PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

OU physicists develop rationale for the next-generation particle collider

2013-07-03
(Press-News.org) A University of Oklahoma-developed theory provides the rationale for the next-generation particle accelerator—the International Linear Collider. The discovery of the Higgs boson at the CERN Large Hadron Collider in Geneva Switzerland this past year prompted particle physicists to look ahead to the development of the ILC, an electron-positron collider designed to measure in detail all the properties of the newly discovered Higgs particle.

Howard Baer, professor in the OU Homer L. Dodge Department of Physics and Astronomy, was one of the lead authors of the five-volume ILC Technical Design Report published on June 12. The report, which presents the latest and most technologically advanced blueprint for construction of the ILC, was celebrated recently by the global particle physics community in three consecutive events in Asia, Europe and the Americas.

The OU physicist has spent much of his career developing the theory of supersymmetry or SUSY—a theory which advances particle physics beyond the Higgs boson into new and unexplored territory. SUSY provides one of the major motivations for constructing a next-generation particle collider such as the ILC to complement and advance the discovery capabilities of the LHC at CERN.

The ILC will allow particle physicists to study the Higgs particle with much higher precision than is possible at the LHC. However, Baer along with postdocs and students at OU have proposed the theory "radiatively-driven natural supersymmetry," which predicts that new partner particles of the Higgs known as higgsinos should be produced at the ILC. The properties of higgsinos are such that they may effectively be invisible to searches at LHC.

Baer has developed computer code over a 25-year period to calculate super particle masses and production rates for the LHC in CERN. The ILC would be a precision microscope for studying subatomic matter at a deeper level than is possible at LHC.

Moving the project forward will require the support of Asia, Europe and the United States. The total cost for the ILC is estimated at around $10 billion and will take approximately 10 years to build. A location has not been determined for the ILC, but the Japanese government has expressed enthusiasm to act as host country and pay the bulk of the cost provided that additional support can be received from the international community, according to Barry Barish, director of the ILC's Global Design Effort.

### For more information about the ILC Technical Design Report, see http://arXiv.org/abs/arXiv:1306.6352 or email Howard Baer at baer@nhn.ou.edu.


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Higher education may be protective against MS-associated cognitive deficits

2013-07-03
Amsterdam, NL, July 2, 2013 – Multiple sclerosis (MS) can lead to severe cognitive impairment as the disease progresses. Researchers in Italy have found that patients with high educational levels show less impairment on a neuropsychological evaluation compared with those with low educational levels. Their results are published in Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience. MS is a progressive immunologic brain disorder with neuropsychological deficits including selective attention, working memory, executive functioning, information processing speed, and long term memory. ...

Moms often talk to children about the results of cancer genetic testing

2013-07-03
WASHINGTON — Mothers commonly talk to their children about genetic test results even if they test positive for a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation, which sharply increases a woman's risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. That is among the findings of a new study from Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, which also suggests mothers who don't discuss their test results are unsatisfied with that decision. "We know from women we've counseled at Georgetown that one of their main considerations of genetic testing for cancer risk is what the results will mean for ...

New knowledge about early galaxies

2013-07-03
The early galaxies of the universe were very different from today's galaxies. Using new detailed studies carried out with the ESO Very Large Telescope and the Hubble Space Telescope, researchers, including members from the Niels Bohr Institute, have studied an early galaxy in unprecedented detail and determined a number of important properties such as size, mass, content of elements and have determined how quickly the galaxy forms new stars. The results are published in the scientific journal, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. "Galaxies are deeply fascinating ...

New Catalyst replaceable platinum for electric-automobiles

2013-07-03
Ulsan, S. Korea, July 2, 2013 – Korean researchers from Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), S. Korea, developed a novel bio-inspired composite electrocatalyst outperforming platinum. This research work was published on June 25, in the journal Nature Communications. (Title: Promotion of Oxygen reduction by a bio-inspired tethered iron phthalocyanine carbon nanotube-based catalyst). The research team from UNIST, S. Korea, developed an inexpensive and scalable bio-inspired composite electrocatalyst, iron phthalocyanine with an axial ligand anchored ...

Older women who quit smoking can cut heart disease risk regardless of diabetes status

2013-07-03
Postmenopausal women who quit smoking reduced their risk of heart disease, regardless of whether they had diabetes, according to a new study conducted by Juhua Luo, an epidemiologist at the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington. Her findings, "Smoking Cessation, Weight Change and Coronary Heart Disease Among Postmenopausal Women With and Without Diabetes," were published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Women who gained more than 5 kilograms or 11 pounds after they quit smoking still saw their risk for cardiovascular disease ...

