Evaluation of effectiveness of various devices for attenuation of trailing vortices based on model tests in a large towing basin

The effectiveness of various candidate aircraft-wing devices for attenuation of trailing vortices generated by large aircraft is evaluated on basis of results of experiments conducted with a 0.03-scale model of a Boeing 747 transport aircraft using a technique developed at the HYDRONAUTICS Ship Model Basin. Emphasis is on the effects produced by these devices in the far-field (up to 8 kilometers downstream of full-scale generating aircraft) where the unaltered vortex-wakes could still be hazardous to small following aircraft. The evaluation is based primarily on quantitative measurements of the respective vortex velocity distributions made by means of hot-film probe traverses in a transverse plane at selected stations downstream. The effects of these altered wakes on rolling moment induced on a small following aircraft are also studied using a modified lifting-surface theory with a synthesized Gates Learjet as a typical example. Lift and drag measurements concurrently obtained in the model tests are used to appraise the effects of each device investigated on the performance characteristics of the generating aircraft

Higgs-inspired corrections to the RG flow in the finite-temperature 3D Georgi-Glashow model and its SU(N)-generalization

The Berezinsky-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) RG flow in the ensemble of monopoles existing in the finite-temperature (2+1)D Georgi-Glashow model is explored in the regime when the Higgs field is not infinitely heavy, but its mass is rather of the same order of magnitude as the mass of the W-boson. The corrections to the standard RG flow are derived to the leading order in the inverse mass of the Higgs boson. According to the obtained RG equations, the scaling of the free-energy density in the critical region and the value of the critical temperature of the phase transition are found to be unaffected by the finiteness of the Higgs-boson mass. The evolution of the Higgs mass itself is also investigated and shown to be rather weak, that enables one to treat this parameter as a constant. The same analysis is further performed in the SU(N)-case at N>2, where the RG invariance is demonstrated to hold only approximately, in a certain sense. Modulo this approximation, the critical behaviour of the SU(N)-model turns out to be identical to that of the SU(2)-one.Comment: 12 pages, LaTeX2e, no figure

The Lyman-alpha forest at redshifts 0.1 -- 1.6: good agreement between a large hydrodynamic simulation and HST spectra

We give a comprehensive statistical description of the Lyman-alpha absorption from the intergalactic medium in a hydrodynamic simulation at redshifts 0.1-1.6, the range of redshifts covered by HST spectra of QSOs. We use the ENZO code to make a 76 comoving Mpc cube simulation using 75 kpc cells, for a Hubble constant of 71 km/s/Mpc. The best prior work, by \citet{dave99},used an SPH simulation in a 15.6 Mpc box with an effective resolution of 245 kpc and slightly different cosmological parameters. At redshifts z=2 this simulation is different from data. \citet{tytler07b} found that the simulated spectra at z=2 have too little power on large scales, Lyman-alpha lines are too wide, there is a lack high column density lines, and there is a lack of pixels with low flux. Here we present statistics at z<1.6, including the flux distribution, the mean flux, the effective opacity, and the power and correlation of the flux. We also give statistics of the lyman alpha lines including the line width distribution, the column density distribution, the number of lines per unit equivalent width and redshift, and the correlation between the line width and column density. We find that the mean amount of absorption in the simulated spectra changes smoothly with redshift with DA(z)=0.01(1+z)^{2.25}. Both the trend and absolute values are close to measurements of HST spectra by \citet{kirkman07a}. The column density and line width distributions are also close to those measured from HST spectra by \citet{janknecht06a}, except for the mode of the line width distribution which is smaller in the HST spectra. Although some differences that we saw at z=2 are too subtle to be seen in existing HST spectra, overall, the simulation gives an good description of HST spectra at 0.1<z<1.6

The Kast Ground Based UV Spectral Survey of 79 QSOs at Redshift 2 for Lyman Alpha Forest and Metal Absorption

We present a moderate resolution (~1.15 Angstroms/pixel) survey of 79 quasars obtained using the Kast spectrograph on the Shane 3m telescope at Lick observatory. The spectra span the wavelength range of 3175-5880 Angstroms, and have typical signal to noise of 6-20 in the regions of the spectra showing Lyman alpha forest absorption. The quasars have a mean emission redshift of z=2.17, and nearly all cover the entire Lyman alpha forest between Lyman alpha and Lyman beta. Although the quasars were selected to avoid BAL, two quasars in the survey are BAL, one of which is a new discovery. We list the HI and metal ions observed in a total of 140 absorption systems. We also identify 526 emission lines, and list their observed wavelengths, along with new redshifts of the quasars. We determine the rest wavelengths of 3 emission lines or line blends in the forest to be 1070.95 +/- 1.00, 1123.13 +/- 0.51, and 1175.88 +/- 0.30 Angstroms.Comment: Submitted to the Astronomical Journa

