Nos\'e-Hoover Dynamics in Quantum Phase Space

Thermal fluctuations in time-dependent quantum processes are treated by a constant-temperature generalization of Wigner's formulation of quantum mechanics in phase space. To this end, quantum Nos\`e-Hoover dynamics is defined by generalizing the Moyal bracket. Computational applications of the formalism, together with further theoretical developments, are discussed.Comment: 4 pages, no figure

Serious, therefore organised? A critique of the emerging "cyber-organised crime" rhetoric in the United Kingdom

This paper, based on discourse analysis of policy documents, departs from a critique of the juxtaposition of the terms "serious" and "organised" in policies against organised crime in the UK. The conceptualisation of organised crime as national security threat supports our hypothesis that a similar critique can be applied to the emerging narrative of cyber-organised crime in the country. We argue that, whereby organised crime has become essentially "serious" as consequence of its characterisation as a national security threat, cyber crime is becoming "organised" in the policy narrative because of its seriousness. The seriousness and organisation of cyber crime justifies its inclusion within the national security agenda, thus accessing the procedural benefits of criminal intelligence assigned to national security threats. The implications associated to the evolution of such narratives in policy-making need to be assessed while policies are still developing

Test results of a prototype designed to detect horizontal cosmic ray flux

In this paper we report test results from a prototype designed to detect muons from horizontal air shower at large zenith angle, $86^{0}<\Theta<93^{0}$. To detect horizontal tracks and their directions we select them according the muon vertical equivalent charge and we measure the time of flight with a time resolution of 800 ps. Several measurements are collected at different zenith angles. The background studies performed with two modules show that the main source is due to tracks crossing the module at the same time. The upper limit of background flux for a single twin module is estimated to be $10^{-9} cm^{-2}$ $s^{-1}$ $sr^{-1} (90$. We estimated the size of the surface array necessary to detect the shower flux of the order of $10^{-9} cm^{-2}$ $yr^{-1}$ $sr^{-1}$ if originated by Tau Air-Showers secondaries of GZK neutrino Tau below the horizons.Comment: 12 pages, 13 figure

Killing by lung cancer or by diabetes? The trade-off between smoking and obesity

As the prevalence of smoking has decreased to below 20%, health practitioners interest has shifted towards the prevalence of obesity, and reducing it is one of the major health challenges in decades to come. In this paper we study the impact that the final product of the anti-smoking campaign, that is, smokers quitting the habit, had on average weight in the population. To these ends, we use data from the Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance System, a large series of independent representative cross-sectional surveys. We construct a synthetic panel that allows us to control for unobserved heterogeneity and we exploit the exogenous changes in taxes and regulations to instrument the endogenous decision to give up the habit of smoking. Our estimates, are very close to estimates issued in the ’90s by the US Department of Health, and indicate that a 10% decrease in the incidence of smoking leads to an average weight increase of 2.2 to 3 pounds, depending on choice of specification. In addition, we find evidence that the effect overshoots in the short run, although a significant part remains even after two years. However, when we split the sample between men and women, we only find a significant effect for men. Finally, the implicit elasticity of quitting smoking to the probability of becoming obese is calculated at 0.58. This implies that the net benefit from reducing the incidence of smoking by 1% is positive even though the cost to society is $0.6 billions.

A proposito di Mafia Capitale. Spunti per tipizzare il fenomeno mafioso nei sistemi di common law

Il presente articolo si può intendere come una continuazione del dibattito su Mafia Capitale iniziato sul II numero di questa rivista da Nando Dalla Chiesa. L’articolo intende portare avanti il dibattito sull’importanza che il processo di Mafia Capitale potrebbe avere sul piano teorico, oltre che pratico, per la concettualizzazione del fenomeno mafioso in chiave sempre più contemporanea e fuori dall’Italia. Partendo dalle considerazioni fatte da Dalla Chiesa, e tramite un’analisi di alcuni profili problematici della concettualizzazione del fenomeno mafioso all’estero, in questo articolo si sostiene che si può già utilizzare l’impianto accusatorio di Mafia Capitale per una tipizzazione di una sintomatologia mafiosa condivisibile anche oltre l’Italia. Tale tipizzazione permette di abbandonare stereotipi sulla mafia come fenomeno (solo) italiano (o al massimo statunitense) che spesso ritardano o impediscono l’effettivo riconoscimento di forme mafiose all’estero