Community Supported Agriculture as Revitalization: Reconnecting the Farm and the Dinner Table

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) was created in response to consumers\u27 concerns about food safety and quality. However, it is more than just a way to get your groceries: CSA represents an attempt to completely reform the way Americans eat by forging a direct link between the farm and the dinner table, and in so doing refute the anonymous, industrial food production system that rose to prominence in the 20th century. In achieving these goals, CSA has taken on the form and aims of a revitalization movement as originally conceived by Anthony Wallace in 1956. Even though the revitalization model has traditionally been used to study spiritual movements of indigenous origin, its framework is equally applicable to a secular Western movement like CSA. By using Wallace\u27s model we can trace the social and historical development of the movement and also shed light on the factors that have both contributed to its success and limited its growth. Furthermore, using Wallace\u27s model in this way is the first step in directly comparing the history, goals, and membership of CSA with similar social movements as well as exploring more general questions about the future of sustainable agriculture in America

Precision frequency measurements with interferometric weak values

We demonstrate an experiment which utilizes a Sagnac interferometer to measure a change in optical frequency of 129 kHz per root Hz with only 2 mW of continuous wave, single mode input power. We describe the measurement of a weak value and show how even higher frequency sensitivities may be obtained over a bandwidth of several nanometers. This technique has many possible applications, such as precision relative frequency measurements and laser locking without the use of atomic lines.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, published in PR

Ultrasensitive Beam Deflection Measurement via Interferometric Weak Value Amplification

We report on the use of an interferometric weak value technique to amplify very small transverse deflections of an optical beam. By entangling the beam's transverse degrees of freedom with the which-path states of a Sagnac interferometer, it is possible to realize an optical amplifier for polarization independent deflections. The theory for the interferometric weak value amplification method is presented along with the experimental results, which are in good agreement. Of particular interest, we measured the angular deflection of a mirror down to 560 femtoradians and the linear travel of a piezo actuator down to 20 femtometers

Optimizing the Signal to Noise Ratio of a Beam Deflection Measurement with Interferometric Weak Values

The amplification obtained using weak values is quantified through a detailed investigation of the signal to noise ratio for an optical beam deflection measurement. We show that for a given deflection, input power and beam radius, the use of interferometric weak values allows one to obtain the optimum signal to noise ratio using a coherent beam. This method has the advantage of reduced technical noise and allows for the use of detectors with a low saturation intensity. We report on an experiment which improves the signal to noise ratio for a beam deflection measurement by a factor of 54 when compared to a measurement using the same beam size and a quantum limited detector

Continuous phase amplification with a Sagnac interferometer

We describe a weak value inspired phase amplification technique in a Sagnac interferometer. We monitor the relative phase between two paths of a slightly misaligned interferometer by measuring the average position of a split-Gaussian mode in the dark port. Although we monitor only the dark port, we show that the signal varies linearly with phase and that we can obtain similar sensitivity to balanced homodyne detection. We derive the source of the amplification both with classical wave optics and as an inverse weak value.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, previously submitted for publicatio

Realization of an all-optical zero to π cross-phase modulation jump

We report on the experimental demonstration of an all-optical π cross-phase modulation jump. By performing a preselection, an optically induced unitary transformation, and then a postselection on the polarization degree of freedom, the phase of the output beam acquires either a zero or π phase shift (with no other possible values). The postselection results in optical loss in the output beam. An input state may be chosen near the resulting phase singularity, yielding a pi phase shift even for weak interaction strengths. The scheme is experimentally demonstrated using a coherently prepared dark state in a warm atomic cesium vapor

Environments Past: Nostalgia in Environmental Policy and Governance

A variety of factors shape environmental policy & governance (EPG) processes, from perceptions of physical ecology and profit motives to social justice and landscape aesthetics concerns. Many scholars have examined the role of values in EPG, and demonstrated that attempts to incorporate (especially) nonmarket values into EPG are loaded with both practical and conceptual challenges. Nevertheless, it is clear that nonmarket values of all types play a crucial role in shaping EPG outcomes. In this paper, we explore the role of nostalgia as a factor in EPG. We examine literatures on environmental values, governance, and affect in light of their relationships to environmental policymaking, first as a means to decide whether or not nostalgia can be rightly described as an ‘environmental value.’ We suggest that, from a philosophical perspective, nostalgia is by itself environmentally neutral, and is not usefully described as a ‘value’. However, as an emotional state that longs to preserve or recover something of the past – whether fading or no longer present – that is fondly remembered, nostalgia does represent a potentially strong ‘motivator’ for EPG decisions. Despite this somewhat ambivalent assessment of nostalgia-as-environmental-value, we argue that nostalgia and nostalgic longing to return to the ‘better’ or ‘cleaner’ environments can lead to potentially significant impacts on ecosystems and landscapes, both positive and negative depending on what it is that people want to preserve or restore. Thus we conclude that we neglect understanding the role of nostalgia in EPG at our peril: first, because preservationist goals have always been an important part of environmental responsibility and second, because many people will be swayed regarding environmental action through a mobilization of nostalgia by political leaders and interest groups alike. We end our article with suggestion of avenues for further empirical investigation

Interferometric weak value deflections: quantum and classical treatments

We derive the weak value deflection given in a paper by Dixon et al. (Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 173601 (2009)) both quantum mechanically and classically. This paper is meant to cover some of the mathematical details omitted in that paper owing to space constraints

Ultrasensitive Beam Deflection Measurement via Interferometric Weak Value Amplification

We report on the use of an interferometric weak value technique to amplify very small transverse deflections of an optical beam. By entangling the beam’s transverse degrees of freedom with the which-path states of a Sagnac interferometer, it is possible to realize an optical amplifier for polarization independent deflections. The theory for the interferometric weak value amplification method is presented along with the experimental results, which are in good agreement. Of particular interest, we measured the angular deflection of a mirror down to 40

Precision Frequency Measurements with Interferometric Weak Values

We demonstrate an experiment which utilizes a Sagnac interferometer to measure a change in optical frequency of 129 ± 7 kHz/√Hz with only 2 mW of continuous-wave, single-mode input power. We describe the measurement of a weak value and show how even higher-frequency sensitivities may be obtained over a bandwidth of several nanometers. This technique has many possible applications, such as precision relative frequency measurements and laser locking without the use of atomic lines