Apr. 24, 2013 ? The LHCb collaboration at CERN today submitted a paper to Physical Review Letters on the first observation of matter-antimatter asymmetry in the decays of the particle known as the B0s. It is only the fourth subatomic particle known to exhibit such behaviour.
Matter and antimatter are thought to have existed in equal amounts at the beginning of the universe, but today the universe appears to be composed essentially of matter. By studying subtle differences in the behaviour of particle and antiparticles, experiments at the LHC are seeking to cast light on this dominance of matter over antimatter.
Now the LHCb experiment has observed a preference for matter over antimatter known as CP-violation in the decay of neutral B0s particles. The results are based on the analysis of data collected by the experiment in 2011. "The discovery of the asymmetric behaviour in the B0S particle comes with a significance of more than 5 sigma -- a result that was only possible thanks to the large amount of data provided by the LHC and to the LHCb detector's particle identification capabilities," says Pierluigi Campana, spokesperson of the LHCb collaboration. "Experiments elsewhere have not been in a position to accumulate a large enough number of B0s decays."
Violation of the CP symmetry was first observed at Brookhaven Laboratory in the US in the 1960s in neutral particles called kaons. About 40 years later, experiments in Japan and the US found similar behaviour in another particle, the B0 meson. More recently, experiments at the so-called B factories and the LHCb experiment at CERN have found that the B+ meson also demonstrates CP violation.
All of these CP violation phenomena can be accounted for in the Standard Model, although some interesting discrepancies demand more detailed studies. "We also know that the total effects induced by Standard Model CP violation are too small to account for the matter-dominated Universe," says Campana. "However, by studying these CP violation effects we are looking for the missing pieces of the puzzle, which provide stringent tests of the theory and are a sensitive probe for revealing the presence of physics beyond the Standard Model."
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Journal Reference:
LHCb collaboration. First observation of CP violation in the decays of Bs mesons. Physical Review Letters, 2013 (submitted); [link]
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Jelly Bean and a long list of bug fixes highlight the OTA that begins today
Fans of the Motorola Photon Q have a reason to celebrate today, as Sprint and Motorola have released the Jelly Bean update for the slider. The 9.8.2Q-122_XT897_FFW-5 update brings the Photon Q to platform version Android 4.1, brings the Jelly Bean goodies like Project Butter and Google Now, and has a laundry list of fixes and patches. Here's that list:
Google OS upgrade to Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)
Google Now
Voice search enhancements
Camera includes improved image quality and more intuitive panorama mode
Ability to zoom out to filmstrip mode in the Gallery
Keyboard includes improved dictionary and text to speech capabilities
Notification enhancements
Resolved Quick Office closing when reviewing a document
Improved GSM roaming connectivity for global use
Improved streaming of Sprint TV when location services are turned off
Enhanced security and ease of use on the face unlock feature
Removed Quick Views, Speed Dial, and MOTOPRINT applications
Improved accuracy and response of voice to text for texting, emailing, and web search
Like all OTA updates for Sprint phones, this one is rolling out in stages. It starts today, so be sure to check for the update in your settings if you've been waiting. If you've received the update, or just want to shoot the breeze while you wait, the forums is a great place to be.
Psychopaths are not neurally equipped to have concern for othersPublic release date: 24-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: William Harms w-harms@uchicago.edu 773-702-8356 University of Chicago
Prisoners who are psychopaths lack the basic neurophysiological "hardwiring" that enables them to care for others, according to a new study by neuroscientists at the University of Chicago and the University of New Mexico.
"A marked lack of empathy is a hallmark characteristic of individuals with psychopathy," said the lead author of the study, Jean Decety, the Irving B. Harris Professor in Psychology and Psychiatry at UChicago. Psychopathy affects approximately 1 percent of the United States general population and 20 percent to 30 percent of the male and female U.S. prison population. Relative to non-psychopathic criminals, psychopaths are responsible for a disproportionate amount of repetitive crime and violence in society.
