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We present a search for the standard model Higgs boson in H {yields} WW{sup (*)} decays with e{sup +}e{sup -}, e{sup {+-}}{mu}{sup {-+}} and {mu}{sup +}{mu}{sup -} final states in p{bar p} collisions at a center-of-mass energy of {radical}s = 1.96 TeV. The data, collected from April 2002 to June 2004 with the D0 detector, correspond to an integrated luminosity of 300-325 pb{sup -1}, depending on the final state. The number of events observed is consistent with the expectation from backgrounds. Limits from the combination of all three channels on the Higgs production cross section times branching ratio {sigma} x BR(H {yields} WW{sup (*)}) are presented.

Using the complete KTeV data set of 5241 candidate K{sub L} {yields} {pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -}e{sup +}e{sup -} decays (including an estimated background of 204 {+-} 14 events), we have measured the coupling g{sub CR} = 0.163 {+-} 0.014 (stat) {+-} 0.023 (syst) of the CP conserving charge radius process and from it determined a K{sup 0} charge radius of <r{sub K{sup 0}}{sup 2}> = (-0.077 {+-} 0.007(stat) {+-} 0.011(syst))fm{sup 2}. We have also determined a first experimental upper limit of 0.04 (90% CL) for the ratio |g{sub E1}|/|g{sub M1}| of the coupling for the E1 direct photon emission process relative to the coupling for M1 direct photon emission process. We also report the measurement of |g{sub M1}| including its associated vector form factor |{bar g}{sub M1}|1 + a{sub 1}/a{sub 2}/(M{sub p}{sup 2} - M{sub K}{sup 2})+2M{sub K}E{sub {gamma}*} where |{bar g}{sub M1}| = 1.11 {+-} 0.12 (stat) {+-} 0.08 (syst) and a{sub 1}/a{sub 2} = (-0.744 {+-} 0.027 (stat) {+-} 0.032 (syst)) GeV{sup 2}/c{sup 2}. In addition, a measurement of the manifestly CP violating asymmetry of magnitude (13.6 {+-} 1.4 (stat) {+-} 1.5 (syst))% in the CP and T odd angle {phi} between the decay planes of the e{sup +}e{sup …

The ground array of the Pierre Auger Observatory consists of 1600 water Cherenkov detectors, deployed over 3000 km{sup 2}. The remoteness and large number of detectors required a simple, automatic remote calibration procedure. The primary physics calibration is based on the average charge deposited by a vertical and central throughgoing muon, determined with good precision at the detector via a novel rate-based technique and later with higher precision via charge histograms. This value is named the vertical-equivalent muon (VEM). The VEM and the other parameters needed to maintain this calibration over the full energy range and to assess the quality of the detector are measured every minute. This allows an accurate determination of the energy deposited in each detector when an atmospheric cosmic ray shower occurs.

This thesis is concerned with both the application and the extension of quantum chemical methods. Each chapter of the thesis represents a paper that has been published in or will be submitted to a scientific journal. The first three chapters of this thesis describe contributions made to chemistry through the use of quantum chemical methods, while the final two chapters illustrate the development of new methods. Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 characterize a study of the electronic structure and magnetic properties of homodinuclear titanium(III) complexes, in order to determine trends related to their potential use as molecular magnets. Chapter 2 focuses on hydride and halide bridging and terminal ligands, while Chapter 3 explores bridging ligands from other groups in the periodic table. Chapter 4 portrays a study of the solvation of glycine. Microsolvation and continuum solvation approaches are investigated in order to study the structures of small glycine-water clusters and determine the energy difference between the zwitterionic and nonionized forms of glycine, the simplest amino acid. Chapters 5 and 6 describe the implementation of analytic gradients, which are required for efficient molecular geometry optimizations, for two open-shell second-order perturbation theory methods. Chapter 5 discusses gradients for unrestricted Moeller-Plesset perturbation theory, …

We determine the instantaneous aperture and integrated exposure of the surface detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory, taking into account the trigger efficiency as a function of the energy, arrival direction (with zenith angle lower than 60 degrees) and nature of the primary cosmic-ray. We make use of the so-called Lateral Trigger Probability function (or LTP) associated with an extensive air shower, which summarizes all the relevant information about the physics of the shower, the water tank Cherenkov detector, and the triggers.

