We revisit the pair creation constraint on superluminal neutrinos considered by Cohen and Glashow in order to clarify which types of superluminal models are constrained. We show that a model in which the superluminal neutrino is effectively light-like can evade the Cohen-Glashow constraint. In summary, any model for which the CG pair production process operates is excluded because such timelike neutrinos would not be detected by OPERA or other experiments. However, a superluminal neutrino which is effectively lightlike with fixed p{sup 2} can evade the Cohen-Glashow constraint because of energy-momentum conservation. The coincidence involved in explaining the SN1987A constraint certainly makes such a picture improbable - but it is still intrinsically possible. The lightlike model is appealing in that it does not violate Lorentz symmetry in particle interactions, although one would expect Hughes-Drever tests to turn up a violation eventually. Other evasions of the CG constraints are also possible; perhaps, e.g., the neutrino takes a 'short cut' through extra dimensions or suffers anomalous acceleration in matter. Irrespective of the OPERA result, Lorentz-violating interactions remain possible, and ongoing experimental investigation of such possibilities should continue.

The possibility of an intense proton facility, at 'Project X' or elsewhere, will provide many new opportunities for searches for physics beyond the Standard Model. A Project X can serve a yet broader role in the search for new physics, and in this note we highlight the manner in which thus-enabled studies of the flavor structure of the proton, particularly of its intrinsic heavy quark content, facilitate other direct and indirect searches for new physics. Intrinsic heavy quarks in both light and heavy hadrons play a key role in searches for physics BSM with hadrons - and their study at the Intensity Frontier may prove crucial to establishing its existence.

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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is preparing a Surplus Plutonium Disposition (SPD) Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS). Included in the evaluation are up to 6 metric tons (MT) of plutonium in the form of impure oxides and metals for which a disposition plan has not been decided, among options that include preparation as feed for the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility; disposing to high-level waste through the Savannah River Site (SRS) HB Line and H Canyon; can-in-canister disposal using the SRS Defense Waste Processing Facility; and preparation for disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). DOE and SRS have identified at least 0.5 MT of plutonium that, because of high levels of chemical and isotopic impurities, is impractical for disposition by methods other than the WIPP pathway. Characteristics of these items and the disposition strategy are discussed.

The NICA collider project at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna will have the capability of colliding protons, polarized deuterons, and nuclei at an effective nucleon-nucleon center-of mass energy in the range {radical}s{sub NN} = 4 to 11 GeV. I briefly survey a number of novel hadron physics processes which can be investigated at the NICA collider. The topics include the formation of exotic heavy quark resonances near the charm and bottom thresholds, intrinsic strangeness, charm, and bottom phenomena, hidden-color degrees of freedom in nuclei, color transparency, single-spin asymmetries, the RHIC baryon anomaly, and non-universal antishadowing.

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I discuss several novel and unexpected aspects of quantum chromodynamics. These include: (a) the nonperturbative origin of intrinsic strange, charm and bottom quarks in the nucleon at large x; the breakdown of pQCD factorization theorems due to the lensing effects of initial- and final-state interactions; (b) important corrections to pQCD scaling for inclusive reactions due to processes in which hadrons are created at high transverse momentum directly in the hard processes and their relation to the baryon anomaly in high-centrality heavy-ion collisions; and (c) the nonuniversality of quark distributions in nuclei. I also discuss some novel theoretical perspectives in QCD: (a) light-front holography - a relativistic color-confining first approximation to QCD based on the AdS/CFT correspondence principle; (b) the principle of maximum conformality - a method which determines the renormalization scale at finite order in perturbation theory yielding scheme independent results; (c) the replacement of quark and gluon vacuum condensates by 'in-hadron condensates' and how this helps to resolve the conflict between QCD vacuum and the cosmological constant.

We present the first results on the Dalitz-plot structure and improved measurements of the time-dependent CP-violation parameters of the process B{sup 0} {yields} K{sub S}{sup 0}K{sub S}{sup 0}K{sub S}{sup 0} obtained using 468 x 10{sup 6} B{bar B} decays collected with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy B factory at SLAC. The Dalitz-plot structure is probed by a time-integrated amplitude analysis that does not distinguish between B{sup 0} and {bar B}{sup 0} decays. We measure the total inclusive branching fraction {Beta}(B{sup 0} {yields} K{sub S}{sup 0}K{sub S}{sup 0}K{sub S}{sup 0}) = (6.19 {+-} 0.48 {+-} 0.15 {+-} 0.12) x 10{sup -6}, where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second is systematic, and the third represents the Dalitz-plot signal model dependence. We also observe evidence for the intermediate resonant states f{sub 0}(980), f{sub 0}(1710), and f{sub 2}(2010). Their respective product branching fractions are measured to be (2.70{sub -1.19}{sup +1.25} {+-} 0.36 {+-} 1.17) x 10{sup -6}, (0.50{sub -0.24}{sup +0.46} {+-} 0.04 {+-} 0.10) x 10{sup -6}, and (0.54{sub -0.20}{sup +0.21} {+-} 0.03 {+-} 0.52) x 10{sup -6}. Additionally, we determine the mixing-induced CP-violation parameters to be S = -0.94{sub -0.21}{sup +0.24} {+-} 0.06 and C = -0.17 {+-} 0.18 {+-} …

