Factorization and Nonfactorization in B Decays

Using NLL values for Wilson coefficients and including the contributions from the penguin diagrams, we estimate the amount of nonfactorization in two-body hadronic B decays. Also, we investigate the model dependence of the nonfactorization parameters by performing the calculation using different models for the form factors. The results support the universality of nonfactorizable contributions in both Cabibbo-favored and Cabibbo-suppressed B decays.Comment: 17 pages, 5 figures, revte

Updated Analysis of a_1 and a_2 in Hadronic Two-body Decays of B Mesons

Using the recent experimental data of $B\to D^{(*)}(\pi,\rho)$, $B\to D^{(*)} D_s^{(*)}$, $B\to J/\psi K^{(*)}$ and various model calculations on form factors, we re-analyze the effective coefficients a_1 and a_2 and their ratio. QCD and electroweak penguin corrections to a_1 from $B\to D^{(*)}D_s^{(*)}$ and a_2 from $B\to J/\psi K^{(*)}$ are estimated. In addition to the model-dependent determination, the effective coefficient a_1 is also extracted in a model-independent way as the decay modes $B\to D^{(*)}h$ are related by factorization to the measured semileptonic distribution of $B\to D^{(*)}\ell \bar\nu$ at $q^2=m_h^2$. Moreover, this enables us to extract model-independent heavy-to-heavy form factors, for example, $F_0^{BD}(m_\pi^2)=0.66\pm0.06\pm0.05$ and $A_0^{BD^*}(m_\pi^2)=0.56\pm0.03\pm0.04$. The determination of the magnitude of a_2 from $B\to J/\psi K^{(*)}$ depends on the form factors $F_1^{BK}$, $A_{1,2}^{BK^*}$ and $V^{BK^*}$ at $q^2=m^2_{J/\psi}$. By requiring that a_2 be process insensitive (i.e., the value of a_2 extracted from $J/\psi K$ and $J/\psi K^*$ states should be similar), as implied by the factorization hypothesis, we find that $B\to K^{(*)}$ form factors are severely constrained; they respect the relation $F_1^{BK}(m^2_{J/\psi})\approx 1.9 A_1^{BK^*}(m^2_{J/\psi})$. Form factors $A_2^{BK^*}$ and $V^{BK^*}$ at $q^2=m^2_{J/\psi}$ inferred from the measurements of the longitudinal polarization fraction and the P-wave component in $B\to J/\psi K^*$ are obtained. A stringent upper limit on a_2 is derived from the current bound on \ov B^0\to D^0\pi^0 and it is sensitive to final-state interactions.Comment: 33 pages, 2 figures. Typos in Tables I and IX are corrected. To appear in Phys. Rev.

Flavour-Conserving CP Phases in Supersymmetry and Implications for Exclusive B Decays

We study rare exclusive B decays based on the quark-level transition b->s(d)l^+l^-, where l=e or mu, in the context of supersymmetric theories with minimal flavour violation. We present analytic expressions for various mixing matrices in the presence of new CP-violating phases, and examine their impact on observables involving B and \bar{B} decays. An estimate is obtained for CP-violating asymmetries in B->K^(*)l^+l^- and B->rho(pi)l^+l^- decays for the dilepton invariant mass region 1.2 GeV < M_{l^+l^-}< M_{J/psi}. As a typical result, we find a CP-violating partial width asymmetry of about -6% (-5%) in the case of B->pi (B->rho) in effective supersymmetry with phases of O(1), taking into account the measurement of the inclusive b->s gamma branching fraction. On the other hand, CP asymmetries of less than 1% are predicted in the case of B->K^(*). We argue that it is not sufficient to have additional CP phases of O(1) to observe large CP-violating effects in exclusive b->s(d)l^+l^- decays.Comment: 34 pages, REVTeX, 6 figures, final version to appear in Phys. Rev. D, with some minor addition

The Degree of Achieving Organizational Rigidity at Umm Al-Qura and Ajloun National Universities: Faculty Members’ Perspective