"This is the first time that neural processes associated with empathic processing have been directly examined in individuals with psychopathy, especially in response to the perception of other people in pain or distress," he added.
The results of the study, which could help clinical psychologists design better treatment programs for psychopaths, are published in the article, "Brain Responses to Empathy-Eliciting Scenarios Involving Pain in Incarcerated Individuals with Psychopathy," which appears online April 24 in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
Joining Decety in the study were Laurie Skelly, a graduate student at UChicago; and Kent Kiehl, professor of psychology at the University of New Mexico.
For the study, the research team tested 80 prisoners between ages 18 and 50 at a correctional facility. The men volunteered for the test and were tested for levels of psychopathy using standard measures.
They were then studied with functional MRI technology, to determine their responses to a series of scenarios depicting people being intentionally hurt. They were also tested on their responses to seeing short videos of facial expressions showing pain.
The participants in the high psychopathy group exhibited significantly less activation in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, lateral orbitofrontal cortex, amygdala and periaqueductal gray parts of the brain, but more activity in the striatum and the insula when compared to control participants, the study found.
The high response in the insula in psychopaths was an unexpected finding, as this region is critically involved in emotion and somatic resonance. Conversely, the diminished response in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and amygdala is consistent with the affective neuroscience literature on psychopathy. This latter region is important for monitoring ongoing behavior, estimating consequences and incorporating emotional learning into moral decision-making, and plays a fundamental role in empathic concern and valuing the well-being of others.
"The neural response to distress of others such as pain is thought to reflect an aversive response in the observer that may act as a trigger to inhibit aggression or prompt motivation to help," the authors write in the paper.
"Hence, examining the neural response of individuals with psychopathy as they view others being harmed or expressing pain is an effective probe into the neural processes underlying affective and empathy deficits in psychopathy," the authors wrote.
Decety is one of the world's leading experts on the biological underpinnings of empathy. His work also focuses on the development of empathy and morality in children.
The study with prisoners was supported with a $1.6 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health.
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Psychopaths are not neurally equipped to have concern for othersPublic release date: 24-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: William Harms w-harms@uchicago.edu 773-702-8356 University of Chicago
Prisoners who are psychopaths lack the basic neurophysiological "hardwiring" that enables them to care for others, according to a new study by neuroscientists at the University of Chicago and the University of New Mexico.
"A marked lack of empathy is a hallmark characteristic of individuals with psychopathy," said the lead author of the study, Jean Decety, the Irving B. Harris Professor in Psychology and Psychiatry at UChicago. Psychopathy affects approximately 1 percent of the United States general population and 20 percent to 30 percent of the male and female U.S. prison population. Relative to non-psychopathic criminals, psychopaths are responsible for a disproportionate amount of repetitive crime and violence in society.
"This is the first time that neural processes associated with empathic processing have been directly examined in individuals with psychopathy, especially in response to the perception of other people in pain or distress," he added.
The results of the study, which could help clinical psychologists design better treatment programs for psychopaths, are published in the article, "Brain Responses to Empathy-Eliciting Scenarios Involving Pain in Incarcerated Individuals with Psychopathy," which appears online April 24 in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
Joining Decety in the study were Laurie Skelly, a graduate student at UChicago; and Kent Kiehl, professor of psychology at the University of New Mexico.
For the study, the research team tested 80 prisoners between ages 18 and 50 at a correctional facility. The men volunteered for the test and were tested for levels of psychopathy using standard measures.
They were then studied with functional MRI technology, to determine their responses to a series of scenarios depicting people being intentionally hurt. They were also tested on their responses to seeing short videos of facial expressions showing pain.
The participants in the high psychopathy group exhibited significantly less activation in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, lateral orbitofrontal cortex, amygdala and periaqueductal gray parts of the brain, but more activity in the striatum and the insula when compared to control participants, the study found.
The high response in the insula in psychopaths was an unexpected finding, as this region is critically involved in emotion and somatic resonance. Conversely, the diminished response in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and amygdala is consistent with the affective neuroscience literature on psychopathy. This latter region is important for monitoring ongoing behavior, estimating consequences and incorporating emotional learning into moral decision-making, and plays a fundamental role in empathic concern and valuing the well-being of others.
