Neutron depolarization studies of Pd-Ni-Fe-P alloy

Bulk metallic glasses based on the quaternary alloy Pd-Ni-Fe-P exhibit interesting phase behavior depending on temperature and applied magnetic field. Previous work has suggested that a range of magnetic phases including paramagnetic, superparamagnetic, ferromagnetic and spin glass can be observed in this system. We have applied one dimensional neutron depolarization to explore the correlation of magnetic moments in Pd40Ni22.5Fe17.5P20 alloy as a function of temperature and applied magnetic field. The results provided evidence for correlation lengths of ~ 200 Å. The nature of the correlations and the formation mechanism of the induced ferromagnetic phase are discusse

Episodic variations in stream water chemistry associated with acid rainfall and run-off and the effect on aquatic ecosystem, with particular reference to fish populations in N.W. England

This is the episodic variations in stream water chemistry associated with acid rainfall and run-off and the effect on aquatic ecosystems, with particular reference to fish populations in North West England produced by the North West Water Authority in 1985. This report looks at the biological, physical and chemical information collected over a five year period from over 100 sites on upland streams in the North West Region of which drained rocks of low buffering capacity. In both Lake District and South Pennine sites striking differences were found between the composition of invertebrate communities inhabiting acid-stressed and less acid-stressed streams. Electric fishing surveys showed that acidic streams (geometric mean pH <5.5) generally had abnormally low densities of salmonids ( < 0 .2m2) and that 0+ fish were very few or absent. The latter indicates recruitment failure. Salmon were more sensitive than trout to low pH

Developing specialist leaders of education: a research engagement approach

There has been little research to date on the continuing professional development needs of the several thousand Specialist Leaders of Education (SLE) now designated by the National College for Teaching and Leadership in England to work across schools as consultants on school-to-school support. This case study reports on the second and third stages of a four-stage research process designed to address these needs. The fi rst stage reported on the creation of a professional devel- opment framework for SLE ’ s using consultancy research. These middle stages test out this framework with a stakeholder group of SLEs, head- teachers and broker in a Teaching Schools Alliance. The fourth stage will track the implementation of professional development activities arising from these fi ndings. Apart from the speci fi c needs of SLE, this study will have wider relevance for all practitioners and researchers working in and with schools on leadership development using Research Engagement strategies and Joint Practice Development approaches in a so-called ‘ self- improving ’ school system

The Middle Way: East Asian masters students’ perceptions of critical argumentation in U.K. universities.

The paper explores the learning experiences of East Asian masters students in dealing with Western academic norms of critical thinking in classroom debate and assignment writing. The research takes a cultural approach, and employs grounded theory and case study methodology, the aims being for students to explain their perceptions of their personal learning journeys. The data suggest that the majority of students interviewed rejected full academic acculturation into Western norms of argumentation. They instead opted for a ‘Middle Way’ that synergizes the traditional cultural academic values held by many East Asian students with those elements of Western academic norms that are perceived to be aligned with these. This is a relatively new area of research which represents a challenge for British lecturers and students

Probing Primordial Non-Gaussianity with Large-Scale Structure

We consider primordial non-Gaussianity due to quadratic corrections in the gravitational potential parametrized by a non-linear coupling parameter fnl. We study constraints on fnl from measurements of the galaxy bispectrum in redshift surveys. Using estimates for idealized survey geometries of the 2dF and SDSS surveys and realistic ones from SDSS mock catalogs, we show that it is possible to probe |fnl|~100, after marginalization over bias parameters. We apply our methods to the galaxy bispectrum measured from the PSCz survey, and obtain a 2sigma-constraint |fnl|< 1800. We estimate that an all sky redshift survey up to z~1 can probe |fnl|~1. We also consider the use of cluster abundance to constrain fnl and find that in order to be sensitive to |fnl|~100, cluster masses need to be determined with an accuracy of a few percent, assuming perfect knowledge of the mass function and cosmological parameters.Comment: 15 pages, 7 figure

The continuum of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in four rural communities in south africa: Prevalence and characteristics

Prevalence and characteristics of the continuum of diagnoses within fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) were researched in previously unstudied rural, agricultural, lower socioeconomic populations in South Africa (ZA)

Josephson Coupling and Fiske Dynamics in Ferromagnetic Tunnel Junctions

We report on the fabrication of Nb/AlO_x/Pd_{0.82}Ni_{0.18}/Nb superconductor/insulator/ferromagnetic metal/superconductor (SIFS) Josephson junctions with high critical current densities, large normal resistance times area products, high quality factors, and very good spatial uniformity. For these junctions a transition from 0- to \pi-coupling is observed for a thickness d_F ~ 6 nm of the ferromagnetic Pd_{0.82}Ni_{0.18} interlayer. The magnetic field dependence of the \pi-coupled junctions demonstrates good spatial homogeneity of the tunneling barrier and ferromagnetic interlayer. Magnetic characterization shows that the Pd_{0.82}Ni_{0.18} has an out-of-plane anisotropy and large saturation magnetization, indicating negligible dead layers at the interfaces. A careful analysis of Fiske modes provides information on the junction quality factor and the relevant damping mechanisms up to about 400 GHz. Whereas losses due to quasiparticle tunneling dominate at low frequencies, the damping is dominated by the finite surface resistance of the junction electrodes at high frequencies. High quality factors of up to 30 around 200 GHz have been achieved. Our analysis shows that the fabricated junctions are promising for applications in superconducting quantum circuits or quantum tunneling experiments.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figure

Effects of red grape, wild grape and black raspberry wines on ground pork during refrigerated storage

The effects of red grape, wild grape and black raspberry wines on the quality of ground pork during a 15 days refrigerated storage period were investigated. The levels of phenolic compounds were the highest in black raspberry wine (P0.05). The addition of 5% and 10% wine influenced the quality of ground pork by decreasing pH, inhibiting the progression of lipid oxidation and the formation of total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N), and stabilizing the red colour of the ground pork compared to control samples to which no wine was added. In ground pork, addition of red grape wine led to lower concentrations of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS, 0.19–0.39 mg kg−1) and TVB-N values (69.1–119.9 mg kg−1) than wild grape (0.16–0.43 mg kg−1 and 72.0–194.1 mg kg−1, respectively) or black raspberry wine (0.33–0.58 mg kg−1 and 81.7–225.4 mg kg−1, respectively) up to 10 days of storage. Results from the present study suggested that the quality of ground pork was affected by wine type and storage period. These effects could be due to phenolic compounds as well as other chemical components of the wines

The continuum of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in a community in South Africa: Prevalence and characteristics in a fifth sample

The prevalence and characteristics of the continuum of diagnoses within fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) were researched in a fifth sample in a South African community