The Tarantula Atypus Milberti in Michigan (Araneae: Atypidae)

Excerpt: The arachnid genus Atypus (family Atypidae, suborder Mygalomorphae) contains four species in North America. These tarantulas are atypical because they have retained remnants of the primitive segmentation characteristic of Mesozoic spiders; the dorsum of the abdomen has tergites which differ little or not at all from those found on Oligocene spiders in the Florissant shales or in Baltic amber. The atypical tarantulas are among the most generalized of all living spiders, lacking the specialized morphological features of more advanced families. They lack reduction, migration, or enlargement of eyes; they have simple dry silk glands only; their legs lack specialization for running or silk handling; the carapace is unspecialized. This genus seems to remain successful in interspecific competition, not because of morphological specialization, but due to behavioral uniqueness. The spider constructs a vertical tube web from an underground burrow up the trunk of a tree. The web acts as a shield, making the spider unrecognizable as a potential predator. The prey is attacked through the silk, pulled inside the tube, and sucked dry. Afterwards the carcass is thrown out and the tube is repaired

Mexican ‘History’ in and as Theatre in the Classroom and Beyond

Since Rodolfo Usigli’s El gesticulador (1938), the theaters of Mexico City and elsewhere have served as a staging ground for the re-thinking and re-presentation of past episodes of Mexican history. Over the years, I have developed a course titled “Contemporary Mexican Theatre: Staging the Past,” in which graduate students and advanced undergraduates read and discuss plays that revive certain historical entities and episodes as part of this creative re-opening and critical inquiry into the past. The objective of the class is threefold: to instill an appreciation for theatre as a means of revis(it)ing history; to convey the important role that history has played in the formation of contemporary Mexican consciousness; and to familiarize students with theoretical approaches that range from Hayden White’s concept of metahistory to Hans-Thies Lehmann’s “postdramatic” theatre. The overall objective of the class is to create an awareness of the complexity of Mexican history, of the power of the written word, and of the power of theatre in particular as a means of setting the story straight, giving voice to the vanquished as well as the vanished, demanding the truth and an end to impunity, and ultimately avoiding the repetition of past errors

Effects of hypnotic drugs on performance before and after sleep

The effects of various hypnotics on sleep stage parameters and on the parameters of effectiveness were evaluated along with the effects of several commonly used yet distinctly different hypnotics on daytime performance. The effects on daytime performance of two nonhypnotics commonly used in the space program were also examined

Interview of Stuart Leibiger, Ph.D.

Stuart Eric Leibiger, Ph.D. was born in 1965 in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, the youngest of four children. He spent all of his life along the northeastern seaboard of the United States. He was raised in Connecticut and graduated from the University of Virginia and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before settling in the Delaware Valley. He joined the La Salle University history department in 1997 after working at Princeton University for a time. Shortly after being hired as assistant professor or history at La Salle, Dr. Leibiger adapted his dissertation into his first book Founding Friendship: George Washington, James Madison, and the Creation of the American Republic. This would become the centerpiece in Dr. Leibiger’s anthology of works on the first president of the United States. Just before his fiftieth birthday in 2015, the George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association named Dr. Leibiger as the recipient of its annual award. Given to someone who continues to perpetuate the memory and values of George Washington, this is truly is a lifetime achievement award for Dr. Leibiger, as he always wanted to be an academic historian and has devoted his life’s work to the study of the founding fathers. Having been conducted a little over a month after receiving his lifetime achievement award, this interview seemed to come at an opportune moment, allowing Dr. Leibiger to reflect on his many accomplishments in a truly milestone year. This interview discusses Dr. Leibiger’s biographical information, his family history, his early education, his time as an undergraduate student at University of Virginia, his time as a graduate student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, his work at Princeton University, his work at La Salle University (including rising from junior faculty member to full professor and history department chair), the current state of his career, and finally, Dr. Stuart Leibiger, the man

Single and Composite Hot Subdwarf Stars in the Light of 2MASS Photometry

Utilizing the Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS) Second Incremental Data Release Catalog, we have retrieved near-IR magnitudes for several hundred hot subdwarfs (sdO and sdB stars) drawn from the "Catalogue of Spectroscopically Identified Hot Subdwarfs" (Kilkenny, Heber, & Drilling 1988, 1992). This sample size greatly exceeds that of previous studies of hot subdwarfs. Examining 2MASS photometry alone or in combination with visual photometry (Johnson BV or Stromgren uvby) available in the literature, we show that it is possible to identify hot subdwarf stars that exhibit atypically red IR colors that can be attributed to the presence of an unresolved late type companion. Utilizing this large sample, we attempt for the first time to define an approximately volume limited sample of hot subdwarfs. We discuss the considerations, biases, and difficulties in defining such a sample. We find that, of the hot subdwarfs in Kilkenny et al., about 40% in a magnitude limited sample have colors that are consistent with the presence of an unresolved late type companion. Binary stars are over-represented in a magnitude limited sample. In an approximately volume limited sample the fraction of composite-color binaries is about 30%.Comment: to appear in Sept 2003 AJ, 41 pages total, 12 figures, 2 tables are truncated (full tables to appear in electronic journal or available by request

Preliminary Review of Safety Assessment Issues at Savannah River Site, August 2011

At the request of Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) management, a review team composed of experts in atmospheric transport modeling for environmental radiation dose assessment convened at the Savannah River Site (SRS) on August 29-30, 2011. Several issues were presented at the meeting for discussion. This is a short summary that is organized in accordance with the primary issues discussed, which is not necessarily a chronological record. Issues include: SRS Meteorological Data and its Use in MACCS2; Deposition Velocities for Particles; Deposition Velocities for Tritium; MACCS2 Dispersion Coefficients; Use of Low Surface Roughness in Open Areas; Adequacy of Meteorological Tower and Instrumentation; Displacement Height; and Validity of MACCS2 Calculations at Close-in Distances. A longer report will be issued at a later date that expands upon these topics and recommendations

Final Review of Safety Assessment Issues at Savannah River Site, August 2011

At the request of Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) management, a review team composed of experts in atmospheric transport modeling for environmental radiation dose assessment convened at the Savannah River Site (SRS) on August 29-30, 2011. Though the meeting was prompted initially by suspected issues related to the treatment of surface roughness inherent in the SRS meteorological dataset and its treatment in the MELCOR Accident Consequence Code System Version 2 (MACCS2), various topical areas were discussed that are relevant to performing safety assessments at SRS; this final report addresses these topical areas