"The neural response to distress of others such as pain is thought to reflect an aversive response in the observer that may act as a trigger to inhibit aggression or prompt motivation to help," the authors write in the paper.
"Hence, examining the neural response of individuals with psychopathy as they view others being harmed or expressing pain is an effective probe into the neural processes underlying affective and empathy deficits in psychopathy," the authors wrote.
Decety is one of the world's leading experts on the biological underpinnings of empathy. His work also focuses on the development of empathy and morality in children.
The study with prisoners was supported with a $1.6 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health.
###
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
NEW YORK (AP) ? Companies that do the best when the economy is improving led the market higher Tuesday after several of them reported strong quarterly earnings.
Coach, a maker of luxury handbags, and Netflix, which streams TV shows and movies over the Internet, were winners after announcing profits that impressed investors. Financial stocks rose after Travelers' earnings beat the expectations of financial analysts who follow the company.
That's a change from earlier this year. The stock market's surge in 2013 has been led by so-called defensive industries such as health care, consumer staples and utilities. Investors buy those stocks when they're unsure about the direction of the economy and want to own companies that make products people buy in bad times as well as good. Until now, they've been less enthusiastic about stocks of companies that provide discretionary goods and services and do best in good times.
"For a change we are actually seeing more cyclical parts of the economy lead the market," said Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist at RDM Financial Group.
The Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor's 500 index both rose 1 percent, and for a third straight day.
Stocks closed higher even after financial markets were shaken in the early afternoon when a fake tweet on The Associated Press Twitter account prompted a sudden sell-off.
A posting saying that there had been explosions at the White House and that President Barack Obama had been injured was sent at 1:08 p.m. Eastern time. The Dow plunged 143 points, from 14,697 to 14,554, over the next two minutes. The AP put out a statement at 1:12 p.m. saying that its Twitter account had been hacked and the posting was fake. By 1:19 p.m. the index had recovered all of its losses.
AP spokesman Paul Colford said the news cooperative is working with Twitter to investigate the issue. The AP disabled its other Twitter accounts following the attack, Colford added.
Joe Fox, chairman and co-founder of online brokerage Ditto Trade, was at work in Los Angeles when he got a call from his Chicago brokerage offices telling him what had happened. Fox watched the market tanking, and its quick bounce back.
"It was a topsy-turvy rollercoaster for a few minutes there," Fox said.
After the brief sell-off, investors turned their focus back to earnings.
Netflix soared $42.62, or 24 percent, to $216.99 after reporting a big gain in subscribers in the first quarter. Coach jumped $4.96, or 11 percent, to $55.55, after it announced higher sales in North America, better-than-expected earnings and an increased dividend. Travelers rose $1.77, or 2.1 percent, to $86.35. The insurer paid out less in claims compared with the premiums it took in.
While the shift today was encouraging for the longer-term economic outlook, it may still be too early to form a complete picture.
Even though 69 percent of companies that have reported earnings for the first quarter have beaten analysts' expectations, profits are expected to rise just 2.3 percent. That is slower than the 7.7 percent growth in the fourth quarter, according to data from S&P Capital IQ.
And there are still plenty of earnings for investors to get through this week.
Consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble, drugmaker Eli Lilly and Boeing are among companies that will release earnings on Wednesday. United Parcel Service, Exxon Mobil and Amazon are among the corporations that will give updates on Thursday.
The Dow closed up 152.29 points at 14,719.46. The S&P 500 ended 16.28 points higher at 1,578.78. Both indexes are about 1 percent below their record highs.
The Nasdaq composite rose 35.78 points, or 1 percent, to 3,269.33.
A weaker quarterly earnings outlook from Apple pushed shares down $2.2, or 0.5 percent, to $404.20 in trading after the market closed. Still, the company reported earnings that beat expectations from financial analysts who follow the company.
