A comprehensive survey of event-by-event fluctuations of charged hadron multiplicity in relativistic heavy ions is presented. The survey covers Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 62.4 and 200 GeV, and Cu+Cu collisions sqrt(s_NN) = 22.5, 62.4, and 200 GeV. Fluctuations are measured as a function of collision centrality, transverse momentum range, and charge sign. After correcting for non-dynamical fluctuations due to fluctuations in the collision geometry within a centrality bin, the remaining dynamical fluctuations expressed as the variance normalized by the mean tend to decrease with increasing centrality. The dynamical fluctuations are consistent with or below the expectation from a superposition of participant nucleon-nucleon collisions based upon p+p data, indicating that this dataset does not exhibit evidence of critical behavior in terms of the compressibility of the system. An analysis of Negative Binomial Distribution fits to the multiplicity distributions demonstrates that the heavy ion data exhibit weak clustering properties.

Using data collected with the CLEO II detector at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring, we determine the ratio R(chrg) for the mean charged multiplicity observed in Upsilon(1S)->gggamma events, to the mean charged multiplicity observed in e+e- -> qqbar gamma events. We find R(chrg)=1.04+/-0.02+/-0.05 for jet-jet masses less than 7 GeV.

We study the processes $\gamma \gamma \to K^0_S K^{\pm}\pi^{\mp}$ and $\gamma \gamma \to K^+ K^- \pi^0$ using a data sample of 519~$fb^{-1}$ recorded with the BaBar detector operating at the SLAC PEP-II asymmetric-energy $e^+ e^-$ collider at center-of-mass energies at and near the $\Upsilon(nS)$ ($n = 2,3,4$) resonances. We observe $\eta_c$ decays to both final states and perform Dalitz plot analyses using a model-independent partial wave analysis technique. This allows a model-independent measurement of the mass-dependence of the $I=1/2$ $K \pi$ $\mathcal{S}$-wave amplitude and phase. A comparison between the present measurement and those from previous experiments indicates similar behaviour for the phase up to a mass of 1.5 $GeV/c^2$. In contrast, the amplitudes show very marked differences. The data require the presence of a new $a_0(1950)$ resonance with parameters $m=1931 \pm 14 \pm 22 \ MeV/c^2$ and $\Gamma=271 \pm 22 \pm 29 \ MeV$.

We report the measurement of direct photons at midrapidity in Au+Au collisions at sqrt{s_NN} = 200 GeV. The direct photon signal was extracted for the transverse-momentum range of 4 GeV/c < p_T < 22 GeV/c, using a statistical method to subtract decay photons from the inclusive-photon sample. The direct-photon nuclear-modification factor R_AA was calculated as a function of p_T for different Au+Au collision centralities using the measured p+p direct-photon spectrum and compared to theoretical predictions. R_AA was found to be consistent with unity for all centralities over the entire measured p_T range. Theoretical models that account for modifications of initial-direct-photon production due to modified-parton-distribution functions in Au and the different isospin composition of the nuclei, predict a modest change of R_AA from unity and are consistent with the data. Models with compensating effects of the quark-gluon plasma on high-energy photons, such as suppression of jet-fragmentation photons and induced-photon bremsstrahlung from partons traversing the medium, are also consistent with this measurement.

Measurements of the midrapidity transverse energy distribution, $d\Et/d\eta$, are presented for $p$$+$$p$, $d$$+$Au, and Au$+$Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{_{NN}}}=200$ GeV and additionally for Au$+$Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{_{NN}}}=62.4$ and 130 GeV. The $d\Et/d\eta$ distributions are first compared with the number of nucleon participants $N_{\rm part}$, number of binary collisions $N_{\rm coll}$, and number of constituent-quark participants $N_{qp}$ calculated from a Glauber model based on the nuclear geometry. For Au$+$Au, $\mean{d\Et/d\eta}/N_{\rm part}$ increases with $N_{\rm part}$, while $\mean{d\Et/d\eta}/N_{qp}$ is approximately constant for all three energies. This indicates that the two component ansatz, $dE_{T}/d\eta \propto (1-x) N_{\rm part}/2 + x N_{\rm coll}$, which has been used to represent $E_T$ distributions, is simply a proxy for $N_{qp}$, and that the $N_{\rm coll}$ term does not represent a hard-scattering component in $E_T$ distributions. The $dE_{T}/d\eta$ distributions of Au$+$Au and $d$$+$Au are then calculated from the measured $p$$+$$p$ $E_T$ distribution using two models that both reproduce the Au$+$Au data. However, while the number-of-constituent-quark-participant model agrees well with the $d$$+$Au data, the additive-quark model does not.

