1,134 research outputs found
Tourism Business Resilience for Coastal Virginia Assessment Report
This report summarizes the results of the Tourism Business Resilience Project conducted by the Commonwealth Center for Recurrent Flooding Resiliency and Virginia Sea Grant. This project was a joint effort by faculty and students from the Old Dominion University Resilience Collaborative and the Virginia Coastal Policy Center at the William & Mary Law School
The C-Band All-Sky Survey: Instrument design, status, and first-look data
The C-Band All-Sky Survey (C-BASS) aims to produce sensitive, all-sky maps of
diffuse Galactic emission at 5 GHz in total intensity and linear polarization.
These maps will be used (with other surveys) to separate the several
astrophysical components contributing to microwave emission, and in particular
will allow an accurate map of synchrotron emission to be produced for the
subtraction of foregrounds from measurements of the polarized Cosmic Microwave
Background. We describe the design of the analog instrument, the optics of our
6.1 m dish at the Owens Valley Radio Observatory, the status of observations,
and first-look data.Comment: 10 pages, 11 figures, published in Proceedings of SPIE MIllimeter,
Submillimeter, and Far-Infrared Detectors and Instrumentation for Astronomy V
(2010), Vol. 7741, 77411I-1 - 77411I-1
C-Band All-Sky Survey: A First Look at the Galaxy
We present an analysis of the diffuse emission at 5 GHz in the first quadrant
of the Galactic plane using two months of preliminary intensity data taken with
the C-Band All Sky Survey (C-BASS) northern instrument at the Owens Valley
Radio Observatory, California. Combining C-BASS maps with ancillary data to
make temperature-temperature plots we find synchrotron spectral indices of
between 0.408 GHz and 5 GHz and between 1.420 GHz and 5 GHz for ,
. Through the subtraction of a radio recombination
line (RRL) free-free template we determine the synchrotron spectral index in
the Galactic plane () to be between
0.408 GHz and 5 GHz, with a contribution of per cent from free-free
emission at 5\,GHz. These results are consistent with previous low frequency
measurements in the Galactic plane. By including C-BASS data in spectral fits
we demonstrate the presence of anomalous microwave emission (AME) associated
with the HII complexes W43, W44 and W47 near 30 GHz, at 4.4 sigma, 3.1 sigma
and 2.5 sigma respectively. The CORNISH VLA 5 GHz source catalogue rules out
the possibility that the excess emission detected around 30\;GHz may be due to
ultra-compact HII regions. Diffuse AME was also identified at a 4 sigma level
within , between 5
GHz and 22.8 GHz.Comment: 16 pages, 9 figures, submitted to MNRAS, referee's corrections made,
awaiting for final approval for publicatio
Neurodevelopmental multimorbidity and educational outcomes of Scottish schoolchildren : A population-based record linkage cohort study
Data Availability: All health data are owned by the Information Services Division of NHS National Services Scotland (https://www.isdscotland.org), and all education data are owned by the ScotXed Unit, which is part of the Educational Analytical Services Division within the Learning and Justice Directorate of the Scottish Government (www2.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/ScotXed). Interested researchers may apply at these sites for data access. Funding: The study was sponsored by Health Data Research UK (www.hdruk.ac.uk) (grant reference number MR/S003800/1) (MF) which is a joint investment led by the Medical Research Council, together with the National Institute for Health Research (England), the Chief Scientist Office (Scotland), Health and Care Research Wales, Health and Social Care Research and Development Division (Public Health Agency, Northern Ireland), the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, the Economic and Social Research Council, the British Heart Foundation and Wellcome. There was additional funding from the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland (grant reference VAC007974) (EES) and an MRC Mental Health Data Pathfinder grant (grant reference MC_PC_17217) (MF, JPP, DK, SC).Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Astronomical Receiver Modelling Using Scattering Matrices
Proper modelling of astronomical receivers is vital: it describes the
systematic errors in the raw data, guides the receiver design process, and
assists data calibration. In this paper we describe a method of analytically
modelling the full signal and noise behaviour of arbitrarily complex radio
receivers. We use electrical scattering matrices to describe the signal
behaviour of individual components in the receiver, and noise correlation
matrices to describe their noise behaviour. These are combined to produce the
full receiver model. We apply this approach to a specified receiver
architecture: a hybrid of a continous comparison radiometer and correlation
polarimeter designed for the C-Band All-Sky Survey. We produce analytic
descriptions of the receiver Mueller matrix and noise temperature, and discuss
how imperfections in crucial components affect the raw data. Many of the
conclusions drawn are generally applicable to correlation polarimeters and
continuous comparison radiometers.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
The photochemical evolution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and nontronite clay on early Earth and Mars
