161 research outputs found
Efficient Receipt-Free Ballot Casting Resistant to Covert Channels
We present an efficient, covert-channel-resistant, receipt-free ballot casting scheme that can be used by humans without trusted hardware. In comparison to the recent Moran-Naor proposal, our scheme produces a significantly shorter ballot, prevents covert channels in the ballot, and opts for statistical soundness rather than everlasting privacy (achieving both seems impossible). The human interface remains the same, based on Neff\u27s MarkPledge scheme, and requires of the voter only short-string operations
Ultraviolet Imagery of NGC 6752: A Test of Extreme Horizontal Branch Models
We present a 1620 A image of the nearby globular cluster NGC 6752 obtained
with the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (UIT) during the Astro-2 mission of the
Space Shuttle Endeavour in 1995 March. An ultraviolet-visible color-magnitude
diagram (CMD) is derived for 216 stars matched with the visible photometry of
Buonanno et al. (1986). This CMD provides a nearly complete census of the hot
horizontal branch (HB) population with good temperature and luminosity
discrimination for comparison with theoretical tracks. The observed data show
good agreement with the theoretical zero-age horizontal branch (ZAHB) of
Sweigart (1996) for an assumed reddening of E(B-V) = 0.05 and a distance
modulus of 13.05. The observed HB luminosity width is in excellent agreement
with the theoretical models and supports the single star scenario for the
origin of extreme horizontal branch (EHB) stars. However, only four stars can
be identified as post-EHB stars, whereas almost three times this many are
expected from the HB number counts. If this effect is not a statistical
anomaly, then some non-canonical effect may be decreasing the post-EHB
lifetime. The recent non-canonical models of Sweigart (1996), which have
helium-enriched envelopes due to mixing along the red giant branch, cannot
explain the deficit of post-EHB stars, but might be better able to explain
their luminosity distribution.Comment: 14 pages, AASTeX, includes 4 EPS figures ApJ Letters accepte
Ultraviolet Imaging of the Globular Cluster 47 Tucanae
We have used the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope to obtain deep far-UV (1620
Angstrom), 40' diameter images of the prototypical metal-rich globular cluster
47 Tucanae. We find a population of about 20 hot (Teff > 9000 K) objects near
or above the predicted UV luminosity of the hot horizontal branch (HB) and
lying within two half-light radii of the cluster center. We believe these are
normal hot HB or post-HB objects rather than interacting binaries or blue
stragglers. IUE spectra of two are consistent with post-HB phases. These
observations, and recent HST photometry of two other metal-rich clusters,
demonstrate that populations with rich, cool HB's can nonetheless produce hot
HB and post-HB stars. The cluster center also contains an unusual diffuse
far-UV source which is more extended than its V-band light. It is possible that
this is associated with an intracluster medium, for which there was earlier
infrared and X-ray evidence, and is produced by C IV emission or scattered
light from grains.Comment: 13 pages AASLaTeX including one postscript figure and one bitmapped
image, JPEG format. Submitted to the Astronomical Jorunal. Full Postscript
version available at http://www.astro.virginia.edu/~bd4r
Assessment of the Water Quality in the Salt River Prior to Its Impoundment in Anderson and Spencer Counties, Kentucky
Monthly water samples were taken and analyzed to determine the water quality of the Salt River in Anderson and Spencer counties Kentucky prior to the river\u27s impoundment. Sediments from the area watershed were analyzed to total acid digestion, barium chloride extraction, and aqueous extraction methods. Rainwater and runoff water were collected and analyzed for major cations and anions from two sites in the watershed.
