Results on mixing in the D0 system from BaBar

With 12.3 fb-1 collected by the BaBar experiment in 2001, the mixing parameter y = Delta(Gamma)/(2 Gamma) is determined from the ratio of the D0 lifetimes measured in the D0 --> K- pi+ and in the D0 --> K- K+ decay modes. The preliminary result y = (-1.0 +- 2.2(stat.) +- 1.7(syst.))% is obtained. Also presented is the status of measuring the mixing parameters y and x^2 = [Delta(M)/Gamma]^2 from a simultaneous fit to the time evolution of the decay time distributions of Cabibbo-favored right-sign (D0 --> K- pi+) and doubly Cabibbo-suppressed wrong-sign (D0 --> K+ pi-) decays. The wrong-sign decay rate, R_WS = (# WS decays)/(# RS decays) = (0.38 +- 0.04(stat.) +- 0.02(syst.))% is obtained from the fit to 23 fb-1 of BaBar data taken in 2000.Comment: 9 pages, 3 postscript figures, contribution to the proceedings of the 9th International Symposium on Heavy Flavour Physics, September 2001, Pasadena, US

Forward Proton Detectors at High Luminosity at the LHC

We discuss the special challenges posed by measuring diffractive and forward physics at the LHC at high luminosity and the solutions proposed by the FP420 R&D collaboration.Comment: 5 pages, no pictures, contribution to the proceedings of ICHEP0

Forward physics with CMS

Forward physics with CMS at the LHC covers a wide range of physics subjects, including very low-x_Bj QCD, underlying event and multiple interactions characteristics, gamma-mediated processes, shower development at the energy scale of primary cosmic ray interactions with the atmosphere, diffraction in the presence of a hard scale and even MSSM Higgs discovery in central exclusive production. Selected feasibility studies to illustrate the forward physics potential of CMS are presented.Comment: Talk on behalf of CMS presented at 2008 Physics at LHC conference, Split, Croatia, Sept 29 - Oct 4 200

Mixing in the D0 system - Results from collider experiments

Mixing in the D0 system may provide a sensitive probe for new physics beyond the Standard Model (SM) but has so far eluded experimental observation. The SM predictions are typically small (< 10^{-3}) for the mixing parameters x, y which, in the absence of charge-parity (CP) symmetry violation, measure the mass (x= Delta(m)/Gamma) and lifetime (y= Delta(Gamma)/2Gamma) difference of the CP eigenstates in the D0 system. The asymmetric B-factory experiments BABAR and Belle open up the opportunity of measuring x, y with unprecedented statistical precision and sample purities. Results from BABAR and Belle, and from CLEO are reviewed.Comment: 28 pages, 7 figures, typos correcte

Forward physics with CMS

We describe several example analyses of the CMS forward physics program: A feasibility study for observing $W$ production in single diffractive dissociation, the analysis of exclusive $\mu\mu$ production and the measurement of very low-x parton distributions and search for evidence of BFKL dynamics with forward jets

Triggering on Forward Physics

The feasibility is investigated of a dedicated trigger stream in the CMS trigger menu, with an output rate of cal O (1)~kHz on the First Level Trigger and cal O (1)~Hz on the High Level Trigger. By combining jet trigger information from the CMS calorimeter with information from the TOTEM Roman Pot detectors at 220 m distance from the interaction point, the default dijet trigger thresholds foreseen in the CMS trigger tables can be lowered substantially while respecting the CMS trigger bandwidth limits. The efficacy of the dedicated diffractive trigger stream is demonstrated for hard single-diffractive and double-Pomeron exchange events

Depression and loneliness in Jamaicans with sickle cell disease

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Sickle cell disease (SCD) is the commonest genetic disorder in Jamaica, and has life-long implications for those afflicted with it. It is well known that depression and loneliness may exist in those with chronic diseases, but the coexistence of depression and loneliness in people with sickle cell disease is not clear. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of and factors associated with depression and loneliness in the Jamaica Sickle Cell Cohort Study and its age and sex matched controls.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>277 patients with SCD and 65 controls were administered a questionnaire that studied demographics, disease severity, depression, and loneliness. Regression analyses were done to examine relationships between outcomes and associated variables.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Depression was found in 21.6% of patients and 9.4% in controls. Loneliness scores were also significantly higher in patients (16.9 ± 5.1) than in controls (14.95 ± 4.69). Depression was significantly associated with unemployment [OR = 2.9, p-value: < 0.001], whereas unemployment (p-value: 0.002), and lower educational attainment were significantly associated with loneliness.</p> <p>In patients with SCD, depression was significantly associated with being unemployed (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.2,4.6, p-value:0.01), presence of a leg ulcer (OR = 3.8, 95% CI: 1.7, 8.4, p-value: 0.001), frequent visits (OR = 3.3, 95% CI: 1.2, 8.9, p-value: 0.019), and frequent painful crises (OR = 2.5, 95% CI: 1.1, 5.8, p-value: 0.035). Not being employed (Coef.: 2.0; p-value: 0.004) and higher educational attainment (tertiary vs. primary education, Coef.: -5.5; p-value: < 0.001) were significant associations with loneliness after adjusting for genotype.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Health workers need to actively look for and manage these problems to optimize their patients' total biopsychosocial care.</p

Penilaian Kinerja Keuangan Koperasi di Kabupaten Pelalawan

This paper describe development and financial performance of cooperative in District Pelalawan among 2007 - 2008. Studies on primary and secondary cooperative in 12 sub-districts. Method in this stady use performance measuring of productivity, efficiency, growth, liquidity, and solvability of cooperative. Productivity of cooperative in Pelalawan was highly but efficiency still low. Profit and income were highly, even liquidity of cooperative very high, and solvability was good

Juxtaposing BTE and ATE – on the role of the European insurance industry in funding civil litigation

One of the ways in which legal services are financed, and indeed shaped, is through private insurance arrangement. Two contrasting types of legal expenses insurance contracts (LEI) seem to dominate in Europe: before the event (BTE) and after the event (ATE) legal expenses insurance. Notwithstanding institutional differences between different legal systems, BTE and ATE insurance arrangements may be instrumental if government policy is geared towards strengthening a market-oriented system of financing access to justice for individuals and business. At the same time, emphasizing the role of a private industry as a keeper of the gates to justice raises issues of accountability and transparency, not readily reconcilable with demands of competition. Moreover, multiple actors (clients, lawyers, courts, insurers) are involved, causing behavioural dynamics which are not easily predicted or influenced. Against this background, this paper looks into BTE and ATE arrangements by analysing the particularities of BTE and ATE arrangements currently available in some European jurisdictions and by painting a picture of their respective markets and legal contexts. This allows for some reflection on the performance of BTE and ATE providers as both financiers and keepers. Two issues emerge from the analysis that are worthy of some further reflection. Firstly, there is the problematic long-term sustainability of some ATE products. Secondly, the challenges faced by policymakers that would like to nudge consumers into voluntarily taking out BTE LEI

Search for stop and higgsino production using diphoton Higgs boson decays

Results are presented of a search for a "natural" supersymmetry scenario with gauge mediated symmetry breaking. It is assumed that only the supersymmetric partners of the top-quark (stop) and the Higgs boson (higgsino) are accessible. Events are examined in which there are two photons forming a Higgs boson candidate, and at least two b-quark jets. In 19.7 inverse femtobarns of proton-proton collision data at sqrt(s) = 8 TeV, recorded in the CMS experiment, no evidence of a signal is found and lower limits at the 95% confidence level are set, excluding the stop mass below 360 to 410 GeV, depending on the higgsino mass