3,471 research outputs found
CHINA'S ACCESSION TO WTO: IMPLICATIONS FOR US AGRICULTURAL EXPORTS
Agricultural and Food Policy,
Development of improved amorphous materials for laser systems
Crystallization calculations were performed in order to determine the possibility of forming a particular type of laser glass with the avoidance of devitrification in an outer space laboratory. It was demonstrated that under the homogenuous nucleating conditions obtainable in a zero gravity laboratory this laser glass may be easily quenched to a virtually crystal-free product. Experimental evidence is provided that use of this material as a host in a neodymium glass laser would result in more than a 10 percent increase in efficiency when compared to laser glass rods of a similar composition currently commercially available. Differential thermal analysis, thermal gradient oven, X-ray diffraction, and liquidus determination experiments were carried out to determine the basics of the crystallization behavior of the glass, and small-angle X-ray scattering and splat-cooling experiments were performed in order to provide additional evidence for the feasibility of producing this laser glass material, crystal free, in an outer space environment
The 20th Century Transformation of U.S. Agriculture and Farm Policy
The structure of farms, farm households, and the rural communities in which they exist has evolved markedly over the last century. Historical data on a range of farm structure variables—including the value of agricultural production, commodity specialization, farming-dependent counties, and off-farm work—offer a perspective on the long-term forces that have helped shape the structure of agriculture and rural life over the past century. These forces include productivity growth, the increasing importance of national and global markets, and the rising influence of consumers on agricultural production. Within this long-term context of structural change, a review of some key developments in farm policy considers the extent to which farm policy design has or has not kept pace with the continuing transformation of American agriculture.farm policy, farm structure, policy adjustment, structural adjustment, mechanization, productivity growth, global markets, consumer stakeholders, price and income support, farm policy history, Agricultural and Food Policy, Farm Management,
Cepheid limb darkening, angular diameter corrections, and projection factor from static spherical model stellar atmospheres
Context. One challenge for measuring the Hubble constant using Classical
Cepheids is the calibration of the Leavitt Law or period-luminosity
relationship. The Baade-Wesselink method for distance determination to Cepheids
relies on the ratio of the measured radial velocity and pulsation velocity, the
so-called projection factor and the ability to measure the stellar angular
diameters. Aims. We use spherically-symmetric model stellar atmospheres to
explore the dependence of the p-factor and angular diameter corrections as a
function of pulsation period. Methods. Intensity profiles are computed from a
grid of plane-parallel and spherically-symmetric model stellar atmospheres
using the SAtlas code. Projection factors and angular diameter corrections are
determined from these intensity profiles and compared to previous results.
Results. Our predicted geometric period-projection factor relation including
previously published state-of-the-art hydrodynamical predictions is not with
recent observational constraints. We suggest a number of potential resolutions
to this discrepancy. The model atmosphere geometry also affects predictions for
angular diameter corrections used to interpret interferometric observations,
suggesting corrections used in the past underestimated Cepheid angular
diameters by 3 - 5%. Conclusions. While spherically-symmetric hydrostatic model
atmospheres cannot resolve differences between projection factors from theory
and observations, they do help constrain underlying physics that must be
included, including chromospheres and mass loss. The models also predict more
physically-based limb-darkening corrections for interferometric observations.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, 2 tables, accepted for publication in A&
Penfold, Steve. The Donut: A Canadian History. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2008. Pp. 256. Illustrations, photographs, notes, index. ISBN: 978-0-8020-9797-2; Paper: 978-0-8020-9545-9
Pulsation Period Change & Classical Cepheids: Probing the Details of Stellar Evolution
Measurements of secular period change probe real-time stellar evolution of
classical Cepheids making these measurements powerful constraints for stellar
evolution models, especially when coupled with interferometric measurements. In
this work, we present stellar evolution models and measured rates of period
change for two Galactic Cepheids: Polaris and l Carinae, both important
Cepheids for anchoring the Cepheid Leavitt law (period-luminosity relation).
The combination of previously-measured parallaxes, interferometric angular
diameters and rates of period change allows for predictions of Cepheid mass
loss and stellar mass. Using the stellar evolution models, We find that l Car
has a mass of about 9 consistent with stellar pulsation models, but
is not undergoing enhanced stellar mass loss. Conversely, the rate of period
change for Polaris requires including enhanced mass-loss rates. We discuss what
these different results imply for Cepheid evolution and the mass-loss mechanism
on the Cepheid instability strip.Comment: 2 pages, 1 figure, Poster presented at IAU307: New windows on massive
stars: asteroseismology, interferometry, and spectropolarimetry, Editors: G.
Meynet, C. Georgy, J.H. Groh & Ph. Ste
The Stars Kept Shining: The Wartime Diary of Esther Mathilda Sørensen
In fulfillment of the Liberty University Honors Department Thesis requirement, the following is a creative thesis in the form of an historical fiction novella diary, written in the first person. The story follows the life of Esther, a young Danish woman, as she navigates what it means to be a Jew in World War II era Europe. Though the characters are fictional, the story presents possible real-life experiences for a person living during this time.
The style of this novella is popular among middle and high school teachers and can be an important teaching tool as it is an engaging way for students to learn about a period in history. The diary form lends a real-life and personal feel which is relatable to children of similar ages.
The experience of Jews in Denmark during the Holocaust is unlike any other of the European countries. Denmark had a very small Jewish community, approximately 8,000 at the start of the war, and roughly 99% of them survived. While the majority of European Jews perished during the years of 1939-1945, the gravity of the situation in Denmark is remarkable. Even though Denmark is considered to have collaborated with the Nazi regime, they resisted in many ways, not least in her work in saving almost her entire Jewish population
- …