The Salt River at Taylorsville is characterized by hard water with high levels of calcium (33.5-74.8 mg/1), bicarbonate (136-236 mg/l), specific conductance (200-535 μmhos/cm), and sulfate (16.5-71.5 mg/l). Nitrates (0.6-5.7 mg/l), phosphates (0.2-2.4 mg/l), sodium (3.2-20.3 mg/l), and potassium (1.3-5.6 mg/l), are moderate. Iron, manganese, copper, and nitrites are less than 0.5 mg/1. Suspended solids in the river (4.0-l ,684.0 mg/l) are highly variable and directly related to fluctuations in discharge. Sediments from the Salt River Basin are high in potassium (12.4-213.3 mg/g) and iron (23.4-135.1 mg/g), with moderate levels of calcium (0.8-45.7 mg/g), sodium (4.5-10.5 mg/g), magnesium (3.2-6.3 mg/g), and phosphate (1.3-15.3 mg/g). Approximately 10% of the total ionic composition of these sediments is exchangeable and may be extracted with barium chloride. Calcium (309-3,292 μg/g), was the most readily adsorbed cation, with lower levels of potassium (17.6-490.5 μg/g), sodium (12.9-458.1 μg/g), and magnesium (89.4-266.2 μg/g). In the aqueous extractions, calcium (18-486 μg/g), potassium (16.6-69.5 μg/g), sodium (11.1-30.8 μg/g), and magnesium (6.6-68.7 μg/g) comprised about 10% of the exchangeable fraction.
Ranges of rainwater ions from the Salt River Basin were: sulfate (8.3-27.8 mg/l), calcium (0.3-10.7 mg/l), potassium (0.4-15.4 mg/l), sodium (0.0-0.7 mg/l), and magnesium (0.1-2.8 mg/l). Ionic composition and sediment yield of runoff water was variable and was related to magnitude of rainfall and runoff sampler placement. Ranges for selected constituents at the two samplers near Taylorsville were: suspended solids (44.0-8,808.0 mg/l), potassium (1.1-84.0 mg/l), magnesium (l.5-7.1 mg/l), calcium (9.5-33.0 mg/l), and sodium (0.6-3.0 mg/l).
Calcium and bicarbonate in the Salt River originate from weathering of calcite, although mole ratios of these two ions greater than 1:2 suggest that weathering of magnesium carbonates also contributes bicarbonate to the water. Carbonate equilibrium calculations using field pH and ionic strength suggest calcium is at saturation in the Salt River. High levels of sulfate in rainwater indicate some of this anion may be introduced into the area watershed by atmospheric precipitation
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PhD fieldwork in developing countries – The issue of time
Educational field research in developing country contexts often exposes the fragility of mutual understanding and the tensions of diversity between researchers and those with whom they are researching. Postgraduate researchers face particular challenges arising from their lack of experience, and from the focused, individual nature of their enquiry. Logistical, emotional and ethical issues present themselves, even for researchers studying their cultures of origin. This paper seeks to learn some lessons from the experiences of a group of researchers doing fieldwork in developing countries for the first time, as part of their PhD.
A review of the literature around fieldwork reveals substantially conflicting guidance for field researchers. Practical tips (Robson et al, 1991; Nash, 2000) contrast with the writings of anthropologists such as Geertz (1988), Rosaldo (1993) or Scheper-Hughes (1992), suggesting unavoidable complexities in terms of ethics, the building and maintenance of relationships, and the perceptions of both the researcher and those with whom he or she is researching.
The experiences of a group of individual PhD field researchers form the central section of the paper, making use of a framework in which each sets out to explore examples of the relationships between the person of the researcher; the activities of the research, and a central but easily-overlooked feature of the field: the issue of time. These relationships are seen to impact on the nature of the main and often contentious object of academic research, data: its nature, its validity and reliability; or more broadly, on the development of a deeper understanding of individuals and institutions. Part of the power of these examples lies in the range of contexts and individuals represented. Activity theory is used as a basic framework through which to interrogate these experiences.
Finally, the arguments of literature are challenged and developed in relation to these experiences, leading to some propositions but also exploring some critical questions, to form a useful basis for further discussion. The experiences of the authors might be of interest to other researchers doing fieldwork in the developing world
Ultraviolet Imaging Observations of the cD Galaxy in Abell 1795: Further Evidence for Massive Star Formation in a Cooling Flow
We present images from the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope of the Abell 1795
cluster of galaxies. We compare the cD galaxy morphology and photometry of
these data with those from existing archival and published data. The addition
of a far--UV color helps us to construct and test star formation model
scenarios for the sources of UV emission. Models of star formation with rates
in the range \sim5-20M_{\sun}yr indicate that the best fitting models
are those with continuous star formation or a recent ( Myr old) burst
superimposed on an old population. The presence of dust in the galaxy,
dramatically revealed by HST images complicates the interpretation of UV data.
