H-alpha synoptic charts of solar activity during the first year of solar cycle 20, October 1964 - August 1965

Solar activity during the period October 28, 1964 through August 27, 1965 is presented in the form of charts for each solar rotation constructed from observations made with the chromospheric H-alpha spectra line. These H-alpha synoptic charts are identical in format and method of construction to those published for the period of Skylab observations. The sunspot minimum marking the start of Solar Cycle 20 occurred in October, 1964; therefore, charts represent solar activity during the first year of this solar cycle

NUMERAIRE CHOICE IN AGRICULTURAL SUPPLY ANALYSIS

Economic theory provides little guidance for selecting a numeraire in estimating dual function profit functions. In this study, we examine the choice of numeraire price (equation) for profit function models of Iowa agriculture. The choice of numeraire is evaluated by forecasting accuracy and with a non-nested specification test.Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

ECONOMICS OF POULTRY LITTER UTILIZATION AND OPTIMAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY FOR PHOSPHORUS DISPOSAL IN GEORGIA

Poultry litter can be used as plant nutrients or cattle feed. Both of these alternatives may increase phosphorus concentration in the nearby watershed. Use of phosphorus consistent litter application rule in nutrient management combined with permit system has potential to curtail the over production of litter and prevent the possible contamination of water.Environmental Economics and Policy, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Periodic discrete conformal maps

A discrete conformal map (DCM) maps the square lattice to the Riemann sphere such that the image of every irreducible square has the same cross-ratio. This paper shows that every periodic DCM can be determined from spectral data (a hyperelliptic compact Riemann surface, called the spectral curve, equipped with some marked points). Each point of the map corresponds to a line bundle over the spectral curve so that the map corresponds to a discrete subgroup of the Jacobi variety. We derive an explicit formula for the generic maps using Riemann theta functions, describe the typical singularities and give a geometric interpretation of DCM's as a discrete version of the Schwarzian KdV equation. As such, the DCM equation is a discrete soliton equation and we describe the dressing action of a loop group on the set of DCM's. We also show that this action corresponds to a lattice of isospectral Darboux transforms for the finite gap solutions of the KdV equation.Comment: 41 pages, 10 figures, LaTeX2

Observations on the potato during seasons 1928-29

The basis of the writer's work is included in The Potato. In several directions further investigations have been made, those for 1927 being presented in the Supplement.Newer work done during 1928-29 is reported briefly in the succeeding pages.Previous observations, recorded in Chapters IV., VI., VII., and VIII. of The Potato, have been systematically checked for old varieties and extended to include the many new varieties which are coming on to the market. Several new characters which promised to be useful in the discrimination of varieties were subjected to a critical study in the field; and records were made of other characters which are significant, though, in some instances, less useful for field work.The procedure adopted throughout 1928 was that outlined on pages 4, 5 and 6 of the Supplement, but in order to secure greater accuracy all observations were verified during the summer months by the writer and also independently by his assistant.A detailed and comprehensive discussion of the observations made is considered unnecessary as the majority of them will most probably be published in due course by the Department of Agriculture for Scotland in Miscellaneous Publications, No. 3. special attention will be directed, however, to such characters as have not yet been reported in published papers and books

Factors Influencing Long-Term Health-Related Quality of Life Among Patients After Aneurysmal and Nonaneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: A Dissertation

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) causes 5% of all strokes and is responsible for about 18,000 deaths per year in the United States (Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage, 2008). The incidence of SAH has been estimated at 6 to 8 per 100,000 persons per year (Linn, Rinkel, Algra, & van Gijn, 1996). In nearly 15% (range 5–34%) of patients with SAH, no source of hemorrhage can be identified via four-vessel cerebral angiography (Alen et al., 2003; Gupta et al., 2009), resulting in two major types of SAH: aneurysmal (ASAH) and nonaneurysmal (NASAH). Anecdotal evidence and contradictory research suggest that patients with NASAH experience some of the same health-related quality of life (HRQOL) issues as patients with ASAH. The purpose of this quantitative survey design study was to compare health-related quality of life (HRQOL) 1 to 3 years post-hemorrhage in patients who have experienced a NASAH to those who have experienced an ASAH. This is the first US study to specifically investigate HRQOL in NASAH and the second study comparing HRQOL outcomes between aneurysmal and nonaneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage patients. Our results are comparable to the first study by Hutter and Gilsbach, (1995), which also found that the two groups are much more similar than different. There were no significant differences between 28 of the 36 demographic and clinical characteristics examined in this study. Our study confirms previous findings that there is a significant impact on employment for both hemorrhage groups and an even greater inability to return to work for the NASAH patients. The nonaneurysmal group had more physical symptom complaints while the aneurysmal group had more emotional symptoms. Lastly, both groups had low levels of PTSD, and these levels did not differ significantly between groups. However, PTSD and social support were shown by regression analysis to impact HRQOL for both groups. We recommend that clinicians assess for PTSD in all subarachnoid hemorrhage patients and institute treatment early, which will decrease the negative effects on HRQOL. This may include offering psychological services or social work early in the hospital course to all SAH patients. Further research and policy changes are needed to assist in interventions that improve vocational reintegration after SAH. NASAH patients should no longer be referred to as having suffered a “benign hemorrhage.” They have had a life changing hemorrhage that may forever change their lives and impact their HRQOL