The trigger system of the Surface Detector (SD) of the Pierre Auger Observatory is described, from the identification of candidate showers (E > 1 EeV) at the level of a single station, among a huge background (mainly single muons), up to the selection of real events and the rejection of random coincidences at a higher central trigger level (including the reconstruction accuracy). Efficiency of a single station trigger is evaluated using real data, and the high performance of event selection hierarchy will be demonstrated.

During the past ten years, gamma-ray Bursts (GRB) have been extensively studied in the keV-MeV energy range but the higher energy emission still remains mysterious. Ground based observatories have the possibility to investigate energy range around one GeV using the ''single particle technique''. The aim of the present study is to investigate the capability of the Pierre Auger Observatory to detect the high energy emission of GRBs with such a technique. According to the detector response to photon showers around one GeV, and making reasonable assumptions about the high energy emission of GRBs, we show that the Pierre Auger Observatory is a competitive instrument for this technique, and that water tanks are very promising detectors for the single particle technique.

The Gordon Research Conference (GRC) on LASER DIAGNOSTICS IN COMBUSTION was held at Mount Holyoke College from 7/31/2005 thru 8/5/2005. The Conference was well-attended with 121 participants (attendees list attached). The attendees represented the spectrum of endeavor in this field coming from academia, industry, and government laboratories, both U.S. and foreign scientists, senior researchers, young investigators, and students. In designing the formal speakers program, emphasis was placed on current unpublished research and discussion of the future target areas in this field. There was a conscious effort to stimulate lively discussion about the key issues in the field today. Time for formal presentations was limited in the interest of group discussions. In order that more scientists could communicate their most recent results, poster presentation time was scheduled. Attached is a copy of the formal schedule and speaker program and the poster program. In addition to these formal interactions, ''free time'' was scheduled to allow informal discussions. Such discussions are fostering new collaborations and joint efforts in the field. I want to personally thank you for your support of this Conference. As you know, in the interest of promoting the presentation of unpublished and frontier-breaking research, Gordon Research Conferences does not permit …

The ground array of the Pierre Auger Observatory will consist of 1600 water-Cherenkov detectors. Such detectors give signals which can help differentiate between muons and electrons in extensive air showers. The relative numbers of muons and electrons is sensitive to the type of primary particle which initiated the shower. Results are presented using methods which describe the muon content and related information, such as the time structure of the shower front.

Muons decaying in the water volume of a Cherenkov detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory provide a useful calibration point at low energy. Using the digitized waveform continuously recorded by the electronics of each tank, we have devised a simple method to extract the charge spectrum of the Michel electrons, whose typical signal is about 1/8 of a crossing vertical muon. This procedure, moreover, allows continuous monitoring of the detector operation and of its water level. We have checked the procedure with high statistics on a test tank at the Observatory base and applied with success on the whole array.

Reconstruction of cosmic ray arrival directions for Surface Detectors (SD) and Fluorescence Detectors (FD) of the Pierre Auger Observatory requires accurate timing (25 nanoseconds or better) between measurements at individual detectors and instrument triggers. Timing systems for both SD and FD are based on Motorola Oncore UT+ GPS receivers installed into custom-built time-tagging circuits that are calibrated in the laboratory to a statistical precision of better than 15 ns. We describe timing calibration and synchronization methods applied in the field for both the SD and the FD systems in four areas: (1) checks of timing offsets within the SD using co-located station pairs and timing residuals on reconstructed showers, (2) calibration within the FD using a custom-build LED calibration system, (3) calibration between SD and FD using laser signals fed simultaneously into an SD station and across the FD via the Central Laser Facility (CLF), and (4) studies of synchronization between FD and SD through the analysis of events detected by both systems, called hybrid events. These hybrid events allow for a much more accurate reconstruction of the shower and for relatively tight constraints on timing calibration offsets. We demonstrate that statistical and systematic timing uncertainties have no significant impact …