The photochemical evolution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), an abundant form of meteoritic organic carbon, is of great interest to early Earth and Mars origin-of-life studies and current organic molecule detection efforts on Mars. Fe-rich clay environments were abundant on early Earth and Mars, and may have played a role in prebiotic chemistry, catalyzing the breakdown of PAHs and freeing up carbon for subsequent chemical complexification. Current Mars is abundant in clay-rich environments, which are most promising for harboring organic molecules and have comprised the main studied features by the Curiosity rover in search of them. In this work we studied the photocatalytic effects of the Fe-rich clay nontronite on adsorbed PAHs. We tested the effect of ultraviolet radiation on pyrene, fluoranthene, perylene, triphenylene, and coronene adsorbed to nontronite using the spike technique, and in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT) spectroscopy in a Mars simulation chamber. We studied the infrared vibrational PAH bands with first order reaction kinetics and observed an extensive decrease of bands of pyrene, fluoranthene, and perylene, accompanied by the formation of PAH cations, while triphenylene and coronene remained preserved. We further analyzed our irradiated samples with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Our study showed certain PAHs to be degraded via the (photo)Fenton mechanism, even under a dry, hypoxic atmosphere. Using solar spectra representative of early Earth, early Mars, and current Mars surface illumination up to 400 nm, the processes occurring in our set up are indicative of the UV-induced photochemistry taking place in Fe-rich clay environments on early Earth and Mars
Teaching the Three Eās of Sustainability Through ServiceāLearning in a Professional Program
Using seven established course design principles for effective serviceālearning, this chapter discusses the lessons learned in teaching the three Eās of sustainability: environmental; economic; and (social) equity, in a professional program at an American Midwestern public university.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154652/1/tl20374_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154652/2/tl20374.pd
Impact of Vitamin C on Endothelial Function and Exercise Capacity in Patients with a Fontan Circulation
Objective.ā To evaluate the impact of antioxidant therapy on functional health status in Fontanāpalliated patients. Design.ā Prospective, randomized, doubleāblind, placeboācontrolled trial. Patients.ā Fiftyāthree generally asymptomatic Fontan patients. Interventions.ā Patients were randomized to receive either highādose ascorbic acid (vitamin C) or placebo for 4 weeks. Outcome Measures.ā Peripheral vascular function, as measured with endotheliumādependent digital pulse amplitude testing (EndoPAT), and exercise capacity were assessed before and after study drug treatment. Primary outcome measures included the EndoPAT index and peripheral arterial tonometry (PAT) ratio, both validated markers of vascular function. Secondary outcome measures included peak oxygen consumption and work. Results.ā Twentyāthree vitamin Cā and 21 placeboāassigned subjects completed the protocol (83%). Median age and time from Fontan completion were 15 (interquartile range [IQR] 11.7ā18.2) and 11.9 years (IQR 9.0ā15.7), respectively. Right ventricular morphology was dominant in 30 (57%). Outcome measures were similar between groups at baseline. Among all subjects, vitamin C therapy was not associated with a statistical improvement in either primary or secondary outcome measures. In subjects with abnormal vascular function at baseline, compared with placebo, vitamin C therapy more frequently resulted in normalization of the EndoPAT index (45% vs. 17%) and PAT ratio (38% vs. 13%). Conclusions.ā Shortāterm therapy with vitamin C does not alter endothelial function or exercise capacity in an asymptomatic Fontan population overall. Vitamin C may provide benefit to a subset of Fontan patients with abnormal vascular function.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/92126/1/j.1747-0803.2011.00605.x.pd
Blast in Context: The Neuropsychological and Neurocognitive Effects of Long-Term Occupational Exposure to Repeated Low-Level Explosives on Canadian Armed Forces\u27 Breaching Instructors and Range Staff
Currently, there is strong interest within the military to better understand the effects of long-term occupational exposure to repeated low-level blast on health and performance. To gain traction on the chronic sequelae of blast, we focused on breachingāa tactical technique for gaining entry into closed/blocked spaces by placing explosives and maintaining a calculated safe distance from the detonation. Using a cross-sectional design, we compared the neuropsychological and neurocognitive profiles of breaching instructors and range staff to sex- and age-matched Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) controls. Univariate tests demonstrated that breaching was associated with greater post-concussive symptoms (Rivermead Post Concussion Symptoms Questionnaire) and lower levels of energy (RAND SF-36). In addition, breaching instructors and range staff were slower on a test that requires moving and thinking simultaneously (i.e., cognitive-motor integration). Next, using a multivariate approach, we explored the impact of other possible sources of injury, including concussion and prior war-zone deployment on the same outcomes. Concussion history was associated with higher post-concussive scores and musculoskeletal problems, whereas deployment was associated with higher post-concussive scores, but lower energy and greater PTSD symptomatology (using PCL-5). Our results indicate that although breaching, concussion, and deployment were similarly correlated with greater post-concussive symptoms, concussion history appears to be uniquely associated with altered musculoskeletal function, whereas deployment history appears to be uniquely associated with lower energy and risk of PTSD. We argue that the broader injury context must, therefore, be considered when studying the impact of repetitive low-level explosives on health and performance in military members
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