Ground-based spectropolarimetric studies of the outer planets and Titan. High resolutiom spectral imagery for periodic and new comets

Using novel spectropolarimeteric imaging techniques, researchers have studied the outer planets, Titan, and various comets. In the previous year, researchers submitted and have now in press or published fourteen papers on studies of comets and planets, as well as instrumentation developments to enhance observational studies

A detected feature at the expected wavelength for the HD R5(0) line in Jupiter's and Uranus' atmospheres

A feature was detected at the expected wavelength for the HD R5(0) line in Jupiter's and Uranus' atmospheres. An upper limit for Neptune was also found. Added to the earlier detection of a similar feature for Saturn, it is proposed that all evidence from this type of measurement can be interpreted as arising from a D/H ratio of about .0004 for all the major planets. This value is not in agreement with measurements from CH3D transitions, and is at least fifty times the accepted interstellar medium value of 5 x .000001, implying deuterium enhancement in the solar system via fractionation in the proto-solar nebula

Piloting Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System for Pain Studies

Abstract: Pain is a therapeutic challenge as well as a public health problem that affects over 116 million American adults; reduces quality of life; and is estimated to cost up to $635 billion annually [1]. There is a growing recognition that health care outcomes will be improved by matching proven effective treatments with knowledge of patients’ unique characteristics to optimize efficacy and safety. This project aims to assess the validity of the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) for pain. PROMIS is a computerized system measuring patient-reported outcomes across a wide range of chronic conditions but has not yet been studied for acute pain. In this pilot study, PROMIS questionnaires will be given to healthy volunteers and, in a future study, the responses will be compared to those of patients with acute pain following the removal of wisdom teeth. We hypothesize that self-reported responses to PROMIS domains of physical, mental, and social health in patients with acute pain will differ from those of healthy volunteers. We predict that we can categorize patients into sub-groups based off PROMIS domains hypothesized to be related to acute pain. PROMIS item banks to be studied include pain intensity, pain interference, fatigue, anxiety, depression, the ability to participate in social roles and activities, physical function, and sleep disturbance. In this pilot study, a preliminary PROMIS study will be designed and tested for its ability to determine a healthy population and functionality in clinical research for pain. Validation of PROMIS for acute pain will allow for a more comprehensive phenotyping in future acute pain studies known as deep phenotyping. Combined with genomic data and quantitative sensory testing, PROMIS can help eliminate observer-based perceptions of patients’ pain and allow for more specific drug therapy.Dionne, RaymondB.S

Microhabitat Use by Macroinvertebrates in Barataria Bay, Louisiana

A drop sampler was used to collect macroinvertebrates along transects in open and closed marshes within the Barataria Basin. Three-hundred-seventy-seven samples, covering 448 m2, were collected between August 1988 and September 1989. Sampling focused along the marsh edge where open water and flooded Spartina meet, covering a broad range of environmental conditions including different stem densities, distances to the marsh edge, and water depths. Other variables measured included water temperature, velocity, dissolved oxygen, salinity, turbidity, substrate, and marsh vegetation. Of the ten most frequently-occurring macroinvertebrates, three were transients (Callinectes sapidus, C. similis, and Penaeus aztecus), and seven were residents (Mysidopsis spp., Palaemonetes spp., Clibanarius vittatus, Eurypanopeus depressus, Ampilesca vadorum, Gammarus mucronatus, and Neanthes succinea). A size-frequency analysis showed that most seasonal abundance peaks were recruitment peaks. P. aztecus, G. mucronatus, N. succinea, and Mysidopsis showed spring recruitment. C. sapidus and E. depressus showed summer, and C. similis showed fall recruitment peaks. Palaemonetes and A.vadorum showed winter recruitment. C.vittatus showed two peaks, winter and summer. Factor analysis described three well-defined axes that explained 52.3% of the variance. These were seasonal (temperature and dissolved oxygen), microspatial (depth, distance, and stem density), and macrospatial (salinity). In univariate analyses, differential patterns of microhabitat use were significant among several species. Among residents, Palaemonetes was different from Mysidopsis in temperature, depth, and stem density. Among the transients, Penaeus aztecus and the two Callinectes species differed in temperature, and the Callinectes species differed in stem density, salinity, and turbidity. There were generally more differences among transients than among residents. A tethering experiment was also conducted to examine differential day and night survival rates in the marsh edge. This was a preliminary examination of predation as an explanation for microhabitat selection. Aside from some confounding factors, analyses showed that some daytime survival rates were significantly lower

Measurement of Water Ice Accumulation on a First Surface Gold Mirror under Cryogenic, High-Vacuum Conditions

