University of Münster

About: University of Münster is a education organization based out in Münster, Germany. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Catalysis. The organization has 35609 authors who have published 69059 publications receiving 2278534 citations. The organization is also known as: University of Munster & University of Muenster.

The ALICE experiment at the CERN LHC

Abstract: ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) is a general-purpose, heavy-ion detector at the CERN LHC which focuses on QCD, the strong-interaction sector of the Standard Model. It is designed to address the physics of strongly interacting matter and the quark-gluon plasma at extreme values of energy density and temperature in nucleus-nucleus collisions. Besides running with Pb ions, the physics programme includes collisions with lighter ions, lower energy running and dedicated proton-nucleus runs. ALICE will also take data with proton beams at the top LHC energy to collect reference data for the heavy-ion programme and to address several QCD topics for which ALICE is complementary to the other LHC detectors. The ALICE detector has been built by a collaboration including currently over 1000 physicists and engineers from 105 Institutes in 30 countries. Its overall dimensions are 161626 m3 with a total weight of approximately 10 000 t. The experiment consists of 18 different detector systems each with its own specific technology choice and design constraints, driven both by the physics requirements and the experimental conditions expected at LHC. The most stringent design constraint is to cope with the extreme particle multiplicity anticipated in central Pb-Pb collisions. The different subsystems were optimized to provide high-momentum resolution as well as excellent Particle Identification (PID) over a broad range in momentum, up to the highest multiplicities predicted for LHC. This will allow for comprehensive studies of hadrons, electrons, muons, and photons produced in the collision of heavy nuclei. Most detector systems are scheduled to be installed and ready for data taking by mid-2008 when the LHC is scheduled to start operation, with the exception of parts of the Photon Spectrometer (PHOS), Transition Radiation Detector (TRD) and Electro Magnetic Calorimeter (EMCal). These detectors will be completed for the high-luminosity ion run expected in 2010. This paper describes in detail the detector components as installed for the first data taking in the summer of 2008.

Revision and Update of the Consensus Definitions of Invasive Fungal Disease From the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer and the Mycoses Study Group Education and Research Consortium

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Invasive fungal diseases (IFDs) remain important causes of morbidity and mortality. The consensus definitions of the Infectious Diseases Group of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer and the Mycoses Study Group have been of immense value to researchers who conduct clinical trials of antifungals, assess diagnostic tests, and undertake epidemiologic studies. However, their utility has not extended beyond patients with cancer or recipients of stem cell or solid organ transplants. With newer diagnostic techniques available, it was clear that an update of these definitions was essential. METHODS: To achieve this, 10 working groups looked closely at imaging, laboratory diagnosis, and special populations at risk of IFD. A final version of the manuscript was agreed upon after the groups' findings were presented at a scientific symposium and after a 3-month period for public comment. There were several rounds of discussion before a final version of the manuscript was approved. RESULTS: There is no change in the classifications of "proven," "probable," and "possible" IFD, although the definition of "probable" has been expanded and the scope of the category "possible" has been diminished. The category of proven IFD can apply to any patient, regardless of whether the patient is immunocompromised. The probable and possible categories are proposed for immunocompromised patients only, except for endemic mycoses. CONCLUSIONS: These updated definitions of IFDs should prove applicable in clinical, diagnostic, and epidemiologic research of a broader range of patients at high-risk.

Botrytis cinerea: the cause of grey mould disease

Abstract: Introduction: Botrytis cinerea (teleomorph: Botryotinia fuckeliana) is an airborne plant pathogen with a necrotrophic lifestyle attacking over 200 crop hosts worldwide. Although there are fungicides for its control, many classes of fungicides have failed due to its genetic plasticity. It has become an important model for molecular study of necrotrophic fungi. Taxonomy: Kingdom: Fungi, phylum: Ascomycota, subphylum: Pezizomycotina, class: Leotiomycetes, order: Helotiales, family: Sclerotiniaceae, genus: Botryotinia. Host range and symptoms: Over 200 mainly dicotyledonous plant species, including important protein, oil, fibre and horticultural crops, are affected in temperate and subtropical regions. It can cause soft rotting of all aerial plant parts, and rotting of vegetables, fruits and flowers post-harvest to produce prolific grey conidiophores and (macro)conidia typical of the disease. Pathogenicity: B. cinerea produces a range of cell-wall-degrading enzymes, toxins and other low-molecular-weight compounds such as oxalic acid. New evidence suggests that the pathogen triggers the host to induce programmed cell death as an attack strategy. Resistance: There are few examples of robust genetic host resistance, but recent work has identified quantitative trait loci in tomato that offer new approaches for stable polygenic resistance in future.

Quantum Fields on a Lattice

Abstract: This book presents a comprehensive and coherent account of the theory of quantum fields on a lattice, an essential technique for the study of the strong and electroweak nuclear interactions. Quantum field theory describes basic physical phenomena over an extremely wide range of length or energy scales. Quantum fields exist in space and time, which can be approximated by a set of lattice points. This approximation allows the application of powerful analytical and numerical techniques, and has provided a powerful tool for the study of both the strong and the electroweak interaction. After introductory chapters on scalar fields, gauge fields and fermion fields, the book studies quarks and gluons in QCD and fermions and bosons in the electroweak theory. The last chapter is devoted to numerical simulation algorithms which have been used in recent large-scale numerical simulations. The book will be valuable for graduate students and researchers in theoretical physics, elementary particle physics, and field theory, interested in non-perturbative approximations and numerical simulations of quantum field phenomena.