Effective potential for nonrelativistic non-Abelian Chern-Simons matter system in constant background fields

We present the effective potential for nonrelativistic matter coupled to non-Abelian Chern-Simons gauge fields. We perform the calculation using a functional method in constant background fields to satisfy Gauss's law and to simplify the computation. Both the quantum gauge and matter fields are integrated over. The gauge fixing is achieved with an $R_\xi$-gauge in the $\xi\to 0$ limit. Divergences appearing in the matter sector are regulated via operator regularization. We find no corrections to the Chern-Simons coupling constant and the system experiences conformal symmetry breaking to one-loop order except at the known value of self-duality. These results agree with previous analysis of the non-Abelian Aharonov-Bohm scattering.Comment: 17 pages in Tex (phyzzx), UdeM-LPN-TH-94-200, CRM-219

A study of stress-free living bone and its application to space flight

Observations of animals and human subjects in weightless space flight (Skylab and COSMOS) document altered bone metabolism. Bone metabolism is affected by a number of local and systemic factors. The calcification and growth of transplanted bone is independent of local muscle, nervous, and mechanical forces; therefore, transplanted bone would provide data on the role of local vs. systematic factors. Bone metabolism in living transplanted bone, devoid of stress, was investigated as a possible tool for the investigation of countermeasures against disuse bone loss. An animal model using Sprague-Dawley rats was developed for transplantation of femur bone tissue on a nutrient vascular pedicel. The long term course of these implants was assessed through the measure of regional and total bone mineral, blood flow, and methylene diphosphonate (MDP) uptake. Clomid, an estrogen agonist/antagonist, was shown to protect bone from disuse loss of minerals by retarding trabecular and cortical resorption

Studies of the nucler equation of state using numerical calculations of nuclear drop collisions

A numerical calculation for the full thermal dynamics of colliding nuclei was developed. Preliminary results are reported for the thermal fluid dynamics in such processes as Coulomb scattering, fusion, fusion-fission, bulk oscillations, compression with heating, and collisions of heated nuclei

Towards Observing the Intercommutation of Flux Tubes in Superconductors

We propose a simple experiment to investigate the intercommutation of flux tubes in type II superconductors. Using this method the intercommutation of strings can be observed directly and the dependence of intercommutation on the angle of crossing of strings can also be analyzed.Comment: 8 pages (LATEX), three figures included at the end of the paper, NSF-ITP-94-2

Cruelty to the Mentally ILL: An Eighth Amendment Challenge to the Abolition of the Insanity Defense

This Comment addresses the present gap in insanity-defense laws created by the defense’s abolition and offers an Eighth Amendment based remedy. Part I reviews the history and evolution of the insanity defense in Anglo-American law. It then describes how four states have statutorily abolished the defense. It concludes with a discussion of Clark v. Arizona, the Court’s most recent decision on the constitutionality of the insanity defense. Part II turns to the Eighth Amendment, examining its historical understanding and the contemporary evolving-standards-of-decency analysis, through which the Court assesses the constitutionality of modern-day punishments. Part II concludes with a discussion of Robinson v. California and Powell v. Texas, two non-death-penalty Eighth Amendment decisions that illustrate contrasting approaches to Eighth Amendment interpretation. Part III examines the Court’s recent Eighth Amendment death-penalty jurisprudence, focusing on two decisions involving mentally deficient offenders, Roper v. Simmons and Atkins v. Virginia, where the Court expanded the Eighth Amendment to protect two groups—minors and the mentally retarded—against the imposition of capital punishment. Part IV argues that these recent precedents are sufficiently analogous, legally and factually, to the insane-offender context; therefore, the Court should apply the rules and reasoning of these decisions to the issue of punishing the insane. Part V then applies the Roper and Atkins Eighth Amendment analyses to the issue of criminal punishment for otherwise insane offenders, the end result of abolishing the insanity defense. Part V concludes that under these new precedents, abolition of the insanity defense results in unconstitutionally excessive punishments, in violation of the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution. Accordingly, this Comment concludes that the safeguard against this constitutional violation—the affirmative insanity defense—merits constitutional protection

Needs Analysis of Genetics and Genomics in Communication Sciences and Its Disorders: Evidence for Change

Purpose: Signaled by the completion of the Human Genome Project in 2003, rapid and escalating discovery in genome science has initiated a paradigm shift in education training and healthcare practices. This shift has required healthcare educators and professionals to possess a level of genetic and genomic literacy and competency. The current study was designed to survey the current state of the perceptions of genetics and genomics in educational and clinical practices within the field speech-language pathology. Method: Seventy-five program directors of degree programs and 265 speech-language pathologists participated in two web-based surveys. Results: Program directors and speech-language pathologist reported to be aware of recent genetic and genomic advancements in speech-language pathology. Ninety-six percent of program directors expected graduated students to demonstrate competency in genetic and genomic related clinical services. Thirty-six percent of program directors reported graduated students were prepared to understand genetics. Seventy-three percent of speech-language pathology programs offered genetic content in their curricula. In comparison, eighty-three percent of speech-language pathologists reported performing genetic related services within their clinical practices. Less than half of respondents reported confidence in performing clinical services. Speech-language pathologists reported minimal to no knowledge of at least 85% of genetic or genomic principles related to speech-language pathology. Sixty-three percent of speech-language pathologists reported their degree-training program had not prepared them to understand genomics in speech-language pathology. Results of a needs index revealed discrepancies between perceptions of speech-language pathologist's performed clinical services and program director's expected competencies, and between level of perceived preparedness and perceived knowledge. Thematic analysis across perceptions, course content, expected competencies, clinical services, and areas of knowledge reflected principles of Mendelian inheritance and single gene disorders. This "medical genetics" perspective is one typically used prior to the completion of Human Genome Project in 2003. Conclusion: The results of this investigative study suggest the field of communication sciences and its disorders is not keeping pace with the demands of new advancements in genetics and genomics. Several discrepancies may contribute to misconceptions and misinformation surrounding genetics and genomic in speech-language pathology. This study provides a foundation for discussion of curriculum reform at the graduate level and policy changes in standard practices of speech-language pathologists at the national level