Spacecraft optical components must be tested in vacuum chambers in order to achieve “space-like” conditions on earth. To simulate the low temperatures experienced in space, optical components are often cryogenically cooled in the vacuum chamber. Outgassing of contaminants, such as water molecules, from the metal walls of the vacuum chamber occur under high vacuum conditions. These free water molecules accumulate and freeze on the cryogenic optical surfaces, which affects performance and reflectivity. A multiple beam interference set-up was used to measure the accumulation of a water ice film on a first surface gold mirror under cryogenic, high vacuum-conditions. Zeolite molecular sieves were used to introduce water vapor into the vacuum chamber. Once inside the chamber, the water molecules were allowed to accumulate and freeze on a cryogenically cooled first surface gold mirror. The external interferometer set-up was used to measure the ice film thickness over time. Simultaneously, a quartz crystal microbalance was used to measure the ice film accumulation. Comparing the thickness results showed that the laser interferometer set-up is an accurate and reliable technique for measuring the water ice film accumulation on the first surface gold mirror. To advance the current multiple beam interference technique, a new expanded beam interferometer was developed for measuring ice accumulation at multiple locations on the gold mirror. A beam expander was placed on the laser which increased the beam diameter by four times the original size. This expanded beam measured the ice film thickness on a larger portion of the mirror using a custom designed photodiode array. These results were again compared with those obtained from the widely used QCM technique. The comparison showed that the expanded beam interferometer set-up is an accurate and reliable technique for measuring the water ice film accumulation at multiple locations on a first surface gold mirror by agreeing with QCM results to within 2.8%

William Hayden to Mr. and Mrs. Aldrich, 2 December 1872

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/aldrichcorr_e/1031/thumbnail.jp

An L1 Penalty Method for General Obstacle Problems

We construct an efficient numerical scheme for solving obstacle problems in divergence form. The numerical method is based on a reformulation of the obstacle in terms of an L1-like penalty on the variational problem. The reformulation is an exact regularizer in the sense that for large (but finite) penalty parameter, we recover the exact solution. Our formulation is applied to classical elliptic obstacle problems as well as some related free boundary problems, for example the two-phase membrane problem and the Hele-Shaw model. One advantage of the proposed method is that the free boundary inherent in the obstacle problem arises naturally in our energy minimization without any need for problem specific or complicated discretization. In addition, our scheme also works for nonlinear variational inequalities arising from convex minimization problems.Comment: 20 pages, 18 figure

“Brother Can You Spare a Friend?”: Documents, Masculinities, and Histories in a Masonic Lodge

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College

An interferometric spectral mapper for the Cassini mission to Saturn and Titan

The research reported resulted in a detailed proposal for the Cassini Mission that addressed fundamental atmospheric structure and composition questions for both Saturn and Titan. Due to the brief time available between the initiation of the research and the proposal date, it was necessary to develop the science goals in close synchronicity with the instrument design. A major goal of the program was to acquire, implement, and test SWIR and MWIR arrays suitable for use with the DIGITAL ARRAY SCANNED INTERFEROMETERS, (DASI's), for the extended goal of developing DASI's for a range of spectral mapping research in solar system exploration. These goals were all reached or exceeded in the course of this work

Evaluation of Benthic Fish Communities in the Clinch and Duck rivers as Habitat Indicators for the Endangered Pygmy Madtom, \u3ci\u3eNoturus stanauli\u3c/i\u3e

Identifying which species are associated with a specific endangered species can inform conservation managers about potential community associations and novel localities. The benthic fish community associated with the Pygmy Madtom (Noturus stanauli) in the Duck River has been documented through Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) work at sites where the Pygmy Madtom has occurred by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). To complement the Duck River data, we gathered benthic fish community data associated with the Pygmy Madtom in the Clinch River. We used Pflieger’s metrics of constancy and fidelity to evaluate fish associations with the Pygmy Madtom. We also used and adapted Pflieger’s approach to create a faunal index that will recognize potential Pygmy Madtom habitat. In the Clinch River, Mountain Madtom (Noturus eleutherus) and Golden Darter (Nothonotus denoncourti) had a constancy percentage of 100%, while the remaining associated species were each 60% or less. Bluebreast Darter (Nothonotus camurus) (50%) and Golden Darter (45.5%) had the most realistic fidelity to the Pygmy Madtom. The overall range of values for the resulting Pygmy Madtom Clinch River faunal index was -2 to 1, and Pygmy Madtom events only occurred at faunal index values of 0 to 1. In the Duck River, Banded Sculpin (Cottus carolinae), Duck Darter (Etheostoma planasaxatile), Logperch (Percina carpodes), Mountain Madtom, Redline Darter (Nothonotus rufilineatus), and Gilt Darter (Percina evides) had a constancy percentage of 100%, while the remaining associated species were at 80% or less. The Bluebreast Darter (100%) and Fringed Darter (Etheostoma crossopterum) (66.6%) had the strongest fidelity to the Pygmy Madtom in the Duck River. The overall range of values for Pygmy Madtom Duck River faunal index was -3 to 4 and Pygmy Madtom events only occurred at faunal index values from 1 to 4. The simplicity and usefulness of the Pygmy Madtom faunal indices for the Clinch and Duck rivers represent a valuable tool that field biologists and others could use to help identify additional sites potentially suitable for Pygmy madtoms throughout both rivers