The Relationship between God’s Gender, Gender System Justification and Sexism

Behavioral scientists and feminist theologians have long theorized that religions that primarily conceptualize God (and other divine authority figures) as male can legitimatize the social and political authority of men in society, as well as legitimatize and rationalize gender inequality. In the current study, we examined the relationship between gendered God concepts, Gender Specific System Justification and Ambivalent Sexism. In Studies 1 and 2 we found that individuals with male God concepts were higher in Gender Specific System Justification, hostile sexism (Study 1 and 2) and benevolent sexism (Study 2). In Study 3 we explored the causal relationship between gendered God concepts, Gender Specific System Justification and Ambivalent Sexism using a priming manipulation. Results revealed that individuals primed to think about God as male (vs female) were more likely to support the gender status quo. The effects found across all three studies did not differ across participant gender. Both men and women who conceptualized God as male or were primed with a male image of God were higher in Gender Specific System Justification than other gendered conceptualizations of God. Taken together these results suggest that male God concepts may reinforce the gender status quo. Implications, limitations and future research directions are discussed

Understanding differences in underrepresented minorities and first-generation student perceptions in the introductory biology classroom

We used quantitative methods to better understand the perceptions of students in an introductory biology course (Biology 101) at a small, liberal arts college (SLAC) that is also a primarily white institution (PWI). In pre/post surveys, we asked students questions related to their attitudes and beliefs about their professor, classmates, and Biology 101. We were especially interested in the responses and outcomes of underrepresented minorities (URM) and first-generation (FG) students. Our findings suggest URM and FG students have a decreased sense of belonging and increased perceptions of exclusion and differential treatment due to race. These findings can explain, in part, the disparity in Biology 101 grade and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) attrition

Experiences with Benevolent Sexism: Scale Development and Associations with Women’s Well-Being

Ambivalent sexism theory (Glick and Fiske 1996, 1997) suggests that sexism takes two forms: an overt hostility as well as a subtle benevolence. We examined benevolent sexist behaviors and developed a 25-item Experiences with Benevolent Sexism Scale. Exploratory factor analysis (Study 1, U.S. college sample of 489 women) and confirmatory factor analysis (Study 2, online sample of 216 women) revealed three subscales of benevolently sexist experiences: Heterosexual Intimacy, Protective Paternalism, and Complementary Gender Differences. Women reported experiencing benevolently sexist events more frequently than overtly hostile sexist events; however, they perceived the hostile events to be more distressing and sexist (Studies 1 and 2). Experiencing Protective Paternalism was positively associated with self-doubt and negatively associated with self-esteem (Studies 1 and 2), and psychological well-being (Study 2). However, experiencing Complementary Gender Differentiation was negatively associated with self-doubt and positively associated with self-esteem (Studies 1 and 2), psychological well-being, flourishing, and submission to authority (Study 2). Finally, women in romantic relationships reported more benevolently sexist experiences than did those not in romantic relationships and the frequency of those experiences was positively associated with perceptions of the partner’s benevolently sexist attitudes (Study 2). The results highlight that women frequently experience sexism, ranging from overtly hostile to a subtle benevolence, and the different types of benevolent sexism each have unique associations with women’s well-being

Who Believes in a Male God? Ideological Beliefs and Gendered Conceptualizations of God

Recent studies have explored whether certain conceptualizations of God are associated with various attitudes and beliefs. In the current study, we examined the relationship between gendered God concepts and the belief that God is involved in one’s life and religious-related rigid ideologies (i.e., religious fundamentalism and right-wing authoritarianism [RWA]). Across two studies, one conducted with religious students at a Jesuit university and the other with a national sample, we found that individuals who believed God to be male were more likely to believe that God had more control and involvement in their life, had higher levels of religious fundamentalism and higher levels of RWA-Aggression (Study 1 and 2), RWA–Submission (Study 1 and 2), and RWA–Conventionalism (Study 2) than individuals with other gendered or nongendered conceptualizations of God. Implications of the broader impact that gendered God concepts have on social and political domains are explored. Last, limitations and future research directions are discussed

The 1000 GeV gamma rays from ms pulsars

The detection of 1000 GeV gamma-rays with the characteristic 6.1 ms periodicity of the radio pulsar PSR 1953 +29 is reported. This result, significant at the 5.4 beta level, provides the first direct evidence for the association of the 6 ms radio pulsar PSR1953+29 with the gamma-ray source 2CG065+0. Extensive observations of the 1.5 ms pulsar PSR 1937 are also reported

The 1000 GeV gamma ray emission from radio pulsars

Radio pulsars have concentrated on long observations of the Crab pulsar and showed that it emits short intense bursts and a persistent weak periodic flux at gamma-ray energies 1000 GeV. It was shown that the light curve of the persistent emission was dominated by a single peak, coincident with the position of the radio and low energy gamma-ray main pulse. The results of a more detailed analysis of the structure of this main pulse are reported following an appraisal of the timing system. It is shown that at energies 1000 GeV the duration of the main pulse is not greater than 0.4 ms, which is less than that seen at all frequencies other than radio. Flux limits for the emission of 1000 GeV gamma-rays by seven other radio pulsars are reporte