Copper and nickel adherently electroplated on titanium alloy

Anodic treatment of titanium alloy enables electroplating of tightly adherent coatings of copper and nickel on the alloy. The alloy is treated in a solution of hydrofluoric and acetic acids, followed by the electroplating process

Observational bias and the clustering of distant eccentric Kuiper belt objects

The hypothesis that a massive Planet Nine exists in the outer solar system on a distant eccentric orbit was inspired by observations showing that the objects with the most distant eccentric orbits in the Kuiper belt have orbits which are physically aligned, that is, they are clustered in longitude of perihelion and have similar orbital planes. Questions have remained, however, about the effects of observational bias on these observations, particularly on the longitudes of perihelion. Specifically, distant eccentric Kuiper belt objects tend to be faint and only observable near their perihelia, suggesting that the longitudes of perihelion of the known distant objects could be strongly biased by the limited number of locations in the sky where deep surveys have been carried out. We have developed a method to rigorously estimate the longitude of perihelion bias for Kuiper belt observations. We find that the probability that the 10 known Kuiper belt objects with semimajor axis beyond 230 AU are drawn from a population with uniform longitude of perihelion is 1.2%. Combined with the observation that the orbital poles of these object are also clustered, the overall probability of detecting these two independent clusterings in a randomly distributed sample is 0.025%. While observational bias is clearly present in these observations, it is unlikely to explain the observed alignment of the distant eccentric Kuiper belt objects.Comment: AJ, in pres

Bufo houstonensis

Number of Pages: 2Integrative BiologyGeological Science

Detection of methane on Kuiper Belt Object (50000) Quaoar

The near-infrared spectrum of (50000) Quaoar obtained at the Keck Observatory shows distinct absorption features of crystalline water ice, solid methane and ethane, and possibly other higher order hydrocarbons. Quaoar is only the fifth Kuiper belt object on which volatile ices have been detected. The small amount of methane on an otherwise water ice dominated surface suggests that Quaoar is a transition object between the dominant volatile-poor small Kuiper belt objects (KBOs) and the few volatile-rich large KBOs such as Pluto and Eris.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ

Search Process Checklist

The Search Process Checklist is a tool that is used in instructional sessions with nurses in reference to evidence-based practice and literature searching. It is intended as a reference handout. It is under a creative commons license. If you would like a version that can be rebranded for your organization to use, please contact the author for an editable version

Observation of mass loading in the Io plasma torus

Ground‐based high‐resolution spectra of emission from the Io plasma torus obtained during 53 nights of observation over a seven month period are used to measure the torus rotation speed and discern regions of the torus that are slowed by mass loading of newly ionized materials. The amount of torus slowing implies that between 2000 and 3000 kg sec^(−1) are being ionized by the torus. The slowing is spread azimuthally throughout the orbit of Io, suggesting that neutral materials emanating from Io are distributed around Jupiter much more uniformly than currently believed

VCU Health Nursing Inquiry Process Diagram (version 2)

This diagram outlines the nursing inquiry process to help answer questions that arise in the clinical setting. The diagram further helps a nurse understand how to distinguish whether a situation calls for evidence-based practice, performance improvement or research. It also guides a nurse through clarifying the initial question, gathering the evidence, and through each step in the subsequent process

Standing up for teaching: the 'crime' of striving for excellence

In recent years a proliferation of local and national teaching awards has occurred in many countries. The new language of excellence has led institutions and policy-makers to embrace teaching awards. Although these award schemes harbour competing and coexisting drivers and appeal to different stakeholders for different reasons, they have helped to raise the profile and importance of teaching in higher education. At the same time, the idea of recognising individuals as excellent teachers remains distasteful to many educators. Awards remain controversial as they compete with traditional ideals of egalitarianism which dominate the education profession. In the backdrop of lingering controversy, this short opinion paper reflects on the costs of standing up for teaching after applying for and successfully winning a National Award for Sustained Excellence in Teaching. Using an acronym it describes the CRIME of excellence and makes the case for teaching awards criteria to recognise critical forms of scholarship. While definitions of excellence will always be contestable it argues that teaching awards are not mutually exclusive from an individual ethos of striving for continuous improvement. The paper concludes that the education profession does a great disservice to the status of teaching if we shame and snipe away at those judged by peers as our best