An Assessment of Estate Planning Among Older Adults in Alabama

Doubling of the older adult population and the lack of estate plans throughout the United States have prompted Extension to focus on increasing Americans\u27 awareness of the importance of estate planning. A descriptive research study was conducted throughout Alabama to determine the status of and barriers to estate planning among older adults. Results indicated a significant difference in estate planning and being exposed to information on estate plans relative to ethnicity. African Americans were far less likely to have received information on estate planning than Caucasian Americans. Barriers to estate planning indicated several misconceptions in both groups

Preparation and reactivity of tantalum(V) alkylidene and metallacyclobutane complexes

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Chemistry, 1988.Includes bibliographical references.by Kevin C. Wallace.Ph.D

Urban Extension\u27s New Nontraditional Offering: Parent-Child Reading Enhancement Program

Urbanization is causing a major shift in Extension\u27s programming throughout the United States. We present results of a nontraditional urban program (the Parent-Child Reading Enhancement Program) that is being implemented by Alabama Cooperative Extension System\u27s Urban Affairs and New Nontraditional Programs unit. Findings suggest that this Extension program is successful in increasing urban parents\u27 knowledge and skills related to enhancing their children\u27s reading ability. Implications for urban Extension are discussed

BAT AGN Spectroscopic Survey-III. An observed link between AGN Eddington ratio and narrow emission line ratios

We investigate the observed relationship between black hole mass ($M_{\rm BH}$), bolometric luminosity ($L_{\rm bol}$), and Eddington ratio (${\lambda}_{\rm Edd}$) with optical emission line ratios ([NII] {\lambda}6583/H{\alpha}, [SII] {\lambda}{\lambda}6716,6731/H{\alpha}, [OI] {\lambda}6300/H{\alpha}, [OIII] {\lambda}5007/H{\beta}, [NeIII] {\lambda}3869/H{\beta}, and HeII {\lambda}4686/H{\beta}) of hard X-ray-selected AGN from the BAT AGN Spectroscopic Survey (BASS). We show that the [NII] {\lambda}6583/H{\alpha} ratio exhibits a significant correlation with ${\lambda}_{\rm Edd}$ ($R_{\rm Pear}$ = -0.44, $p$-value=$3\times10^{-13}$, {\sigma} = 0.28 dex), and the correlation is not solely driven by $M_{\rm BH}$ or $L_{\rm bol}$. The observed correlation between [NII] {\lambda}6583/H{\alpha} ratio and $M_{\rm BH}$ is stronger than the correlation with $L_{\rm bol}$, but both are weaker than the ${\lambda}_{\rm Edd}$ correlation. This implies that the large-scale narrow lines of AGN host galaxies carry information about the accretion state of the AGN central engine. We propose that the [NII] {\lambda}6583/H{\alpha} is a useful indicator of Eddington ratio with 0.6 dex of rms scatter, and that it can be used to measure ${\lambda}_{\rm Edd}$ and thus $M_{\rm BH}$ from the measured $L_{\rm bol}$, even for high redshift obscured AGN. We briefly discuss possible physical mechanisms behind this correlation, such as the mass-metallicity relation, X-ray heating, and radiatively driven outflows.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS, 9 pages, 5 figures, 1 tabl

BAT AGN Spectroscopic Survey I: Spectral Measurements, Derived Quantities, and AGN Demographics

We present the first catalog and data release of the Swift-BAT AGN Spectroscopic Survey (BASS). We analyze optical spectra of the majority of AGN (77%, 641/836) detected based on their 14-195 keV emission in the 70-month Swift BAT all-sky catalog. This includes redshift determination, absorption and emission line measurements, and black hole mass and accretion rate estimates for the majority of obscured and un-obscured AGN (74%, 473/641) with 340 measured for the first time. With ~90% of sources at z<0.2, the survey represents a significant census of hard-X-ray selected AGN in the local universe. In this first catalog paper, we describe the spectroscopic observations and datasets, and our initial spectral analysis. The FWHM of the emission lines show broad agreement with the X-ray obscuration (~94%), such that Sy 1-1.8 have NH10^21.9 cm^-2. Seyfert 1.9 show a range of column densities. Compared to narrow line AGN in the SDSS, the X-ray selected AGN have a larger fraction of dusty host galaxies suggesting these types of AGN are missed in optical surveys. Using the most sensitive [OIII]/Hbeta and [NII]/Halpha emission line diagnostic, about half of the sources are classified as Seyferts, ~15% reside in dusty galaxies that lack an Hbeta detection, but for which the line upper limits imply either a Seyfert or LINER, ~15% are in galaxies with weak or no emission lines despite high quality spectra, and a few percent each are LINERS, composite galaxies, HII regions, or in known beamed AGN.Comment: Accepted ApJ, see www.bass-survey.com for dat

Talk the talk, walk the walk: Defining Critical Race Theory in research

Over the last decade there has been a noticeable growth in published works citing Critical Race Theory (CRT). This has led to a growth in interest in the UK of practical research projects utilising CRT as their framework. It is clear that research on 'race' is an emerging topic of study. What is less visible is a debate on how CRT is positioned in relation to methodic practice, substantive theory and epistemological underpinnings. The efficacy of categories of data gathering tools, both traditional and non-traditional is a discussion point here to explore the complexities underpinning decisions to advocate a CRT framework. Notwithstanding intersectional issues, a CRT methodology is recognisable by how philosophical, political and ethical questions are established and maintained in relation to racialised problematics. This paper examines these tensions in establishing CRT methodologies and explores some of the essential criteria for researchers to consider in utilising a CRT framework. © 2012 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC

How a turn to critical race theory can contribute to our understanding of 'race', racism and anti-racism in sport

