Split Dirac Supersymmetry: An Ultraviolet Completion of Higgsino Dark Matter

Motivated by the observation that the Higgs quartic coupling runs to zero at an intermediate scale, we propose a new framework for models of split supersymmetry, in which gauginos acquire intermediate scale Dirac masses of $\sim 10^{8-11}$ GeV. Scalar masses arise from one-loop finite contributions as well as direct gravity-mediated contributions. Like split supersymmetry, one Higgs doublet is fine-tuned to be light. The scale at which the Dirac gauginos are introduced to make the Higgs quartic zero is the same as is necessary for gauge coupling unification. Thus, gauge coupling unification persists (nontrivially, due to adjoint multiplets), though with a somewhat higher unification scale $\gtrsim 10^{17}$ GeV. The $\mu$-term is naturally at the weak scale, and provides an opportunity for experimental verification. We present two manifestations of Split Dirac Supersymmetry. In the "Pure Dirac" model, the lightest Higgsino must decay through R-parity violating couplings, leading to an array of interesting signals in colliders. In the "Hypercharge Impure" model, the bino acquires a Majorana mass that is one-loop suppressed compared with the Dirac gluino and wino. This leads to weak scale Higgsino dark matter whose overall mass scale, as well as the mass splitting between the neutral components, is naturally generated from the same UV dynamics. We outline the challenges to discovering pseudo-Dirac Higgsino dark matter in collider and dark matter detection experiments.Comment: 30 pages, 5 figure

Laos in 1997: Into ASEAN

Membership in ASEAN will have a long-term effect on the direction of Laos's economic development. Laos has been given until 2008 to meet ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) requirements to reduce tariffs on most goods to below 5%. This should encourage both trade and investment but will force the government to introduce fiscal reforms to make up for the 20% of total revenue it currently derives from tariffs. Laos will also become more fully integrated with its ASEAN neighbors. Overland routes through Laos are seen as essential to increase trade between Thailand and Vietnam and between Thailand and southern China (Yunnan). Bridge and road construction are now priorities, with aid donors and international lending institutions concentrating on infrastructure development. ASEAN membership is already having an impact on Laos's foreign relations. Throughout the year a string of ASEAN heads of state, prime ministers, and foreign ministers visited Vientiane. President Suharto of Indonesia led the way in February, followed by Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong of Singapore in March, Thai Prime Minister Chavalit Youngchaiyudh in June, Vietnamese Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet in August, and President Fidel Ramos of the Philippines in October. Agreements on agriculture, health, narcotics control, and cultural exchange were signed. Singapore has opened an embassy in Vientiane, and Brunei is to follow suit

Deciphering the role of Epstein-Barr virus in the pathogenesis of T and NK cell lymphoproliferations

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a highly successful herpesvirus, colonizing more than 90% of the adult human population worldwide, although it is also associated with various malignant diseases. Primary infection is usually clinically silent, and subsequent establishment of latency in the memory B lymphocyte compartment allows persistence of the virus in the infected host for life. EBV is so markedly B-lymphotropic when exposed to human lymphocytes in vitro that the association of EBV with rare but distinct types of T and NK cell lymphoproliferations was quite unexpected. Whilst relatively rare, these EBV-associated T and NK lymphoproliferations can be therapeutically challenging and prognosis for the majority of patients is dismal. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on the role of EBV in the pathogenesis of these tumours, and the implications for treatment. \ud \u

A New Approach to the Problem of Dynamical Quarks in Numerical Simulations of Lattice QCD

Lattice QCD with an even number of degenerate quark flavours is shown to be a limit of a local bosonic field theory. The action of the bosonic theory is real and bounded from below so that standard simulation algorithms can be expected to apply. The feasibility of such calculations is discussed, but no practical tests have yet been made.Comment: pages 0-15, ps-file 147KB, preprint DESY 93-14

CP violation in B_s mixing from heavy Higgs exchange

The anomalous dimuon charge asymmetry reported by the D0 Collaboration may be due to the tree-level exchange of some spin-0 particles that mediate CP violation in B_s-\bar{B}_s meson mixing. We show that for a range of couplings and masses, the heavy neutral states in a two Higgs doublet model can generate a large charge asymmetry. This range is natural in "uplifted supersymmetry", and may enhance the B^- -> tau nu and B_s -> mu^+ mu^- decay rates. However, we point out that on general grounds the reported central value of the charge asymmetry requires new physics not only in B_s-\bar{B}_s mixing but also in \Delta B = 1 transitions or in B_d-\bar{B}_d mixing.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure. v2: Equations (17)-(19) included to clarify the flavor structure of uplifted supersymmetr

Species-specific differences and similarities in the behavior of hand-raised dog and wolf pups in social situations with humans

In order to reveal early species-specific differences, we observed the behavior of dog puppies (n = 11) and wolf pups (n = 13) hand raised and intensively socialized in an identical way. The pups were studied in two object-preference tests at age 3, 4, and 5 weeks. After a short isolation, we observed the subjects' behavior in the presence of a pair of objects, one was always the subject's human foster parent (caregiver) and the other was varied; nursing bottle (3 weeks), unfamiliar adult dog (3 and 5 weeks), unfamiliar experimenter (4 and 5 weeks), and familiar conspecific age mate (4 weeks). Dogs and wolves did not differ in their general activity level during the tests. Wolf pups showed preference for the proximity of the caregiver in two of the tests; Bottle-Caregiver at the age of 3 weeks and Experimenter-Caregiver at the age of 5 weeks, while dogs showed preference to the caregiver in three tests; conspecific Pup-Caregiver and Experimenter-Caregiver at the age of 4 weeks and dog-caregiver at the age of 5. Compared to wolves, dogs tended to display more communicative signals that could potentially facilitate social interactions, such as distress vocalization, tail wagging, and gazing at the humans' face. In contrast to dog puppies, wolf pups showed aggressive behavior toward a familiar experimenter and also seemed to be more prone to avoidance. Our results demonstrate that already at this early age-despite unprecedented intensity of socialization and the comparable social (human) environment during early development-there are specific behavioral differences between wolves and dogs mostly with regard to their interactions with humans

Update: Homing of Mesenchymal Stem Cells

An Update to: Concise Review: Mesenchymal Stem Cells: Their Phenotype, Differentiation Capacity, Immunological Features, and Potential for Homing Giselle Chamberlain, James Fox, Brian Ashton, and Jim Middleton Stem Cells 2007;25:2739–274