We study the processes $e^+ e^-\to K_S^0 K_L^0 \gamma$, $K_S^0 K_L^0 \pi^+\pi^-\gamma$, $K_S^0 K_S^0 \pi^+\pi^-\gamma$, and $K_S^0 K_S^0 K^+K^-\gamma$, where the photon is radiated from the initial state, providing cross section measurements for the hadronic states over a continuum of center-of-mass energies. The results are based on 469 fb$^{-1}$ of data collected with the BaBar detector at SLAC. We observe the $\phi(1020)$ resonance in the $K_S^0 K_L^0$ final state and measure the product of its electronic width and branching fraction with about 3% uncertainty. We present a measurement of the $e^+ e^-\to K_S^0 K_L^0 $ cross section in the energy range from 1.06 to 2.2 GeV and observe the production of a resonance at 1.67 GeV. We present the first measurements of the $e^+ e^-\to K_S^0 K_L^0 \pi^+\pi^-$, $K_S^0 K_S^0 \pi^+\pi^-$, and $K_S^0 K_S^0 K^+K^-$ cross sections, and study the intermediate resonance structures. We obtain the first observations of \jpsi decay to the $K_S^0 K_L^0 \pi^+\pi^-$, $K_S^0 K_S^0 \pi^+\pi^-$, and $K_S^0 K_S^0 K^+K^-$ final states.

We report on a high statistics measurement of the total and differential cross sections of the process gamma gamma -> pi^+ pi^- in the pi^+ pi^- invariant mass range 0.8 GeV/c^2 < W < 1.5 GeV/c^2 with 85.9 fb^{-1} of data collected at sqrt{s}=10.58 GeV and 10.52 GeV with the Belle detector. A clear signal of the f_0(980) resonance is observed in addition to the f_2(1270) resonance. An improved 90% confidence level upper limit Br.(eta'(958) -> pi^+ pi^-) < 2.9 x 10^{-3} is obtained for P- and CP-violating decay of the eta'(958) meson using the most conservative assumption about the interference with the background.

We report a high-statistics measurement of differential cross sections for the process gamma gamma -> pi^0 pi^0 in the kinematic range 0.6 GeV <= W <= 4.0 GeV and |cos theta*| <= 0.8, where W and theta* are the energy and pion scattering angle, respectively, in the gamma gamma center-of-mass system. Differential cross sections are fitted to obtain information on S, D_0, D_2, G_0 and G_2 waves. The G waves are important above W ~= 1.6 GeV. For W <= 1.6 GeV the D_2 wave is dominated by the f_2(1270) resonance while the S wave requires at least one additional resonance besides the f_0(980), which may be the f_0(1370) or f_0(1500). The differential cross sections are fitted with a simple parameterization to determine the parameters (the mass, total width and Gamma_{gamma gamma}B(f_0 -> pi^0 pi^0)) of this scalar meson as well as the f_0(980). The helicity 0 fraction of the f_2(1270) meson, taking into account interference for the first time, is also obtained.

We report a high-statistics measurement of the differential cross section of the process gamma gamma --> K^0_S K^0_S in the range 1.05 GeV <= W <= 4.00 GeV, where W is the center-of-mass energy of the colliding photons, using 972 fb^{-1} of data collected with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric-energy e^+ e^- collider operated at and near the Upsilon-resonance region. The differential cross section is fitted by parameterized S-, D_0-, D_2-, G_0- and G_2-wave amplitudes. In the D_2 wave, the f_2(1270), a_2(1320) and f_2'(1525) are dominant and a resonance, the f_2(2200), is also present. The f_0(1710) and possibly the f_0(2500) are seen in the S wave. The mass, total width and product of the two-photon partial decay width and decay branching fraction to the K bar{K} state Gamma_{gamma gamma}B(K bar{K}) are extracted for the f_2'(1525), f_0(1710), f_2(2200) and f_0(2500). The destructive interference between the f_2(1270) and a_2(1320) is confirmed by measuring their relative phase. The parameters of the charmonium states chi_{c0} and chi_{c2} are updated. Possible contributions from the chi_{c0}(2P) and chi_{c2}(2P) states are discussed. A new upper limit for the branching fraction of the P- and CP-violating decay channel eta_c --> K^0_S K^0_S is reported. The detailed behavior of the cross section is updated and compared with QCD-based calculations.

This report reviews the experimental investigation of high energy e + e − interactions by the MARK J collaboration at PETRA, the electron-positron colliding beam accelerator at DESY in Hamburg, Germany. The physics objectives include studies of several purely electromagnetic processes and hadronic final states, which further our knowledge of the nature of the fundamental constituents and of their strong, electromagnetic and weak interactions. Before discussing the physics results, the main features and the principal components of the MARK J detector are discussed in terms of design, function, and performance. Several aspects of the on-line data collection and the off-line analysis are also outlined. Results are presented on tests of quantum electrodynamics using e + e − → e + e − , μ + μ − and τ + τ − , on the measurement of R , the ratio of the hadronic to the point-like muon pair cross section, on the search for new quark flavors, on the discovery of three jet events arising from the radiation of hard noncollinear gluons as predicted by quantum chromodynamics, and on the determination of the strong coupling constant α s .