Tuesday's upturn in stock markets put both indexes back in the black for April and closer to the record highs they reached on April 11. It was a sharp change of tone from last week, when the market had its worst weekly drop since November. That sell-off started after economic growth in China, the world's second-largest economy, slowed.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.71 percent, from 1.70 percent late Monday.
MIAMI (AP) ? A banner bearing Dwyane Wade's jersey number hangs in the arena the Milwaukee Bucks call home, in tribute of his days as a standout at Marquette.
Suffice to say, he won't have favorite-son status over the next few days.
Wade and the Miami Heat are halfway to advancing in the NBA playoffs after topping the Milwaukee Bucks 98-86 on Tuesday night to take a 2-0 lead in the teams' Eastern Conference first-round series. Wade scored 21 points, LeBron James finished with 19 and the Heat opened the fourth quarter on a 12-0 run to pull away.
Now comes a Wednesday flight to Milwaukee, followed by Game 3 there on Thursday night, when the Heat can take absolute control of the matchup. And Wade is certain that nothing will come easily, not even for the defending NBA champions.
"They're going to come out and play with emotion," Wade said. "I've been in Milwaukee when they've had playoff teams. I know that place can get very loud."
So can his current home arena, which roared for 2 minutes in the fourth quarter when the Heat finally shook off Milwaukee's upset bid.
It was 68-65 entering the fourth. With James and four backups on the court, the Heat needed only 2 minutes, 22 seconds to score a dozen unanswered points and stretch the lead to 80-65.
"We held court," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "We protected it for two games. We did what we're supposed to do. And that's it."
Chris Bosh, Shane Battier and Chris Andersen all scored 10 points for the Heat. James' postseason streaks of 22 straight games with at least 20 points, and 16 straight games of at least 25 points, both came to an end.
Ultimately, none of that mattered.
"We were able to jump on them," James said.
Ersan Ilyasova scored 21 points for Milwaukee, which got 16 from Mike Dunleavy and 14 from Larry Sanders. The Bucks' starting guards, Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis, combined for only 15 points ? after teaming up to score 48 in Game 1.
"It's a series," said Sanders, who had a sore right ankle after a collision with Battier in the fourth quarter. "We made progress this game."
They'll need to make more, and do it quickly. James has never lost in 10 previous series in which his team takes a 2-0 lead, and Wade is 8-0 in that same situation.
He was a skinny kid who Miami drafted as a point guard in 2003, a couple months after he took Marquette to the Final Four. Three years later, he became an MVP of the NBA Finals. Now he's looking for his fourth trip to the title round in eight seasons.
To this day, he credits the help he got in Milwaukee for much of his success.
"I went to Milwaukee with not a lot of expectations, and I came out of Milwaukee the fifth pick in the draft," Wade said. "Milwaukee has been special to me. It has helped me get to this point. Going back there in the playoffs is a cool thing."
For a while on Tuesday, it looked as though Wade and the Heat might go to Milwaukee without a 2-0 series lead. It was that 12-0 run that was the difference ? in what finished as a 12-point game.
Andersen started it with a three-point play, James had a layup not long afterward and the Heat were starting to roll. Another basket by Andersen off a pass from Ray Allen made it 77-65, and James found Norris Cole for a 3-pointer that capped the flurry and made it 80-65.
Just like that, it was over, even to Miami's surprise.
"They were doing some things that had us spinning around a little bit defensively, got us on our heels, and offensively we never got into a rhythm," Spoelstra said. "So we figured we were just going to have to find a way to grind in the fourth quarter, figuring it was going to be a close game."
Jennings and Ellis combined for 48 points in Game 1, and the Bucks got blown out. So in the first half of Game 2, they combined for one point, were held to five shots that all missed ... and the Bucks were within 47-43 at halftime.
Chances are, very few would have seen that coming.
But play was sloppy from the outset, with the teams combining for eight turnovers in the first 6 minutes to set the tone for a clumsy first half. Wade, James and Chalmers shot 15 for 19 combined in the first half for Miami ? and the rest of the Heat were 3 for 17. For Milwaukee, Ilyasova had 12 points in the first 10 minutes, then two points the rest of the half.
