do not undergo significant evolution with respect to the galaxy population over a wide range of redshifts (0 < z < 1.5). This is in marked contrast to the rapid increase in the richness of the environments associated with radio-loud QSOs over the same redshift range.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figures, MNRAS TeX macro, to appear to MNRA