The eCommentary Machine Project

The eCommentary Machine web application ("eComma") enables groups of students, scholars, or general readers to build collaborative commentaries on a text and to search, display, and share those commentaries online

Application of Pade Approximants to Determination of alpha_s(M_Z^2) from Hadronic Event Shape Observables in e+e- Annihilation

We have applied Pade approximants to perturbative QCD calculations of event shape observables in e+e- --> hadrons. We used the exact O(alpha_s^2) prediction and the [0/1] Pade approximant to estimate the O(alpha_s^3) term for 15 observables, and in each case determined alpha_s(M_Z^2) from comparison with hadronic Z^0 decay data from the SLD experiment. We found the scatter among the alpha_s(M_Z^2) values to be significantly reduced compared with the standard O(alpha_s^2) determination, implying that the Pade method provides at least a partial approximation of higher-order perturbative contributions to event shape observables.Comment: 15 pages, 1 EPS figure, Submitted to Physics Letters

A benefit-cost analysis of the Virginia oyster subsidies : an historical appraisal and proposals for the future

As a leading producer of seafood in the United States, the Commonwealth of Virginia has long maintained an interest in the vitality of its private seafood industry. The present study focuses on the state\u27s oyster industry which is distinguished for its long record of producing one-third of the entire national catch, but which, recently has suffered a variety of natural ·and economic setbacks. Herein, we.wish to examine the economic value of the subsidy programs enacted to meet these recent threats to the very existence of the Virginia oyster industry

Water resources of Lexington County, South Carolina

Water use in Lexington County is about equally divided between surface water and ground water. In 2003, 12 mgd (million gallons per day) were obtained from Lake Murray and the Saluda River, and about 11 mgd were obtained from wells, much of the latter for rural domestic use. The largest public-supply water system in the county is the city of West Columbia, which obtains its water from Lake Murray and the Saluda River. Surface-water quality is fair, with over 65 percent of the State-monitored water-quality stations meeting the guidelines for several types of uses; however, when water quality standards are not met, it has been predominately due to pH and fecalcoliform bacteria infractions

Twittering about research : a case study of the world's first Twitter poster competition

The Royal Society of Chemistry held, to our knowledge, the world’s first Twitter conference at 9am on February 5th, 2015. This paper reports the details of the event and discusses the outcomes, such as the potential for the use of social media to enhance scientific communication at conferences. In particular, the present work argues that social media outlets such as Twitter broaden audiences, speed up communication, and force clearer and more concise descriptions of a researcher’s work. The benefits of poster presentations are also discussed in terms of potential knowledge exchange and networking. This paper serves as a proof-of-concept approach for improving both the public opinion of the poster, and the enhancement of the poster through an innovative online format that some may feel more comfortable with, compared to face-to-face communication

A candidate fusion engineering material, WC-FeCr

A new candidate fusion engineering material, WC-FeCr, has been irradiated with He ions at 25 and 500 °C. Ions were injected at 6 keV to a dose of ~15 dpa and 50 at. % He, simulating direct helium injection from the plasma. The microstructural evolution was continuously characterised in situ using transmission electron microscopy. In the FeCr phase, a coarse array of 3–6 nm bubbles formed. In the WC, bubbles were less prominent and smaller (~2 nm). Spherical-cap bubbles formed at hetero-phase interfaces of tertiary precipitates, indicating that enhanced processing routes to minimise precipitation could further improve irradiation tolerance

Asymptotic Improvement of Resummation and Perturbative Predictions in Quantum Field Theory

The improvement of resummation algorithms for divergent perturbative expansions in quantum field theory by asymptotic information about perturbative coefficients is investigated. Various asymptotically optimized resummation prescriptions are considered. The improvement of perturbative predictions beyond the reexpansion of rational approximants is discussed.Comment: 21 pages, LaTeX, 3 tables; title shortened; typographical errors corrected; minor changes of style; 2 references adde