So much like in Game 1, Milwaukee came out for the second half with a chance of stealing home-court advantage.
And for the entirety of the third quarter, the Bucks hung around, though the Heat showed some signs of getting things going. Bosh had a dunk for a six-point lead, then made a jumper ? on a play that James started by running down a loose ball and flicking it between his legs for a save along the sideline ? for a 68-60 lead, what was then the biggest Heat margin of the night.
The Bucks got within 68-65 to end the third, but then came the run that Miami had been waiting for all evening.
"We felt pretty good about the position we were in, giving ourselves an opportunity on the road with 12 minutes to go," Bucks coach Jim Boylan said. "You feel good about that. Then they come out, go on a 12-0 run and it changes the complexion of the game. Playing catch-up is very hard to do against a high-quality team like Miami."
Jennings said Milwaukee would win in six games before the series began, and his confidence didn't waver even now with his club in an 0-2 hole.
"We showed a lot of improvement tonight," said Jennings, who shot 3 for 15. "Aside of making that run in the fourth, I think we should have won this game."
NOTES: Battier needed stitches in his chin after the collision with Sanders with 6:59 left. ... It's the 11th time the Heat have gone up 2-0 in a playoff series. They're 10-0 in the previous instances. ... Milwaukee has lost 21 of its last 29 playoff games.
Some research says the best way to spark creativity is to walk away and that the best ideas come from those least-expected ?aha!? moments. So maybe procrastination isn?t such a bad thing after all. Or is time spent on those cat memes taking its toll? Can procrastinating ever be a source of productivity? Here's what the research has to say.
This is a guest post by Anna Codrea-Rado via Quartz.
Here?s the complete guide to procrastinating at work:
Clever People Procrastinate Smartly
The Creativity Research Journal studied the working habits of a particularly intelligent group of people, winners of the Intel Science Talent competition. They found the group procrastinated productively. Some used procrastination as a trigger for a helpful amount of stress needed to ignite positive action. Others saw it as a ?thought incubator." They put off making a decision because they wanted to fully process it before finding a solution.
The same study also found that the tasks the science competition winners were doing while avoiding work were helping in other areas of their life. They were procrastinating efficiently and taking care of other responsibilities. So don?t feel too guilty the next time you pause from that spreadsheet to pay your gas bill online.
Procrastination Isn?t Just Bad Time Management
Professor Joseph R. Ferrari of DePaul University writes extensively on procrastination and has found that procrastinators aren?t simply managing their time poorly. It?s a tactic deployed by those with vulnerable self-esteem and has a lot to do with perceived notions of time.
There are two types of procrastinators out there: those who delay making decisions, and those who delay taking action. Ferrari found that the decision-avoiders are dependent on others, relying on them to make their minds up for them. They?re more submissive and prefer to pass the buck to someone else whom they can blame them if it all goes wrong.
The task-avoiders, on the other hand, are generally characterized by low self-esteem; they make a decision but don?t follow up on it. Of course a lot of people fall into both categories, but the findings go some way in explaining the different ways people procrastinate.
Nature Versus Nurture
Though procrastination might seem merely a personality quirk, scientific opinion is divided as to whether it can be put down to nature, or is the product of a person?s environment.
According to Ferrari and further research from Oklahoma State University, factors like ?time perspective? affect someone?s likelihood to procrastinate. Time perspective is how people understand and interpret their past, present and future. For example, someone who focuses on the bad things in his past is more prone to bitterness and resentment. Although it?s possible to modify your time perspective, it?s thought to be rooted in personality and linked to procrastination.
Other research, though, has found that environment is also a contributing factor in procrastination. The American Psychological Association, for example, found that procrastination often starts at school, where a lack of rigor in curricula and not being punished for missed deadlines can breed time-wasting habits.