Geometric Morphometric Analysis of the Pedal Claw of the Early Cretaceous Bird Confuciusornis sanctus (Confuciusornithidae) and Its Functional and Behavioral Implications

onfuciusornis sanctus (Hou et al., 1995) is an Early Cretaceous bird from the Liaoning Province of northeastern China. Much work has been published on this species, but some details of its habitat and behavior remain unclear. In this study, a geometric morphometric analysis of the ungual of the second pedal digit of Confuciusornis sanctus was performed to determine how its morphology compares to that of extant birds and which morphological variables best distinguish between taxonomic and behavioral groups. A total of 128 specimens was examined, comprising 104 extant bird species across 15 orders and Confuciusornis sanctus. Three fixed landmarks and 50 sliding semilandmarks were used to define shape. A principal component analysis gave two axes explaining over 73% of the variation in shape. Principal component one, which varies in the angle of claw curvature, explains 56% of the morphological variation whereas principal component two, which varies in claw thickness, explains 17.44%. Specimens are relatively evenly spread across principal component one. There is a large amount of overlap between specimen groups across principal component two. When principal component one is plotted against centroid size, specimen groups become more distinguishable. When specimens are grouped by order, groups show a large amount of overlap, indicating that taxonomic order is not strongly correlated with pedal claw morphology. Behavioral groups show much less overlap, indicating that differences in pedal claw morphology are more strongly correlated to behavior than ordinal-level taxonomic relationship. Additionally, claw curvature and claw size are the variables that are most correlated with differences in behavior, whereas claw thickness is not an informative morphological variable. The claw of Confuciusornis sanctus is morphologically similar to extant birds displaying arboreal behaviors. C. sanctus had the capability for short-term flight, and other aspects of the morphology of C. sanctus also support an arboreal lifestyle. The claw of C. sanctus also shows similarities to extant terrestrial birds. Other morphological characteristics suggest that it was not completely specialized for perching behavior, and it likely spent time on the ground as well as in the trees. Its claw morphology was dissimilar to that of extant birds of prey, indicating that it was unlikely that C. sanctus used its claws to seize prey. The pedal claw morphology of C. sanctus was most similar to that of Passer griseus, which inhabits woodland areas and feeds on seeds, grains, and small insects in trees and on the ground. It is likely that C. sanctus also fed on similar food sources. Its short, robust, toothless beak is ideal for a granivorous diet. However, it would have also been suited for piscivory. There is little direct evidence of its diet with the exception of a previously reported specimen preserving fish remains in the alimentary canal. This specimen combined with my study suggest that C. sanctus likely had an omnivorous diet, and elicits interesting questions about the evolution of the bird digestive system

Solar Atmospheric Oscillations and the Chromospheric Magnetic Topology

We investigate the oscillatory properties of the quiet solar chromosphere in relation to the underlying photosphere, with particular regard to the effects of the magnetic topology. We perform a Fourier analysis on a sequence of line-of-sight velocities measured simultaneously in a photospheric (Fe I 709.0 nm) and a chromospheric line (Ca II 854.2 nm). The velocities were obtained from full spectroscopic data acquired at high spatial resolution with the Interferometric BIdimensional Spectrometer (IBIS). The field of view encompasses a full supergranular cell, allowing us to discriminate between areas with different magnetic characteristics. We show that waves with frequencies above the acoustic cut-off propagate from the photosphere to upper layers only in restricted areas of the quiet Sun. A large fraction of the quiet chromosphere is in fact occupied by ``magnetic shadows'', surrounding network regions, that we identify as originating from fibril-like structures observed in the core intensity of the Ca II line. We show that a large fraction of the chromospheric acoustic power at frequencies below the acoustic cut-off, residing in the proximity of the magnetic network elements, directly propagates from the underlying photosphere. This supports recent results arguing that network magnetic elements can channel low-frequency photospheric oscillations into the chromosphere, thus providing a way to input mechanical energy in the upper layers.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure, A&A Letters in pres