Single men, smokers at higher risk for oral human papillomavirus infection, Moffitt study shows

2013-07-03
Smokers and single men are more likely to acquire cancer-causing oral human papillomavirus (HPV), according to new results from the HPV Infection in Men (HIM) Study. Researchers from Moffitt Cancer Center, the National Cancer Institute, Mexico and Brazil also report that newly acquired oral HPV infections in healthy men are rare and when present, usually resolve within one year. The study results appeared in the July issue of The Lancet. HPV infection is known to cause virtually all cervical cancers, most anal cancers and some genital cancers. It has recently been established ...

Insecticide causes changes in honeybee genes, research finds

2013-07-02
New research by academics at The University of Nottingham has shown that exposure to a neonicotinoid insecticide causes changes to the genes of the honeybee. The study, published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE, supports the recent decision taken by the European Commission to temporarily ban three neonicotinoids amid concerns that they could be linked to bee deaths. There is growing evidence connecting the decline in the honeybee population that pollinates one-third of the food that we eat, and insecticides, but this is the first comprehensive study to look at changes ...

Scientists help explain visual system's remarkable ability to recognize complex objects

2013-07-02
LA JOLLA, CA--How is it possible for a human eye to figure out letters that are twisted and looped in crazy directions, like those in the little security test internet users are often given on websites? It seems easy to us--the human brain just does it. But the apparent simplicity of this task is an illusion. The task is actually so complex, no one has been able to write computer code that translates these distorted letters the same way that neural networks can. That's why this test, called a CAPTCHA, is used to distinguish a human response from computer bots that try ...

Listening to blood cells: Simple test could use sound waves for diagnosing blood-related diseases

2013-07-02
New research reveals that when red blood cells are hit with laser light, they produce high frequency sound waves that contain a great deal of information. Similar to the way one can hear the voices of different people and identify who they are, investigators reporting in the July 2 issue of Biophysical Journal, published by Cell Press, could analyze the sound waves produced by red blood cells and recognize their shape and size. The information may aid in the development of simple tests for blood-related diseases. "We plan to make specialized devices that will allow the ...

Mental disorders in 13.5 percent of Canadian Forces personnel deployed to Afghanistan

2013-07-02
An important minority — 13.5% — of Canadian Forces personnel who served in support of the Afghanistan mission in 2001–08 have been found to have a mental health disorder related to their deployment, according to a study published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). Since 2001, more than 40 000 Canadian Forces personnel have been deployed in support of the Afghanistan mission. Although studies from other countries have shown mental health problems in personnel returning from missions in Southwest Asia, there are important differences between nations in areas ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

World’s largest tropical peatlands revealed to be more than 40,000 years old

Pick up the pace of your daily walk to boost longevity, experts say

Normal hormone levels trigger severe depression in some women; researcher discovers mechanism

Mexican neuroscientist identifies glutamate biomarker predicting schizophrenia treatment success

Living brain tissue reveals 80% of genes behave differently than assumed

How much time did our ancestors spend up trees? Studying these chimpanzees might help us find out

Discovery of role of gut hormone in chronic diarrhoea could aid development of new tests and treatments

New discovery reveals the spinal cord’s role in bladder control

Kākāpō decline reveals threat of parasite coextinction

Astrocytes identified as hidden culprit behind PTSD

Offering self-collection kits in routine GP appointments could prevent 1,000 women a year from developing cervical cancer

European study offers clearer picture of childhood brain tumor survival

The Lancet: Three in five liver cancer cases due to preventable risk factors; obesity-linked cases on the rise, new analysis suggest

Tiny artificial cells can keep time, study finds

How aging quiets lupus and brings relief to some older patients

Research alert: Synergistic treatment approach supercharges cancer immunotherapy

White veteran high users of online portal generate and exchange more messages than certain patient minorities in the Veterans Health Administration

Web-based tool helps Michigan physicians navigate diabetes coverage and prior authorization

Most primary care patients with opioid use disorder who start treatment stay engaged

U.S.-born Latinos have higher rates of obesity compared to foreign-born Latino and white youth

Study finds veterans experiencing homelessness who gain housing are more likely to get colorectal and breast cancer screenings

Body fat percentage beats BMI in predicting 15-year mortality risk among U.S. adults ages 20 to 49

Umbrella review summarizes family physicians’ experiences with clinical integration

HEAL protocol addresses human trafficking in Brazilian primary care

Study finds uneven progress toward diabetes goals across patient groups in the enhanced primary care diabetes program

Veterans experiencing homelessness who secure housing more likely to get cancer health screenings

Family physicians improve rural maternity outcomes but those in high-need states need support

Tip sheet summaries Annals of Family Medicine July/August 2025

TFLN-based RGB multiplexer for energy-efficient laser beam scanning

On a Florida bombing range, endangered woodpeckers get a second chance

[Press-News.org] OU physicists develop rationale for the next-generation particle collider