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We investigated the protective effectiveness of some transparent metal oxides (TMO) on CIGS solar cell coupons against damp heat (DH) exposure at 85oC and 85% relative humidity (RH). Sputter-deposited bilayer ZnO (BZO) with up to 0.5-um Al-doped ZnO (AZO) layer and 0.2-um bilayer InZnO were used as 'inherent' part of device structure on CdS/CIGS/Mo/SLG. Sputter-deposited 0.2-um ZnSnO and atomic layer deposited (ALD) 0.1-um Al2O3 were used as overcoat on typical BZO/CdS/CIGS/Mo/SLG solar cells. The results were all negative -- all TMO-coated CIGS cells exhibited substantial degradation in DH. Combining the optical photographs, PL and EL imaging, SEM surface micro-morphology, coupled with XRD, I-V and QE measurements, the causes of the device degradations are attributed to hydrolytic corrosion, flaking, micro-cracking, and delamination induced by the DH moisture. Mechanical stress and decrease in crystallinity (grain size effect) could be additional degrading factors for thicker AZO grown on CdS/CIGS.

This Research is about Monitoring Research Review: Ground-Based Nuclear Explosion Monitoring Technologies which presents a preliminary model of the three-dimensional seismic structure of the Iran region.

Simulant testing of a full-scale thin-film evaporator system was conducted in 2011 for technology development at the Hanford tank farms. Test results met objectives of water removal rate, effluent quality, and operational evaluation. Dilute tank waste simulant, representing a typical double-shell tank supernatant liquid layer, was concentrated from a 1.1 specific gravity to approximately 1.5 using a 4.6 m{sup 2} (50 ft{sup 2}) heated transfer area Rototherm{reg_sign} evaporator from Artisan Industries. The condensed evaporator vapor stream was collected and sampled validating efficient separation of the water. An overall decontamination factor of 1.2E+06 was achieved demonstrating excellent retention of key radioactive species within the concentrated liquid stream. The evaporator system was supported by a modular steam supply, chiller, and control computer systems which would be typically implemented at the tank farms. Operation of these support systems demonstrated successful integration while identifying areas for efficiency improvement. Overall testing effort increased the maturation of this technology to support final deployment design and continued project implementation.

We apply the Basis Light-Front Quantization (BLFQ) approach to the Hamiltonian field theory of Quantum Electrodynamics (QED) in free space. We solve for the mass eigenstates corresponding to an electron interacting with a single photon in light-front gauge. Based on the resulting non-perturbative ground state light-front amplitude we evaluate the electron anomalous magnetic moment. The numerical results from extrapolating to the infinite basis limit reproduce the perturbative Schwinger result with relative deviation less than 1.2%. We report significant improvements over previous works including the development of analytic methods for evaluating the vertex matrix elements of QED.

The U.S. Air Force is facing a number of challenges as it moves into the future, one of the biggest being how to provide safe and secure energy to support base operations. A team of scientists and engineers met at Mountain Home Air Force Base near Boise, Idaho, to discuss the possibility of exploring for geothermal resources under the base. The team identified that there was a reasonable potential for geothermal resources based on data from an existing well. In addition, a regional gravity map helped identify several possible locations for drilling a new well. The team identified several possible sources of funding for this well—the most logical being to use U.S. Department of Energy funds to drill the upper half of the well and U.S. Air Force funds to drill the bottom half of the well. The well was designed as a slimhole well in accordance with State of Idaho Department of Water Resources rules and regulations. Drilling operations commenced at the Mountain Home site in July of 2011 and were completed in January of 2012. Temperatures increased gradually, especially below a depth of 2000 ft. Temperatures increased more rapidly below a depth of 5500 ft. The bottom of …

To assess the applicability of latex cell coatings as an "off-the-shelf' biocatalyst, the effect of osmoprotectants, temperature, humidity and O{sub 2} on preservation of H{sub 2} production in Rhodopseudomonas palustris coatings was evaluated. Immediately following latex coating coalescence (24 h) and for up to 2 weeks of dry storage, rehydrated coatings containing different osmoprotectants displayed similar rates of H{sub 2} production. Beyond 2 weeks of storage, sorbitol- treated coatings lost all H{sub 2} production activity, whereas considerable H{sub 2} production was still detected in sucrose- and trehalose-stabilized coatings. The relative humidity level at which the coatings were stored had a significant impact on the recovery and subsequent rates of H{sub 2} production. After 4 weeks storage under air at 60% humidity, coatings produced only trace amounts of H{sub 2} (0-0.1% headspace accumulation), whereas those stored at <5% humidity retained 27-53% of their H{sub 2} production activity after 8 weeks of storage. When stored in argon at <5% humidity and room temperature, R. palustris coatings retained full H{sub 2} production activity for 3 months, implicating oxidative damage as a key factor limiting coating storage. Overall, the results demonstrate that biocatalytic latex coatings are an attractive cell immobilization platform for preservation of …

This report talks about Averages of B-Hadron, C-Hadron, and Tau-Lepton Properties as of Early 2012

Presents a new algorithm for identifying dark matter halos, substructure, and tidal features.