The Pierre Auger Observatory for cosmic rays provides a laboratory for studying fundamental interactions at energies well beyond those available at colliders. In addition to hadrons or photons, Auger is sensitive to ultra-high energy neutrinos in the cosmic radiation and models for new physics can be explored by observing neutrino interactions at center-of-mass energies beyond the TeV scale. By comparing the rate for quasi-horizontal, deeply penetrating air showers triggered by all types of neutrinos with the rate for slightly upgoing showers generated by Earth-skimming tau neutrinos, any deviation of the neutrino-nucleon cross-section from the Standard Model expectation can be constrained. We show that this can test models of low-scale quantum gravity (including processes such as Kaluza-Klein graviton exchange, microscopic black hole production and string resonances), as well as non-perturbative electroweak instanton mediated processes. Moreover, the observed ratios of neutrino flavors would severely constrain the possibility of neutrino decay.

The primary objective of this study at the San Gorgonio Wind Resource Area was to estimate and compare bird utilization, fatality rates, and the risk index among factors including bird taxonomic groups, wind turbine and reference areas, wind turbine sizes and types, and geographic locations. The key questions addressed to meet this objective include: (1) Are there any differences in the level of bird activity, called ''utilization rate'' or ''use'', with the operating wind plant and within the surrounding undeveloped areas (reference area)?; (2) Are there any differences in the rate of bird fatalities (or avian fatality) within the operating wind plant or the surrounding undeveloped areas (reference area)?; (3) Does bird use, fatality rates, or bird risk index vary according to the geographic location, type and size of wind turbine, and/or type of bird within the operating wind plant and surrounding undeveloped areas (reference area)?; and (4) How do raptor fatality rates at San Gorgonio compare to other wind projects with comparable data?

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The primary goals of this research effort were to develop, evaluate, and demonstrate a practical HVAC system for classrooms that consistently provides classrooms with the quantity of ventilation in current minimum standards, while saving energy, and reducing HVAC-related noise levels. This research was motivated by several factors, including the public benefits of energy efficiency, evidence that many classrooms are under-ventilated, and public concerns about indoor environmental quality in classrooms. This project involved the installation and verification of the performance of an Improved Heat Pump Air Conditioning (IHPAC) system, and its comparison, a standard HVAC system having an efficiency of 10 SEER. The project included the verification of the physical characteristics suitable for direct replacement of existing 10 SEER systems, quantitative demonstration of improved energy efficiency, reduced acoustic noise levels, quantitative demonstration of improved ventilation control, and verification that the system would meet temperature control demands necessary for the thermal comfort of the occupants. Results showed that the IHPAC met these goals. The IHPAC was found to be a direct bolt-on replacement for the 10 SEER system. Calculated energy efficiency improvements based on many days of classroom cooling or heating showed that the IHPAC system is about 44% more efficient during …

The Pierre Auger Observatory is designed to unveil the nature and origin of the highest energy cosmic rays through the analysis of extensive air showers. The large and geographically dispersed collaboration of physicists and the wide-ranging collection of simulation and reconstruction tasks pose some special challenges for the offline analysis software. They have designed and implemented a general purpose framework which allows Auger collaborators to contribute algorithms and configuration instructions to build up the variety of applications they require. The framework includes machinery to manage these user codes, to organize the abundance of user-contributed configuration files, to facilitate multi-format file handling, and to provide access to event and time-dependent detector information residing in many data sources. A number of utilities are also provided, including a novel geometry package allowing manipulation of abstract geometrical objects independent of coordinate system choice. The framework is implemented in C++ and takes advantage of object oriented design and common open source tools, while keeping the user-side simple enough for C++ novices to learn in a reasonable time. The distribution system incorporates unit and acceptance testing in order to support rapid development of both the core framework and the contributed user codes.

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Winter storms resulting in substantial ice accumulation occur with periodic frequency in the southeastern United States and they have potential to severely damage softwood plantations. Loblolly pine is one of the most important crop tree species in this region and a combined understanding of initial damage and subsequent growth and recovery may allow for more productive utilization of these stands following severe ice storms. In January 2004 a severe ice storm deposited approximately 2 cm of ice on an intensively managed four-year old loblolly pine plantation in South Carolina . The existing treatments within this plantation presented an opportunity to examine the effects of irrigation and fertilization on ice damage and recovery.

