Is the System Flawed? Legal Ramifications of the Bowl Championship Series and Conference Alignment

Vice Chancellor Williams: Let me start -this is really a discussion, or a panel that deals with the BCS and conference alignment. So why don\u27t we just jump right in it, and I think the first question that I would like to ask is --we\u27ll throw it up, really I think I\u27d like to go to both Mike and Gary on this --why are we seeing all the movement around of the schools from conference to conference? What is this all about? Gary Roberts: That\u27s 95% of it. It is schools trying to reposition themselves better in their industry, which is largely driven by an effort to increase your revenues. Boston College and Miami and Virginia Tech thought they were in a better position, for a variety of reasons, to make more money in the Atlantic Coast Conference; the Atlantic Coast Conference thought it, as a conference --because it could now have a football championship --was certainly strengthened by those schools, so it can make more money. That sort of left the Big East hanging out there to dry, so they went after schools from the next conference down on the food chain, which was our Conference USA, and they picked off Louisville and Cincinnati and South Florida; those schools wanted to go to the Big East because it\u27s a BCS conference and Conference USA isn\u27t --money. So there are some realignments that I think are to some extent driven by --at least in part --some other factors --natural rivalries and what have you. I\u27m still trying to figure out why TCU went to the Mountain West, that\u27s just a total mystery to me. So some of these movements are not explainable solely on the basis of money, but most of them are just a desire to position yourself to increase your revenues

The Neon Abundance in the Ejecta of QU Vul From Late-Epoch IR Spectra

We present ground-based SpectroCam-10 mid-infrared, MMT optical, and Spitzer Space Telescope IRS mid-infrared spectra taken 7.62, 18.75, and 19.38 years respectively after the outburst of the old classical nova QU Vulpeculae (Nova Vul 1984 #2). The spectra of the ejecta are dominated by forbidden line emission from neon and oxygen. Our analysis shows that neon was, at the first and last epochs respectively, more than 76 and 168 times overabundant by number with respect to hydrogen compared to the solar value. These high lower limits to the neon abundance confirm that QU Vul involved a thermonuclear runaway on an ONeMg white dwarf and approach the yields predicted by models of the nucleosynthesis in such events.Comment: ApJ 2007 accepted, 18 pages, including 5 figures, 1 tabl

Cognitive Fatigue Influences Time-On-Task during Bodyweight Resistance Training Exercise

Prior investigations have shown measurable performance impairments on continuous physical performance tasks when preceded by a cognitively fatiguing task. However, the effect of cognitive fatigue on bodyweight resistance training exercise task performance is unknown. In the current investigation 18 amateur athletes completed a full body exercise task preceded by either a cognitive fatiguing or control intervention. In a randomized repeated measure design, each participant completed the same exercise task preceded by a 52 minute cognitively fatiguing intervention (vigilance) or control intervention (video). Data collection sessions were separated by 1 week. Participants rated the fatigue intervention as being significantly more mentally demanding than the control intervention (p .05). There was no statistical difference for heart rate or metabolic expenditure as a function of fatigue intervention during exercise. Cognitively fatigued athletes have decreased time-on-task in bodyweight resistance training exercise tasks

Elemental Abundances in the Ejecta of Old Classical Novae from Late-Epoch Spitzer Spectra

We present Spitzer Space Telescope mid-infrared IRS spectra, supplemented by ground-based optical observations, of the classical novae V1974 Cyg, V382 Vel, and V1494 Aql more than 11, 8, and 4 years after outburst respectively. The spectra are dominated by forbidden emission from neon and oxygen, though in some cases, there are weak signatures of magnesium, sulfur, and argon. We investigate the geometry and distribution of the late time ejecta by examination of the emission line profiles. Using nebular analysis in the low density regime, we estimate lower limits on the abundances in these novae. In V1974 Cyg and V382 Vel, our observations confirm the abundance estimates presented by other authors and support the claims that these eruptions occurred on ONe white dwarfs. We report the first detection of neon emission in V1494 Aql and show that the system most likely contains a CO white dwarf.Comment: 22 pages, 12 figure

The 3D Morphology of VY Canis Majoris II: Polarimetry and the Line-of-Sight Distribution of the Ejecta