The paper pinpoints the degree of achieving organizational rigidity at Umm Al-Qura University and Ajloun National University from the faculty members’ viewpoint in line with the faculty, academic rank, and number of years of experience. The nature of the research necessitates using the descriptive survey research approach. A questionnaire adopted as a research instrument is applied to a 410-member sample of (410) randomly designated from the two universities. It is found that the organizational rigidity achievement is of a medium degree with a mean of (3.48). The results also show no statistically significant differences thanks to the variables of the number of years of experience and academic rank. However, it is found that there are differences caused by the faculty variable in favor of scientific faculties. The research recommends activating the methods of evaluating job performance, activating accountability and accounting systems, dividing work at the university according to the competence and experience of workers, and defining the tasks and duties of employees

Carbapenems Resistance among Gram Negative Bacteria Isolated from Poultry Samples in Gaza - Palestine

Background: Food is fundamental for everyone’s life. Therefore, the safety of food we consume is a priority. Gram-negative bacteria are important and common cause of human infections and could be transmitted through food handling and consumption. Carbapenemase-producing Gram-negative (CRGN) bacteria are becoming a global threat. Infections caused by CRGN are hard to cure because the carbapenems are last resort drugs for treatment. The main objective of this research is to determine the occurrence of Carbapenem-resistance among Gram-negative bacteria from poultry samples. Results: &nbsp;Two hundred twenty samples (chicken litters, water, chicken feed, and intestinal content) were collected from slaughterhouses, farms, and homes from different locations in Gaza strip. Samples were cultured onto MacConkey and Blood agar plates. Gram negative isolates were identified using conventional techniques. Disk diffusion method (based on CLSI recommendations) was used to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility against 14 antimicrobials including two carbapenems (Meropenem and imipenem). Carbapenemase production was detected by the Modified Hodge Test (MHT). The Multiple Antibiotic Resistance (MAR) index for each isolate was calculated. Escherichia species were the most frequent isolates (39.5%), followed by non-lactose fermenting Enterobacteriaceae (29.5%), other lactose fermenting Enterobacteriaceae (29%). The lowest frequency was for non-fermenting Gram-negative bacilli (4.8%). Most isolates were resistant to most antimicrobial agents tested. A prominent exception was observed with meropenem, and amikacin with only 4% resistance. 41 isolates (34.7%) were resistance to imipenem. High level of intermediate results was detected for imipenem (45.2%). Among 124 isolates, 44 carbapenem-resistant (35.5%) were detected. None of the five meropenem resistant isolates and only five out of the 43 imipenem resistance isolates tested positive for carbapenemase production. Most isolates showed resistance to three or more antibiotics and are regarded as multidrug resistant strains. MDR isolates were present in 117 isolates (94.3%) with MARI index (higher than 0.3). Conclusion: Resistance to carbapenems as well as to other antimicrobials was high among GNB isolates as indicated by the MAR index. Concerned authorities should consider these alarming finding and implement an immediate monitoring program for poultry. Cross contamination, prevention measures should also be promoted and implemented

Rearrangement of epoxides to allylic alcohols in the presence of reusable basic resins

We have modified Merrifield’s resin to provide polymers containing secondary amine groups. Lithiation of the solids gives strongly basic yet poorly nucleophilic resins useful for rearrangement of epoxides to their corresponding allylic alcohols. The resins are easy to handle, non-volatile, non-toxic, and are easily recovered and reused, providing environmental and economic benefits that might have commercial viability

Accurate Reader Identification for the Arabic Holy Quran Recitations Based on an Enhanced VQ Algorithm

The Speaker identification process is not a new trend; however, for the Arabic Holy Quran recitation, there are still quite improvements that can make this process more accurate and reliable. This paper collected the input data from 14 native Arabic reciters, consisting of “Surah Al-Kawthar” speech signals from the Holy Quran. Moreover, this paper discusses the accuracy rates for 8 and 16 features. Indeed, a modified Vector Quantization (VQ) technique will be presented, in addition to realistically matching the centroids of the various codebooks and measuring systems’ effectiveness. Note that the VQ technique will be utilized to generate the codebooks by clustering these features into a finite number of centroids. The proposed system’s software was built and executed using MATLAB®. The proposed system’s total accuracy rate was 97.92% and 98.51% for 8 and 16 centroids codebooks, respectively. However, this study discussed two validation tactics to ensure that the outcomes are reliable and can be reproduced. Hence, the K-mean clustering algorithm has been used to validate the obtained results and discuss the outcomes of this study. Finally, it has been found that the improved VQ method gives a better result than the K-means method