The present quarterly report describes some of the investigations on the structural properties of dense OTM bars provided by Praxair and studies on newer composition of Ti doped LSF. In the previous research, the reference point of oxygen occupancy was determined and verified. In the current research, the oxygen occupancy was investigated at 1200 C as a function of oxygen activity and compared with that at 1000 C. The cause of bumps at about 200 C was also investigated by using different heating and cooling rates during TGA. The fracture toughness of LSFT and dual phase membranes at room temperature is an important mechanical property. Vicker's indentation method was used to evaluate this toughness. Through this technique, a K{sub Ic} (Mode-I Fracture Toughness) value is attained by means of semi-empirical correlations between the indentation load and the length of the cracks emanating from the corresponding Vickers indentation impression. In the present investigation, crack propagation behavior was extensively analyzed in order to understand the strengthening mechanisms involved in the non-transforming La based ceramic composites. Cracks were generated using Vicker's indenter and used to identify and evaluate the toughening mechanisms involved. Preliminary results of an electron microscopy study of the origin of …

At Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab), the Tevatron high energy particle collider must meet the increasing scientific demand of higher beam luminosity. To achieve this higher luminosity goal, U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) sponsored a major upgrade of capabilities of Fermilab's accelerator complex that spans five years and costs over fifty million dollars. Tevatron Beam Position Monitor (BPM) system upgrade is a part of this project, generally called RunII upgrade project. Since the purpose of the Tevatron collider is to detect the smashing of proton and anti-protons orbiting the circular accelerator in opposite directions, capability to detect positions of both protons and antiprotons at a high resolution level is a desirable functionality of the monitoring system. The original system was installed during early 1980s, along with the original construction of the Tevatron. However, electronic technology available in 1980s did not allow for the detection of significantly smaller resolution of antiprotons. The objective of the upgrade project is to replace the existing BPM system with a new system utilizing capabilities of modern electronics enhanced by a front-end software driven by a real-time operating software. The new BPM system is designed to detect both protons and antiprotons with increased resolution of …

We review the work discussed and developed under the topic ''Resummation'' at Working Group 2 ''Multijet final states and energy flow'', of the HERALHC Workshop. We emphasize the role played by HERA observables in the development of resummation tools via, for instance, the discovery and resummation of non-global logarithms. We describe the event-shapes subsequently developed for hadron colliders and present resummed predictions for the same using the automated resummation program CAESAR. We also point to ongoing studies at HERA which can be of benefit for future measurements at hadron colliders such as the LHC, specifically dijet E{sub t} and angular spectra and the transverse momentum of the Breit current hemisphere.

Demand response (DR) has been broadly recognized to be an integral component of well-functioning electricity markets, although currently underdeveloped in most regions. Among the various initiatives undertaken to remedy this deficiency, public utility commissions (PUC) and utilities have considered implementing dynamic pricing tariffs, such as real-time pricing (RTP), and other retail pricing mechanisms that communicate an incentive for electricity consumers to reduce their usage during periods of high generation supply costs or system reliability contingencies. Efforts to introduce DR into retail electricity markets confront a range of basic policy issues. First, a fundamental issue in any market context is how to organize the process for developing and implementing DR mechanisms in a manner that facilitates productive participation by affected stakeholder groups. Second, in regions with retail choice, policymakers and stakeholders face the threshold question of whether it is appropriate for utilities to offer a range of dynamic pricing tariffs and DR programs, or just ''plain vanilla'' default service. Although positions on this issue may be based primarily on principle, two empirical questions may have some bearing--namely, what level of price response can be expected through the competitive retail market, and whether establishing RTP as the default service is likely to …

Large-scale scientific endeavors such as the International Linear Collider Project can have a lasting impact on education and outreach to our society. The ILC will provide a discovery platform for frontier physical science and it will also provide a discovery platform for broader impacts and social science. The importance of Broader Impacts of Science in general and the ILC in particular are described. Additionally, a synopsis of education and outreach activities carried out as an integral part of the Snowmass ILC Workshop is provided.