We use imaging polarimetry taken with the HST/ACS/HRC to explore the three dimensional structure of the circumstellar dust distribution around the red supergiant VY Canis Majoris. The polarization vectors of the nebulosity surrounding VY CMa show a strong centro-symmetric pattern in all directions except directly East and range from 10% - 80% in fractional polarization. In regions that are optically thin, and therefore likely have only single scattering, we use the fractional polarization and photometric color to locate the physical position of the dust along the line-of-sight. Most of the individual arc-like features and clumps seen in the intensity image are also features in the fractioanl polarization map. These features must be distinct geometric objects. If they were just local density enhancements, the fractional polarization would not change so abruptly at the edge of the feature. The location of these features in the ejecta of VY CMa using polarimetry provides a determination of their 3D geometry independent of, but in close agreement with, the results from our study of their kinematics (Paper I).Comment: Better figures availible at http://www.astro.umn.edu/~tj

SN 2010U: A Luminous Nova in NGC 4214

The luminosity, light curve, post-maximum spectrum, and lack of a progenitor on deep pre-outburst images suggest that SN 2010U was a luminous, fast nova. Its outburst magnitude is consistent with that for a fast nova using the maximum magnitude-rate of decline relationship for classical novae

Cellular/Molecular Differential Ubiquitination and Proteasome Regulation of Ca V 2.2 N-Type Channel Splice Isoforms

Ca V 2.2 (N-type) calcium channels control the entry of calcium into neurons to regulate essential functions but most notably presynaptic transmitter release. Ca V 2.2 channel expression levels are precisely controlled, but we know little of the cellular mechanisms involved. The ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS) is known to regulate expression of many synaptic proteins, including presynaptic elements, to optimize synaptic efficiency. However, we have limited information about ubiquitination of Ca V 2 channels. Here we show that Ca V 2.2 proteins are ubiquitinated, and that elements in the proximal C terminus of Ca V 2.2 encoded by exon 37b of the mouse Cacna1b gene predispose cloned and native channels to downregulation by the UPS. Ca V 2.2 channels containing e37b are expressed throughout the mammalian nervous system, but in some cells, notably nociceptors, sometimes e37a-not e37b-is selected during alternative splicing of Ca V 2.2 pre-mRNA. By a combination of biochemical and functional analyses we show e37b promotes a form of ubiquitination that is coupled to reduced Ca V 2.2 current density and increased sensitivity to the UPS. Cell-specific alternative splicing of e37a in nociceptors reduces Ca V 2.2 channel ubiquitination and sensitivity to the UPS, suggesting a role in pain processing

Swift X-Ray Observations of Classical Novae. II. The Super Soft Source sample

The Swift GRB satellite is an excellent facility for studying novae. Its rapid response time and sensitive X-ray detector provides an unparalleled opportunity to investigate the previously poorly sampled evolution of novae in the X-ray regime. This paper presents Swift observations of 52 Galactic/Magellanic Cloud novae. We included the XRT (0.3-10 keV) X-ray instrument count rates and the UVOT (1700-8000 Angstroms) filter photometry. Also included in the analysis are the publicly available pointed observations of 10 additional novae the X-ray archives. This is the largest X-ray sample of Galactic/Magellanic Cloud novae yet assembled and consists of 26 novae with super soft X-ray emission, 19 from Swift observations. The data set shows that the faster novae have an early hard X-ray phase that is usually missing in slower novae. The Super Soft X-ray phase occurs earlier and does not last as long in fast novae compared to slower novae. All the Swift novae with sufficient observations show that novae are highly variable with rapid variability and different periodicities. In the majority of cases, nuclear burning ceases less than 3 years after the outburst begins. Previous relationships, such as the nuclear burning duration vs. t_2 or the expansion velocity of the eject and nuclear burning duration vs. the orbital period, are shown to be poorly correlated with the full sample indicating that additional factors beyond the white dwarf mass and binary separation play important roles in the evolution of a nova outburst. Finally, we confirm two optical phenomena that are correlated with strong, soft X-ray emission which can be used to further increase the efficiency of X-ray campaigns.Comment: Accepted to ApJ Supplements. Full data for Table 2 and Figure 17 available in the electronic edition. New version of the previously posted paper since the earlier version was all set in landscape mod

Probabilistic analysis of a coal mine roadway including correlation control between model input parameters

Probabilistic analysis and numerical modelling techniques have been combined to analyse a deep coal mine roadway. Using the Monte Carlo method, a correlation control algorithm and a FLAC 2D finite difference model, a probability distribution of roof displacements has been calculated and compared to a set of measurements from an actual mine roadway. The importance of correlation between input parameters is also considered. The results show that the analysis performs relatively well, but does tend to over predict the magnitude of displacements. Correlation between parameters is shown to be very important, particularly between the three model stresses