Exploring the host environments of long-duration gamma-ray bursts

We have conducted the first dedicated spectroscopic survey of long-duration gamma-ray burst (LGRB) host galaxies at z < 1, and use these observations along with data from the literature to determine a wide range of ISM properties and a statistically robust mass-metallicity relation. LGRBs have been proposed as possible tracers of star formation at high redshift; however, such an association is dependent on a thorough understanding of the relationship between LGRB progenitors and their host environments. In particular, the metallicity of LGRB host galaxies has become a matter of hot debate in recent years. We conclude that LGRBs do exhibit a general trend toward lower-metallicity host galaxies, but also detect several high-metallicity hosts in our sample. We have also compared the energetic and environmental properties of the LGRBs in our sample, and find no statistically significant correlation between host metallicity and isotropic or beaming-corrected gamma-ray energy release. This is at odds with previous theoretical and observational predictions of an inverse correlation between gamma-ray energy release and host metallicity, and demonstrates that the complex role of metallicity in LGRB progenitor formation still remains unclear.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures; to appear in AIP proceedings of "Gamma Ray Bursts 2010

Behind the Seams: An Ethnographic Study of the Performative Nature of Theatrical Costumes

Actors are said to bring a play to life, but what about the garments that they wear? Like set production, light design, and direction, the role of the costume plays an important part in informing and enchanting the audience. However, this is not all that they do. This paper acts as an in-depth examination of the culture of costume creation and destruction at Gettysburg College, researching their roles as garments, as well as how the garments themselves act around others. Imbued with their own set of responsibilities, the costumes are expected to behave certain ways, perform specific functions, and put on a show of their own. Through 20 hours of ethnographic research, this paper seeks to show that the costumes are not just as single component of the theatrical experience, but instead an integral performer in the social construction of the story itself

Should Moving In Mean Losing Out? Making a Case to Clarify the Legal Effect of Cohabitation on Alimony

As nonmarital cohabitation has skyrocketed over the last several decades, courts and legislatures have increasingly struggled to decide what legal effect an ex-spouse\u27s cohabitation with a new partner should have on the receipt of alimony payments. In seeking to answer this cohabitation question, states have taken a variety of approaches. Often, however, courts\u27 answers to the cohabitation question are not grounded in the rationale that those courts used to award alimony in the first place and may therefore lead to inconsistent or absurd results. This Note addresses the cohabitation question and argues that states should revisit their current approaches in light of the multiple contemporary theories of alimony and twenty-first century social-science research on cohabitation. Ultimately, this Note proposes several clarifications to existing law in order to provide a sensible, workable rule that would introduce consistency to courts\u27 considerations of the cohabitation question

The Host Galaxies of Long-Duration Gamma-Ray Bursts

Long-duration gamma-ray bursts (LGRBs) are the signatures of extraordinarily high-energy events occurring in our universe. Since their discovery, we have determined that these events are produced during the core-collapse deaths of rare young massive stars. The host galaxies of LGRBs are an excellent means of probing the environments and populations that produce their unusual progenitors. In addition, these same young stellar progenitors makes LGRBs and their host galaxies valuable potentially powerful tracers of star formation and metallicity at high redshifts. However, properly utilizing LGRBs as probes of the early universe requires a thorough understanding of their formation and the host environments that they sample. This review looks back at some of the recent work on LGRB host galaxies that has advanced our understanding of these events and their cosmological applications, and considers the many new questions that we are poised to pursue in the coming years.Comment: 33 pages, 4 figures, 1 table; invited review for PASP, in pres

Navigating Uncharted Waters: Alaska Native Corporations in a New Era of 8(a) Contracting

The highly anticipated finalized rule changes to the Small Business Administration 8(a) Business Development Program will have a prominent impact on 8(a) certified Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs). This Article evaluates the weaknesses in the previous regulations and analyzes how the revisions will effect ANC participation. The Article argues that the revisions address a number of ambiguities in the original regulations without limiting ANC participation in the 8(a) Business Development Program, but other factors may prove critical to future ANC contract procurement