However, we find that the broad--band UV/optical colors of this cD galaxy can
be reasonably matched by models using a Galactic form for the extinction law
with . We also briefly discuss other objects in the large UIT
field of view.Comment: To appear in the Astrophysical Journal. 14 AAS preprint style pages
plus 7 figure
UIT Detection of Hot Stars in the Globular Cluster NGC362
We used the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope during the March 1995 Astro-2
mission to obtain a deep far-UV image of the globular cluster NGC 362, which
was formerly thought to have an almost entirely red horizontal branch (HB). 84
hot (T_eff > 8500 K) stars were detected within a radius of 8'.25 of the
cluster center. Of these, 43 have FUV magnitudes consistent with HB stars in
NGC 362, and at least 34 are cluster members. The number of cluster members is
made uncertain by background contamination from blue stars in the Small
Magellanic Cloud (SMC). There are six candidate supra-HB stars which have
probably evolved from the HB. We discuss the implications of these results for
the production of hot blue stars in stellar populations.Comment: 10 pages AASLaTeX including one postscript figure and one compressed
bitmap, .jpg format. To appear in Ap. J. Letters. Postscript version also
available at http://www.astro.virginia.edu/~bd4r
The Relative Orientation of Nuclear Accretion and Galaxy Stellar Disks in Seyfert Galaxies
We use the difference (delta) between the position angles of the nuclear
radio emission and the host galaxy major axis to investigate the distribution
of the angle (beta) between the axes of the nuclear accretion disk and the host
galaxy disk in Seyfert galaxies. We provide a critical appraisal of the quality
of all measurements, and find that the data are limited by observational
uncertainties and biases, such as the well known deficiency of Seyfert galaxies
of high inclination. There is weak evidence that the distribution of delta for
Seyfert 2 galaxies may be different (at the 90% confidence level) from a
uniform distribution, while the Seyfert 1 delta distribution is not
significantly different from a uniform distribution or from the Seyfert 2 delta
distribution. The cause of the possible non-uniformity in the distribution of
delta for Seyfert 2 galaxies is discussed. Seyfert nuclei in late-type spiral
galaxies may favor large values of delta (at the ~96% confidence level), while
those in early-type galaxies show a more or less random distribution of delta.
This may imply that the nuclear accretion disk in non-interacting late-type
spirals tends to align with the stellar disk, while that in early-type galaxies
is more randomly oriented, perhaps as a result of accretion following a galaxy
merger.
We point out that biases in the distribution of inclination translate to
biased estimates of beta in the context of the unified scheme. When this effect
is taken into account, the distributions of beta for all Seyferts together, and
of Seyfert 1's and 2's separately, agree with the hypothesis that the radio
jets are randomly oriented with respect to the galaxy disk. The data are
consistent with the expectations of the unified scheme, but do not demand it.Comment: To appear in the Astrophysical Journal, Vol 516 #1, May 1, 1999.
Corrected figure placement within pape
A Detailed Investigation of the Sociological, Economic, and Ecological Aspects of Proposed Reservoir Sites in the Salt River Basin of Kentucky
Samples of water, bottom fauna, and fishes were collected from 66 stations in the Salt River and one of its principal tributaries, the Beech Fork and its tributary, the Chaplin River, Kentucky. Precipitation ranged from 38.86 inches (1969) to 58.04 inches (1970), an increase of nearly 50 percent with marked fluctuations in discharge. Intensive comparisons of phosphates, sulfates, specific conductance, total alkalinity, total hardness, and turbidity showed the streams to be relatively clean and healthy. Nearly 300 different kinds of benthic organisms and other macroinvertebrates have been collected and identified from the basin. Detailed studies of caddisflies and stream drift are under way along with the development of computer programs for diversity indices of the various organisms. Twenty-eight species of bivalve mussels and representatives of six genera of snails have been collected including the Asiatic clam Corbicula mülleri. Among the vertebrates, 60 species of fishes have been collected and identified along with 22 amphibians and 21 reptiles. Nearly 150 species of birds have been identified in the area.
An economic study of Spencer County revealed that there has been a decrease in the human population along with a general decline in the overall economic picture of the county as indicated by a retarded rate of growth in annual per capita income and a decline in total retail sales within the county over the past decade. The highway system in the county consists of largely Class 4, 5, and 6 roads which, because of the topography, are generally narrow, crooked, and hilly. However, Spencer County is almost completely encircled by interstate highways within ten miles of its borders
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