Female Fighters: Perceptions of Femininity in the Super Smash Bros. Community

This study takes on a qualitative analysis of the online forum, SmashBoards, to examine the way gender is perceived and acted upon in the community surrounding the Super Smash Bros. series. A total of 284 comments on the forum were analyzed using the concepts of gender performativity and symbolic interactionism to determine the perceptions of femininity, reactions to female players, and the understanding of masculinity within the community. Ultimately, although hypermasculine performances were present, a focus on the technical aspects of the game tended to take priority over any understanding of gender, resulting in a generally ambiguous approach to femininity

Magazines - A Pipeline for Science to People

Mark Bowden of the Philadelphia Inquirer won a recent AAAS Science Writing Award for a feature on dairy cattle breeding

Jet-like correlations between Forward- and Mid- rapidity in p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions from STAR at 200 GeV

In this proceedings we present STAR measurements of two particle azimuthal correlations between trigger particles at mid-rapidity ($|\eta|<$ 1) and associated particles at forward rapidities (2.7 $<|\eta|<$ 3.9) in p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$= 200 GeV. Two particle azimuthal correlations between a mid-rapidity trigger particle and forward-rapidity associated particles preferably probe large-x quarks scattered off small-x gluons in RHIC collisions. Comparison of the separate d- and Au-side measurements in d+Au collisions may potentially probe gluon saturation and the presence of Color Glass Condensate. In Au+Au collisions quark energy loss can be probed at large rapidities, which may be different from gluon energy loss measured at mid-rapidity.Comment: Quark Matter 06 Conference proceedings, submitted to Journal of Phys.

Physics with Identified Particles at STAR

New physics results with identified particles at STAR are presented. Measurements at low $p_T$ address bulk properties of the collision, while those at high $p_T$ address jet energy loss in the bulk matter produced. Between these extremes, measurements at intermediate $p_T$ address the interplay between jets and the bulk. We highlight: measurements of $v_2$ fluctuations as a new, sensitive probe of the initial conditions and the equation of state; correlations involving multi-strange particles, along with ratios of identified particles to test coalescence as a mechanism of particle production at intermediate $p_T$; three particle azimuthal correlation to search for conical emission; and the energy and particle-type dependence of hadron production at high $p_T$ to study quark and gluon jet energy loss.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures. To appear in the proceedings of the 19th International Conference on Ultra-Relativistic Nucleus-Nucleus Collisions (Quark Matter 2006), Shanghai, China, November 14-20, 200

Color schlieren with a crystalline lens

Color schlieren with a crystalline len

π,K,p\pi, K, p and pˉ\bar{p} production from Au+Au collisions at sNN=62.4\sqrt{s_{_{NN}}} = 62.4 GeV

The preliminary results of $\pi^{\pm}, K^{\pm}, p$ and $\bar{p}$ spectra are reported from Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{_{NN}}} = 62.4$ GeV. Particle identification is from the Time Projection Chamber and Time-of-Flight system at STAR. The nuclear modification factor $R_{CP}$ for mesons ($\pi^{\pm}, K^{\pm}$) and baryons ($p, \bar{p}$) will also be discussed.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, Contributed to 8th International Conference on Strangeness in Quark Matter (SQM 2004),to be published in Journal of Physics

Color schlieren with a crystalline lens

Color schlieren with a crystalline len

Centrality dependence of the N(Ω)/N(ϕ)N(\Omega)/N(\phi) ratios and ϕ\phi v2v_{2} - a test of thermalization in Au+Au collisions at RHIC

We present the centrality dependence of the $N(\Omega)/N(\phi)$ ratios and $\phi$ $v_{2}$ measured in Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}=200$ GeV by the STAR experiment at RHIC. The results are compared to measurements of other identified particles and recombination model expectations in order to gain insight into the partonic collectivity and possible thermalization of the produced medium.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, Quark Matter 2006 conference proceeding

Upsilon cross section in p+p collisions at STAR

The main focus of the heavy flavor program at RHIC is to investigate the properties of the dense matter produced in heavy-ion collisions by studying its effect on open heavy flavor and quarkonia production. This in turn requires a detailed understanding of their production in elementary p+p collisions so that the dense matter effects can be later unfolded. In this paper, we present the first mid-rapidity cross section measurement of bottomonium at $\sqrt{s}=200$ GeV with the STAR experiment. We compare our results with perturbative QCD calculations. A brief status on the study of charmonium in STAR is given.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. To appear in the proceedings of Quark Matter 2006 as a special issue of Journal of Physics G: Nuclear and Particle Physic