Procrastinators Hate Procrastinators
In one of his many studies into the behavioral habits of procrastinators, Ferrari found that they are hyper-critical of their fellow procrastinators. This is especially true of women. When asked to the evaluate the poor performance of a co-worker who has the same procrastinating tendencies and habits as themselves, workers were harsher on them than their non-procrastinating co-workers.
The Real Problem is "Flow"
That trance you can go into when finding yourself scrolling through cat memes or chatting an afternoon away has a name. It?s called ?flow." The concept was coined by psychologist Mih?ly Cs?kszentmih?lyi and was originally considered a good thing because it?s a state of deep engagement and absorption, as he abstractly explains in a Wired interview.
Andrew Thatcher and his colleagues at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa wanted to understand more about flow in relation to two other online behaviors: procrastination and problematic internet use. They were trying figure out to what extent too much time online was psychologically and socially harmful.
Unsurprisingly, they found a strong link between procrastination and problematic internet use, as they wrote in the Journal of Computers in Human Behavior. But they also found that when someone was in a state of flow while engaged in a non-work related activity, she was more likely to end up with problematic internet use.
In a way, then, this frames procrastination not as a time-wasting phenomenon, but more as a disconnect between intent and action. Flow is a desirable state to be in when you?re working, but you misdirect it at something else, like avoiding a boring task or the pressure of an assessment, you fall down a rabbit hole.
How To Spot a Procrastinator
A study by Ritu Gupta and colleagues in the journal Current Psychology suggests a way for employers to screen applicants for their procrastination tendencies. People who believe in some form of fate or pre-destination?in a hopeless, ?it?s out of my hands? kind of way?are more prone to procrastination, because such people tend to be more neurotic and anxious.
But more surprising, perhaps, is that the other main characteristic of the typical procrastinator is a relatively healthy life outlook. According to the study, people who have a glowing, nostalgic view of their past have a high tendency towards procrastination. This new finding (the study was conducted in 2012) runs opposite to previous research in the field, and scientists don?t yet have a concrete explanation for what seems rather counter-intutive.
Right, back to those cat memes.
The Complete Guide to Procrastinating at Work | Qz.com
Andrea Codrea-Rado covers management and design for Quartz. She is Columbia University's Tow Center digital media fellow. Follow her on Twitter @annacod.
RABAT (Reuters) - Morocco's economy grew 4.8 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, accelerating from the previous three months as agriculture recovered after bad weather, the country's planning agency said on Tuesday.
Growth was much faster than a 2.8 percent annual expansion in the final quarter of last year and the agency forecast the economy would expand by 5.8 percent in the current quarter from a year earlier.
The agency, which has forecast that Morocco's economy will expand 5.5 percent this year, said it expects cereals production of more than 7.0 million tonnes in 2013, up from 5.1 million last year when it was depressed by drought.
"The agriculture (sector activity) increased 16.4 percent in the first three month of 2013, which would push up GDP growth to 4.8 percent although the non-agricultural sector slowed by 3.3 percent from 4.4 percent last year," the planning agency said in a statement.
The government has announced it will cut investment spending this year by 15 billion dirhams, as pressures on state finances have increased.
The budget deficit reached 22.9 billion dirhams, or 2.2 percent of GDP, in the first quarter, the finance ministry said on Monday as tax receipts fell by 5.7 pct to 46.25 billion dirhams, below a target of 50 billion in the 2013 national budget.
Morocco is considering how to reform its costly system of food and energy subsidies.
Subsidies burned up more than 12 billion dirhams in the first quarter and will increase spending on subsidies to 66 billion dirhams this year, from 53 billion in 2012, if there is no reform, according to finance ministry data.
Public spending in the first quarter increased by 14.7 pct to 78.8 billion dirhams.
Morocco's trade deficit fell 5.2 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier to 44.79 billion dirhams as imports slowed.
Tourism receipts fell 1.6 percent, while remittances from the 3 million Moroccans living abroad dropped 3.8 percent.
However, foreign direct investment jumped 43.9 percent to 10.58 billion dirhams as Moroccan holding company SNI sold its interests in a dairy and a biscuit company to foreign firms for about $900 million.
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