As long as racism has been associated with sport there have been consistent, if not coordinated or coherent, struggles to confront its various forms. Critical race theory (CRT) is a framework established to challenge these racialized inequalities and racism in society and has some utility for anti-racism in sport. CRT's focus on social justice and transformation are two areas of convergence between critical race theorists and anti-racists. Of the many nuanced and pernicious forms of racism, one of the most obvious and commonly reported forms of racism in sport, racial abuse, has been described as a kind of dehumanizing process by Gardiner (2003), as those who are its target are simultaneously (re)constructed and objectified according to everyday myth and fantasy. However, this is one of the many forms of everyday racist experiences. Various forms of racism can be experienced in boardrooms, on television, in print, in the stands, on the sidelines and on the pitch. Many times racism is trivialized and put down as part of the game (Long et al., 2000), yet its impact is rarely the source of further exploration. This article will explore the conceptualization of 'race' and racism for a more effective anti-racism. Critical race theory will also be used to explore the ideas that underpin considerations of the severity of racist behaviour and the implications for anti-racism. © The Author(s) 2010

BAT AGN spectroscopic survey–II. X-ray emission and high-ionization optical emission lines

We investigate the relationship between X-ray and optical line emission in 340 nearby (z ≃ 0.04) AGN selected above 10 keV using Swift BAT. We find a weak correlation between the extinction corrected [O iii] and hard X-ray luminosity (L^(int)_([OIII])∝L_(14-195) with a large scatter (R_(Pear) = 0.64, σ = 0.62 dex) and a similarly large scatter with the intrinsic 2–10 keV to [O iii] luminosities (R_(Pear) = 0.63, σ = 0.63 dex). Correlations of the hard X-ray fluxes with the fluxes of high-ionization narrow lines ([O iii], He ii, [Ne iii] and [Ne v]) are not significantly better than with the low-ionization lines (H α, [S ii]). Factors like obscuration or physical slit size are not found to be a significant part of the large scatter. In contrast, the optical emission lines show much better correlations with each other (σ = 0.3 dex) than with the X-ray flux. The inherent large scatter questions the common usage of narrow emission lines as AGN bolometric luminosity indicators and suggests that other issues such as geometrical differences in the scattering of the ionized gas or long-term AGN variability are important

A simple model for AGN feedback in nearby early-type galaxies

Recent work indicates that star-forming early-type galaxies (ETGs) residing in the blue cloud migrate rapidly to the red sequence within around a Gyr, passing through several phases of increasingly strong AGN activity in the process (Schawinski et al. 2007, MNRAS, 382, 1415; S07 hereafter). We show that natural depletion of the gas reservoir through star formation (i.e. in the absence of any feedback from the AGN) induces a blue-to-red reddening rate that is several factors lower than that observed in S07. This is because the gas depletion rate due to star formation alone is too slow, implying that another process needs to be invoked to remove gas from the system and accelerate the reddening rate. We develop a simple phenomenological model, in which a fraction of the AGN's luminosity couples to the gas reservoir over a certain 'feedback timescale' and removes part of the gas mass from the galaxy, while the remaining gas continues to contribute to star formation. We use the model to investigate scenarios which yield migration times consistent with the results of S07. We find that acceptable models have feedback timescales <0.2 Gyrs. The mass fraction in young stars in the remnants is <5% and the residual gas fractions are less than 0.6%, in good agreement with the recent literature. At least half of the initial gas reservoir is removed as the galaxies evolve from the blue cloud to the red sequence. If we restrict ourselves to feedback timescales similar to the typical duty cycles of local AGN (a few hundred Myrs) then a few tenths of a percent of the luminosity of an early-type Seyfert (10^11 LSun) must couple to the gas reservoir in order to produce migration times that are consistent with the observations.Comment: MNRAS in press (minor revisions to version 1

Ubiquitous outflows in DEEP2 spectra of star-forming galaxies at z=1.4

Galactic winds are a prime suspect for the metal enrichment of the intergalactic medium and may have a strong influence on the chemical evolution of galaxies and the nature of QSO absorption line systems. We use a sample of 1406 galaxy spectra at z~1.4 from the DEEP2 redshift survey to show that blueshifted Mg II 2796, 2803 A absorption is ubiquitous in starforming galaxies at this epoch. This is the first detection of frequent outflowing galactic winds at z~1. The presence and depth of absorption are independent of AGN spectral signatures or galaxy morphology; major mergers are not a prerequisite for driving a galactic wind from massive galaxies. Outflows are found in coadded spectra of galaxies spanning a range of 30x in stellar mass and 10x in star formation rate (SFR), calibrated from K-band and from MIPS IR fluxes. The outflows have column densities of order N_H ~ 10^20 cm^-2 and characteristic velocities of ~ 300-500 km/sec, with absorption seen out to 1000 km/sec in the most massive, highest SFR galaxies. The velocities suggest that the outflowing gas can escape into the IGM and that massive galaxies can produce cosmologically and chemically significant outflows. Both the Mg II equivalent width and the outflow velocity are larger for galaxies of higher stellar mass and SFR, with V_wind ~ SFR^0.3, similar to the scaling in low redshift IR-luminous galaxies. The high frequency of outflows in the star-forming galaxy population at z~1 indicates that galactic winds occur in the progenitors of massive spirals as well as those of ellipticals. The increase of outflow velocity with mass and SFR constrains theoretical models of galaxy evolution that include feedback from galactic winds, and may favor momentum-driven models for the wind physics.Comment: Accepted by ApJ. 25 pages, 17 figures. Revised to add discussions of intervening absorbers and AGN-driven outflows; conclusions unchange