Report on the Joint Eglin Acoustic Week III

A series of three flight tests have been conducted at Eglin Air Force Base located in the Florida panhandle. The first was the Acoustics Week flight test conducted in September 2003. The second was the NASA Heavy Lift Rotorcraft Acoustic Flight Test conducted in October-November 2005. The most recent was the Eglin Acoustic Week III test conducted in August-September 2007. This series of tests have acquired acoustic data for a number of rotary and fixed wing aircraft that are used to generate noise semi-spheres used in predicting the acoustic footprint for prescribed flight operations. This extensive database can be used to determine the impact of flight operations on communities around a terminal area. Another valuable use of the semi-spheres is determining the long-range propagation of noise for civilian and military purposes. This paper will describe the third in this series of tests

The Supreme Court's quiet gerrymandering revolution and the road to minority rule

This month the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a Wisconsin case over the constitutionality of the Republican-dominated state legislature's redistricting plan. Michael Latner, Anthony McGann, Charles Anthony Smith, and Alex Keena argue that while this case is important, no matter what it decides, the Supreme Court has already enabled large-scale gerrymandering. They write that the Court's 2004 decision ..

Gerrymandering the Presidency: Why Trump could lose the popular vote in 2020 by 6 percent and still win a second term.

Donald Trump was the clear Electoral College winner in the 2016 election, despite losing the popular vote by a wide margin to Hillary Clinton. Anthony J. McGann, Charles Anthony Smith, Michael Latner and Alex Keena write that, unless the Supreme Court stops congressional gerrymandering, President Trump can guarantee re-election in 2020 – even if he loses by 6 percent

Maryland's electoral maps show how proportional representation could solve the problem of gerrymandering

This week the US Supreme Court hears a case concerning the constitutionality of partisan gerrymandering in Maryland. Examining current, past, and alternative electoral maps, Alex Keena, Michael Latner, Anthony J. McGann, and Charles Anthony Smith find that by making districts more competitive, some redistricting plans can actually work against one party or the other. Only the introduction of proportional representation with multi-member districts, they argue, would mean a truly fair electoral system for Maryland

Why the Republicans will retain the House in 2016...and 2018...and 2020

At this stage of the 2016 election cycle, which party will control the White House and the US Senate come January 2017 seems to be very much up in the air. The US House of Representatives on the other hand, is almost certain to remain in the hands of the Republican Party, a situation which is likely to continue for the foreseeable future. Anthony J. McGann , Charles Anthony Smith , Michael Latner and Alex Keena argue that the GOP’s continued control of the House is down to the gerrymandering of Congressional districts by Republican-controlled state legislatures. They write that in certain states like Pennsylvania, this gerrymandering leads to an asymmetry between the number of seats the Democrats gain and their vote share, reducing their share of US House seats