The Nimbus 7 LIMS (Limb Infrared Monitor of the Stratosphere) water vapor measurements

Earth orbital instruments, designed to measure the vertical and spatial distribution of atmospheric water vapor is discussed. Specifically, the operation of the Limb Infrared Monitor of the Stratosphere (LIMS) experiment is examined. The LIMS is a six channel limb scanning radiometer that was launched aboard Nimbus 7 in 1978. Profiles of stratospheric and mesospheric temperature, water vapor, and various other constituents were obtained by inverting the LIMS radiance measurements. This same technique was used in 1981 to analyze the data returned from another limb scanning radiometer aboard the Solar Mesosphere Explorer

An Economic Model of Mortality Salience in Personal Financial Decision Making: Applications to Annuities, Life Insurance, Charitable Gifts, Estate Planning, Conspicuous Consumption, and Healthcare

The study of personal mortality salience and the denial of death have a long history in psychology leading to the modern field of Terror Management Theory. However, a simple consumer utility function predicts many of the outcomes identified in experimental research in this field. Further, this economic approach explains a range of otherwise unexpected financial decision-making behaviors in areas as diverse as annuities, life insurance, charitable gifts and bequests, intra-family gifts and bequests, conspicuous consumption, and healthcare. With its relevance to such a wide range of personal financial decisions, understanding the impact of mortality salience can be particularly useful to advisors in related fields

Ion mobility-mass spectrometry for structural characterization and applied \u27omics: A study in neurodegenerative diseases

Huntington\u27s disease is neurodegenerative disease caused by an expanded polyglutamine-coding CAG repeat in exon 1 of the huntingtin gene. Huntingtin exon 1 forms the primary toxic amyloid structure in Huntington\u27s disease; disease severity is directly correlated with polyglutamine length. Recent works have shown that fully formed amyloid plaques may not represent the most toxic species in Huntington\u27s disease; the most neurotoxic species may be small, diffuse oligomer (4 - 20 monomer units) that are precursors to amyloid plaques. While the polyglutamine region is undisputed as the primary constituent of amyloid structure, aggregation kinetics and morphology are regulated by the presence of flanking sequences that are N- and C-terminal to theamyloid forming tract. The first seventeen residues of huntingtin exon 1 (Nt17) can form an amphipathic &agr;-helix depending upon solution conditions and the presence of a binding partner, and in most cases, mediates oligomer formation. C-terminal to the polyglutamine tract is a proline-rich region, or in the case of a model peptide a polyproline region (polyP), that can form a polyproline-type II (PPII) helix, which may regulate Nt17 in huntingtin protein with short polyglutamine regions. Much is unknown regarding residue-specific Nt17-Nt17 and Nt17-polyP interactions. The work described here utilized state-of-the-art deuterium exchange mass spectrometry techniques to identify critical hydrophilic residues in early stages of oligomer formation. Monomeric and multimeric conformations of Nt17, idependent og the polyglutamine domain, were then studied using ion mobility-mass spectrometry and molecular dynamics to gain insight into the earliest stages of Nt17-Nt17 association, and thus, aggregation. Monomeric and multimeric Nt17 could form extended helices in the gas phase. Key hydrophilic residues were chemically modified, which resulted in a sharp decline in multimer formation. Finally, Nt17-polyP interactions were probed using gas-phase deuterium exchange mass spectrometry, supplemented with molecular dynamics and an exchange kinetics model. The obtained gas-phase structures showed a reduction in Nt17 extended &agr;-helix, when compared to a monomeric and extended homodimeric conformation. Thus, it is hypothesized that polyP regulates Nt17 by not allowing transition to the amphipathic &agr;-helix. The results of this study examine the structural heterogeneity of a sequence thought to drive a potentially toxic aggregate morphology, pinpoint key residues in early oligomer formation, and provide strategies for regulation of oligomer formation

Middle Atmosphere Program. Handbook for MAP, volume 22

A series of plots are presented that describe the state of the stratosphere and to some degree, the mesosphere as revealed by satellite observations. The pertinent instrument features, spatial and temporal coverage, and details of accuracy and precision for the experiments providing the data are described. The main features of zonal mean cross sections and polar stereographic projections are noted and intercomparisons are discussed where a parameter was measured by more than one experiment. It was not the attempt to be exhaustive in this or to present detailed results of scientific investigations. The main purpose was to collect the available data in one place and provide enough information on limitations or cautions about the data so that they could be used in model comparisons and science studies. Without a doubt, when these are used, numerous questions will arise that were not addressed here. In such cases, the reader is encouraged to contact the experimenters for proper clarification

Contrail Tracking and ARM Data Product Development

A contrail tracking system was developed to help in the assessment of the effect of commercial jet contrails on the Earth's radiative budget. The tracking system was built by combining meteorological data from the Rapid Update Cycle (RUC) numerical weather prediction model with commercial air traffic flight track data and satellite imagery. A statistical contrail-forecasting model was created a combination of surface-based contrail observations and numerical weather analyses and forecasts. This model allows predictions of widespread contrail occurrences for contrail research on either a real-time basis or for long-term time scales. Satellite-derived cirrus cloud properties in polluted and unpolluted regions were compared to determine the impact of air traffic on cirrus

