Non Abelian BF theories with sources and 2-D gravity

We study the interaction of non-Abelian topological $BF$ theories defined on two dimensional manifolds with point sources carrying non-Abelian charges. We identify the most general solution for the field equations on simply and multiply connected two-manifolds. Taking the particular choice of the so-called extended Poincar\'e group as the gauge group we discuss how recent discussions of two dimensional gravity models do fit in this formalism.Comment: 20 pages, Latex, To appear in Phys Rev D5

Desenvolvimento de filmes nanocompósitos amido/microfibrilas de celulose por casting contínuo.

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Preliminary study of ginger bagasse - a waste from the extraction of ginger starch.

The aim of this study was to extract a cellulose rich material from the agricultural residue of the processing of the ginger starch (GS) - the ginger bagasse (GB). The chemical composition of ginger are oleoresins, essential oils, and other components such as proteins, ash, minerals, and starch [1]. One of the by-products generated after the extraction of ginger starch consists of a fibrous material containing cellulosic fibers and residual starch. This material is here denominated ginger bagasse (GB). Ginger processing waste has been combined with ZnCl2 and H2SO4 to act as a bioabsorbent for water treatment from textile industries [2,3]. In this study, work the authors obtained this residue from rhizome and characterized it by FTIR, XRD and its thermal stability in nitrogen and air atmospheres. The initial results indicated success in obtaining an essentially cellulosic material with the presence of residual starch and thermal stability around 270 °C in inert atmosphere. Our future perspectives are the development of sustainable materials from biomass, attributing added value to an agro residue

Being Tamil, being Hindu:Tamil migrants’ negotiations of the absence of Tamil Hindu spaces in the West Midlands and South West of England

This paper considers the religious practices of Tamil Hindus who have settled in the West Midlands and South West of England in order to explore how devotees of a specific ethno-regional Hindu tradition with a well-established UK infrastructure in the site of its adherents’ population density adapt their religious practices in settlement areas which lack this infrastructure. Unlike the majority of the UK Tamil population who live in the London area, the participants in this study did not have ready access to an ethno-religious infrastructure of Tamil-orientated temples and public rituals. The paper examines two means by which this absence was addressed as well as the intersections and negotiations of religion and ethnicity these entailed: firstly, Tamil Hindus’ attendance of temples in their local area which are orientated towards a broadly imagined Hindu constituency or which cater to a non-Tamil ethno-linguistic or sectarian community; and, secondly, through the ‘DIY’ performance of ethnicised Hindu ritual in non-institutional settings