Measurement of the gluon polarization \Delta G/G at COMPASS

One of the key objectives of the COMPASS experiment at CERN is the determination of the gluon contribution to the nucleon spin. The gluon polarization is measured via photon-gluon fusion in deep-inelastic scattering of 160 GeV/c polarized muons on a polarized 6LiD solid-state target. Photon-gluon fusion is tagged by the observation of charmed mesons or the production of hadron pairs with large transverse momenta p_t. The status of the analysis of the D0 and D0* events and of the high-p_t hadron pairs is shown. The gluon polarization \Delta G/G has been determined from the asymmetry of high-p_t hadron pairs with Q^2>1 GeV/c^2 in an analysis of the 2002/03 data as \Delta G/G=0.06 \pm 0.31 (stat.) \pm 0.06 (syst.).Comment: Proceeding of SPIN2004, Triest

Exclusively produced rho^0 asymmetries on the deuteron and future GPD measurements at COMPASS

Generalized parton distributions (GPDs) provide a new and powerful framework for a complete description of the nucleon structure. They can provide a three-dimensional picture of how the quarks and gluons form a nucleon. GPDs can be probed experimentally in hard exclusive meson production or deeply virtual Compton scattering (DVCS). The COMPASS experiment at CERN is a unique place to study these reactions. At COMPASS, a high energy polarized positive or negative muon beam is scattered off a polarized or unpolarized fixed target. First results for exclusive rho^0 meson production are shown. The transverse target spin asymmetry for exclusively produced rho^0 on a transversely polarized deuteron target has been measured. Prospects for future measurements of DVCS and exclusive meson production at COMPASS will be shown. The experiment will use the existing COMPASS spectrometer with a new target, a new recoil detector and extended calorimetry. Simulations for different models and a test of the recoil detector have been performed.Comment: 8 pages, Proceedings of Transversity 2008, Ferrara, May 200

Transverse Spin Physics at COMPASS

The investigation of transverse spin and transverse momentum effects in deep inelastic scattering is one of the key physics programs of the COMPASS collaboration. Three channels have been analyzed at COMPASS to access the transversity distribution function: The azimuthal distribution of single hadrons, involving the Collins fragmentation function, the azimuthal dependence of the plane containing hadron pairs, involving the two-hadron interference fragmentation function, and the measurement of the transverse polarization of Lambda hyperons in the final state. Azimuthal asymmetries in unpolarized semi-inclusive deep-inelastic scattering give important information on the inner structure of the nucleon as well, and can be used to estimate both the quark transverse momentum k_T in an unpolarized nucleon and to access the so-far unmeasured Boer-Mulders function. COMPASS has measured these asymmetries using spin-averaged 6LiD data.Comment: Proceedings of QCD10 conference, Montpellie

LOCAL ENFORCEMENT OF LAWS PROHIBITING DISCRIMINATION IN HOUSING: THE NEW YORK CITY HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION

This article examines the problem of housing discrimination in New York City as well as the role of the Human Rights Commission in fighting illegally discriminatory practices. Part I describes the evidence demonstrating housing market discrimination and examines the harmful impact these practices have on many New Yorkers. Part II examines the New York City Human Rights Commission\u27s battle against housing discrimination from its founding in 1955 to the present day. As part of this analysis, New York City\u27s Human Rights Law is compared with analogous protections enacted by the State of New York and the federal government. Data on all housing discrimination complaints filed with the Commission in 1992 and 1993 is also studied. Finally, Part III of the article comments briefly on how the Commission can face the challenges of the future in seeking to break down barriers to residential mobility and integration

Electric Vehicles: Charging into the Future

Electric vehicle drives offer a number of advantages over conventional internal combustion engines, especially in terms of lower local emissions, higher energy efficiency, and decreased dependency upon oil. Yet there are significant barriers to the rapid adoption of electric cars, including the limitations of battery technology, high purchase costs, and the lack of recharging infrastructure. With intelligently controlled charging operations, the energy needs of potential electric vehicle fleets could be covered by existing German power plants without incurring large price fluctuations. Over the long term, electric vehicles could represent a sustainable technology path. In the short to mid-term, however, exceedingly optimistic expectations should be avoided, especially with respect to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Electric vehicles as such will not be able to solve all current problems of transportation policy. Yet they may constitute an important component of a larger roadmap for sustainable transportation.Transportation, Electric vehicles, Electricity markets

Frequency and duration of low-wind-power events in Germany

In the transition to a renewable energy system, the occurrence of low-wind-power events receives increasing attention. We analyze the frequency and duration of such events for onshore wind power in Germany, based on 40 years of reanalysis data and open software. We find that low-wind-power events are less frequent in winter than in summer, but the maximum duration is distributed more evenly between months. While short events are frequent, very long events are much rarer. Every year, a period of around five consecutive days with an average wind capacity factor below 10% occurs, and every ten years a respective period of nearly eight days. These durations decrease if only winter months are considered. The longest event in the data lasts nearly ten days. We conclude that public concerns about low-wind-power events in winter may be overrated, but recommend that modeling studies consider multiple weather years to properly account for such events.Comment: This is an update version after peer revie

Cross listing waves

Using a 57-year global panel of listings on foreign stock exchanges, we identify waves in foreign listing activity at the host market, home market, and industry levels. We observe that the waves in the host market are often due to cross-listing waves in home markets or industries that share a particular affiliation with the respective host market. We then find that cross-listing waves in a given host country or from a given home country largely coincide with the outperformance of that country’s economy and financial markets relative to other competing markets. We also show that firms that list their shares during waves are associated with a temporary value premium. Our results provide novel evidence of non-monotonic market development across countries and over time.Firm valuation; Market competitiveness; Market timing; Stock exchanges