Hispanics and Housing During the Economic Downturn

Presentation made at Latinos in the Heartland (11th : 2013 : Columbia, Mo.) and published in the annual conference proceedings.This paper focuses on how Hispanic home ownership and population growth has evolved in the Southern United States. The theme discussed is one of change and adjustment, looking closely at the 2010 U.S. Census, along with other resources, and how Hispanics have been adjusting into the local economy. The data also shows how Latino home ownership has influenced this outcome. It has been seen throughout the U.S. that the Language Hispanic population is growing quickly, but the two geographical areas that have seen the most immigration in recent decades have been in the West and South. With so much of U.S. population growth connected to the rise in the Hispanic immigrant population, it has become even more important for Hispanics to successfully navigate this socioeconomic and cultural environment. One of the quickest ways of doing this is through home ownership. This gives people the opportunity to settle down and create a community. One of the major obstacles for Hispanic immigrants who are building their communities and families in the U.S. is that work is often connected to seasonal agriculture or construction. These factors both vary in terms of stability and quality of available work. It is important to look into how the Hispanic population uses housing tenure towards building a stronger future for their families in the U.S. and abroad. Immigrant Hispanic population growth throughout the South has been some of the largest in the country. Home ownership rates have only slightly raised throughout this population boom. In recent months there has been an outcry from several states that feel that the immigrant population boom is negatively affecting their lives and that those who are living in these areas illegally need to leave. Many states have created anti-immigrant legislation that have left the immigrant Hispanic population concerned with discrimination, eviction or legal persecution. Some states have witnessed an exodus of immigrants which has affected some of the major commodities in agriculture and other businesses that traditionally employ immigrant laborers. As a result, houses have been foreclosed and immigrant families have left their homes in the middle of the night. Hispanics showed significant purchasing power in the U.S. and have become an example of an ethnic group specifically targeted with sub-prime lending, also known as the Foreclosure Generation. With so many different variables affecting the Hispanics in the South, how can we prepare the next generation of Hispanics to attain home ownership? First, there must be stronger trust in the financial institutions in order for people to readily seek their help and advice on consumer borrowing. We can use both universities and nonprofit organizations in order to disseminate knowledge about strong financial decisions, and how one decision can set them on the right path towards a better financial future. Through closer ties and better financial knowledge, the next Hispanic generation can move towards the path of reaching higher rates of home ownership, stability and wealth

Gas filter correlation radiometry: Report of panel

To measure the concentration of a gas in the troposphere, the gas filter radiometer correlates the pattern of the spectral lines of a sample of gas contained within the instrument with the pattern of the spectral lines in the upwelling radiation. A schematic diagram of a generalized gas filter radiometer is shown. Three instruments (the Gas Filter Radiometer, GFR; the Halogen Occultation Experiment, HALOE; and the Gas Filter Correlation Spectrometer, GASCOFIL) that have application to remotely measuring tropospheric constituents are described. A set of preliminary calculations to determine the feasibility of performing a multiple-layer, tropospheric carbon monoxide measurement experiment was performed. It can be seen that a three-layer measurement in the troposphere is possible

An analysis of risk assessment questions based on loss-averse preference

Postprint.A variety of risk assessment questionnaires are used within the financial planning profession to assess client risk preferences. Evidence indicates that the average person overweighs losses relative to an arbitrary reference point. This paper evaluated risk assessment questions on how well they correlate with monetary loss aversion. Twenty-fine West Texas residents between the ages of 27 and 56 filled out several risk assessment questionnaires and two weeks later their coefficients of loss aversion were measured using monetary gain and loss scenarios. The individual risk assessment questions were placed into three categories: expected utility theory, prospect theory and self-assessment. Composite measures were created for within-group and between-group comparisons. Statistically significant correlations were found between monetary loss aversion and different composite measures. The results provide financial planners with a group of risk assessment questions that capture loss-averse preferences.Includes bibliographical references

Stratospheric measurements of continuous absorption near 2400 cm^-1

Solar occultation spectra obtained with a balloon-borne interferometer have been used to study continuous absorption by N2 and CO2 near 2400 cm^-1 in the lower stratosphere. Synthetic continuum transmittances, calculated from published coefficients for far-wing absorption by CO2 lines and for pressure-induced absorption by the fundamental band of N2, are in fair agreement with the observed stratospheric values. The continuum close to the ν3 R-branch band head of CO2 is sensitive to the CO2 far-wing line shape. Therefore, given highly accurate knowledge of the N2 continuum from laboratory data, high-resolution stratospheric spectra provide a sensitive means for in situ testing of various air-broadened CO2 line shapes at low temperatures