Presents the first results from the RHAPSODY cluster re-simulation project.

The ATLAS detector is used to search for high-mass states, such as heavy charged gauge bosons (W{prime},W*), decaying to a charged lepton (electron or muon) and a neutrino. Results are presented based on the analysis of ppcollisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36 pb{sup -1}. No excess beyond standard model expectations is observed. A W{prime} with sequential standard model couplings is excluded at 95% confidence level for masses below 1.49 TeV, and a W* (charged chiral boson) for masses below 1.35 TeV.

Bioremediation has historically been approached as a �black box� in terms of our fundamental understanding. Thus it succeeds and fails, seldom without a complete understanding of why. Systems biology is an integrated research approach to study complex biological systems, by investigating interactions and networks at the molecular, cellular, community, and ecosystem level. The knowledge of these interactions within individual components is fundamental to understanding the dynamics of the ecosystem under investigation. Understanding and modeling functional microbial community structure and stress responses in environments at all levels have tremendous implications for our fundamental understanding of hydrobiogeochemical processes and the potential for making bioremediation breakthroughs and illuminating the �black box�.

Rayleigh-Taylor (RT) instability is one of the major concerns in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) because it amplifies target modulations in both acceleration and deceleration phases of implosion, which leads to shell disruption and performance degradation of imploding targets. This article reviews experimental results of the RT growth experiments performed on OMEGA laser system, where targets were driven directly with laser light. RT instability was studied in the linear and nonlinear regimes. The experiments were performed in acceleration phase, using planar and spherical targets, and in deceleration phase of spherical implosions, using spherical shells. Initial target modulations consisted of 2-D pre-imposed modulations, and 2-D and 3-D modulations imprinted on targets by the non-uniformities in laser drive. In planar geometry, the nonlinear regime was studied using 3-D modulations with broadband spectra near nonlinear saturation levels. In acceleration-phase, the measured modulation Fourier spectra and nonlinear growth velocities are in good agreement with those predicted by Haan's model [Haan S W 1989 Phys. Rev. A 39 5812]. In a real-space analysis, the bubble merger was quantified by a self-similar evolution of bubble size distributions [Oron D et al 2001 Phys. Plasmas 8, 2883]. The 3-D, inner-surface modulations were measured to grow throughout the deceleration …

This report on the science case for an Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) is the result of a ten-week program at the Institute for Nuclear Theory (INT) in Seattle (from September 13-November 19, 2010), motivated by the need to develop a strong case for the continued study of the QCD description of hadron structure in the coming decades. Hadron structure in the valence quark region will be studied extensively with the Jefferson Lab 12 GeV science program, the subject of an INT program the previous year. The focus of the INT program was on understanding the role of gluons and sea quarks, the important dynamical degrees of freedom describing hadron structure at high energies. Experimentally, the most direct and precise way to access the dynamical structure of hadrons and nuclei at high energies is with a high luminosity lepton probe in collider mode. An EIC with optimized detectors offers enormous potential as the next generation accelerator to address many of the most important, open questions about the fundamental structure of matter. The goal of the INT program, as captured in the writeups in this report, was to articulate these questions and to identify golden experiments that have the greatest potential to provide …

Advances in automation present a new modeling environment for the human reliability analysis (HRA) practitioner. Many, if not most, current day HRA methods have their origin in characterizing and quantifying human performance in analog environments where mode awareness and system status indications are potentially less comprehensive, but simpler to comprehend at a glance when compared to advanced presentation systems. The introduction of highly complex automation has the potential to lead to: decreased levels of situation awareness caused by the need for increased monitoring; confusion regarding the often non-obvious causes of automation failures, and emergent system dependencies that formerly may have been uncharacterized. Understanding the relation of incoming cues available to operators during plant upset conditions, in conjunction with operating procedures, yields insight into understanding the nature of the expected operator response in this control room environment. Static systems methods such as fault trees do not contain the appropriate temporal information or necessarily specify the relationship among cues leading to operator response. In this paper, we do not attempt to replace standard performance shaping factors commonly used in HRA nor offer a new HRA method, existing methods may suffice. In this paper we strive to enhance current understanding of the basis …

The upcoming incarnation of the Gordon Research Conference on Electron Donor Acceptor Interactions will feature sessions on classic topics including proton-coupled electron transfer, dye-sensitized solar cells, and biological electron transfer, as well as emerging areas such as quantum coherence effects in donor-acceptor interactions, spintronics, and the application of donor-acceptor interactions in chemical synthesis.