Looking Back, Looking Forward: A New Look at the Historic Resources of the Maryland Port Towns

This document has had referenced material removed in respect for the owner's copyright. A complete version of this document, which includes said referenced material, resides in the University of Maryland, College Park's library collection.During the fall of 2008, the historic preservation studio of the University of Maryland’s Graduate Program in Historic Preservation developed a heritage resource study for the Maryland Port Towns, a group of four individual municipalities located on the Anacostia River in Prince George’s County, Maryland. The client, the Port Towns Community Development Corporation, made it clear from the beginning that the study was to dovetail with their already extensive efforts for social and economic development in the Port Towns. The study that follows is the culmination of the efforts of the nine-member studio team. Titled Looking Back, Looking Forward: A New Look at the Heritage Resources of the Maryland Port Towns, the study initially developed from two principal questions: • What existing historic resources are located in the Port Towns? • What can be done to preserve, enhance, and highlight the existing historic resources located in the Port Towns to meet the socioeconomic goals set by the Port Towns Community Development Corporation

Mapping Groundwater Dependent Ecosystems in California

BACKGROUND: Most groundwater conservation and management efforts focus on protecting groundwater for drinking water and for other human uses with little understanding or focus on the ecosystems that depend on groundwater. However, groundwater plays an integral role in sustaining certain types of aquatic, terrestrial and coastal ecosystems, and their associated landscapes. Our aim was to illuminate the connection between groundwater and surface ecosystems by identifying and mapping the distribution of groundwater dependent ecosystems (GDEs) in California. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To locate where groundwater flow sustains ecosystems we identified and mapped groundwater dependent ecosystems using a GIS. We developed an index of groundwater dependency by analyzing geospatial data for three ecosystem types that depend on groundwater: (1) springs and seeps; (2) wetlands and associated vegetation alliances; and (3) stream discharge from groundwater sources (baseflow index). Each variable was summarized at the scale of a small watershed (Hydrologic Unit Code-12; mean size = 9,570 ha; n = 4,621), and then stratified and summarized to 10 regions of relative homogeneity in terms of hydrologic, ecologic and climatic conditions. We found that groundwater dependent ecosystems are widely, although unevenly, distributed across California. Although different types of GDEs are clustered more densely in certain areas of the state, watersheds with multiple types of GDEs are found in both humid (e.g. coastal) and more arid regions. Springs are most densely concentrated in the North Coast and North Lahontan, whereas groundwater dependent wetlands and associated vegetation alliances are concentrated in the North and South Lahontan and Sacramento River hydrologic regions. The percentage of land area where stream discharge is most dependent on groundwater is found in the North Coast, Sacramento River and Tulare Lake regions. GDE clusters are located at the highest percentage in the North Coast (an area of the highest annual rainfall totals), North Lahontan (an arid, high desert climate with low annual rainfall), and Sacramento River hydrologic regions. That GDEs occur in such distinct climatic and hydrologic settings reveals the widespread distribution of these ecosystems. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Protection and management of groundwater-dependent ecosystems are hindered by lack of information on their diversity, abundance and location. By developing a methodology that uses existing datasets to locate GDEs, this assessment addresses that knowledge gap. We report here on the application of this method across California, but believe the method can be expanded to regions where spatial data exist

A Comprehensive Spectral and Variability Study of Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 Galaxies Observed by ASCA: I. Observations and Time Series Analysis

(Abridged) I present a comprehensive and uniform analysis of 25 {\it ASCA} observations from 23 Narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxies. The time series analysis is presented in this paper, Part 1, and the spectral analysis and correlations are presented in the companion paper, Part 2.Comment: 51 pages, 32 figures, accepted for publication in ApJS. Report also available also at http://www.astro.columbia.edu/~leighly/research.htm

The Inner-Shelf Dynamics Experiment

17 USC 105 interim-entered record; under review.The article of record as published may be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-19-0281.1The inner shelf, the transition zone between the surfzone and the midshelf, is a dynamically complex region with the evolution of circulation and stratification driven by multiple physical processes. Cross-shelf exchange through the inner shelf has important implications for coastal water quality, ecological connectivity, and lateral movement of sediment and heat. The Inner-Shelf Dynamics Experiment (ISDE) was an intensive, coordinated, multi-institution field experiment from September–October 2017, conducted from the midshelf, through the inner shelf, and into the surfzone near Point Sal, California. Satellite, airborne, shore- and ship-based remote sensing, in-water moorings and ship-based sampling, and numerical ocean circulation models forced by winds, waves, and tides were used to investigate the dynamics governing the circulation and transport in the inner shelf and the role of coastline variability on regional circulation dynamics. Here, the following physical processes are highlighted: internal wave dynamics from the midshelf to the inner shelf; flow separation and eddy shedding off Point Sal; offshore ejection of surfzone waters from rip currents; and wind-driven subtidal circulation dynamics. The extensive dataset from ISDE allows for unprecedented investigations into the role of physical processes in creating spatial heterogeneity, and nonlinear interactions between various inner-shelf physical processes. Overall, the highly spatially and temporally resolved oceanographic measurements and numerical simulations of ISDE provide a central framework for studies exploring this complex and fascinating region of the ocean.U.S. Office of Naval Research (ONR)ONR Departmental Research Initiative (DRI)Inner-Shelf Dynamics Experiment (ISDE

The 13th Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey: First Spectroscopic Data from the SDSS-IV Survey Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory

The fourth generation of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS-IV) began observations in July 2014. It pursues three core programs: APOGEE-2,MaNGA, and eBOSS. In addition, eBOSS contains two major subprograms: TDSS and SPIDERS. This paper describes the first data release from SDSS-IV, Data Release 13 (DR13), which contains new data, reanalysis of existing data sets and, like all SDSS data releases, is inclusive of previously released data. DR13 makes publicly available 1390 spatially resolved integral field unit observations of nearby galaxies from MaNGA,the first data released from this survey. It includes new observations from eBOSS, completing SEQUELS. In addition to targeting galaxies and quasars, SEQUELS also targeted variability-selected objects from TDSS and X-ray selected objects from SPIDERS. DR13 includes new reductions ofthe SDSS-III BOSS data, improving the spectrophotometric calibration and redshift classification. DR13 releases new reductions of the APOGEE-1data from SDSS-III, with abundances of elements not previously included and improved stellar parameters for dwarf stars and cooler stars. For the SDSS imaging data, DR13 provides new, more robust and precise photometric calibrations. Several value-added catalogs are being released in tandem with DR13, in particular target catalogs relevant for eBOSS, TDSS, and SPIDERS, and an updated red-clump catalog for APOGEE.This paper describes the location and format of the data now publicly available, as well as providing references to the important technical papers that describe the targeting, observing, and data reduction. The SDSS website, http://www.sdss.org, provides links to the data, tutorials and examples of data access, and extensive documentation of the reduction and analysis procedures. DR13 is the first of a scheduled set that will contain new data and analyses from the planned ~6-year operations of SDSS-IV.PostprintPeer reviewe

Experimental investigation of the effect of steps and gaps on hypersonic vehicles

The design of hypersonic vehicles typically incorporates the use of simple, geometric shapes with smooth surfaces. There are many reasons why aircraft cannot have perfectly smooth surfaces with small, unavoidable imperfections frequently being present. These can appear in many forms, such as gaps between tiles and rivets joining different panels. Surface features like this are mainly detrimental to aircraft performance for two reasons: they can cause premature boundary layer transition, leading to higher integrated heat loads and unexpected aerodynamic loads; and they cause highly localised areas of heat flux augmentation – up to many times the undisturbed level. This work is part of a project which aims to characterise some of these effects using a combination of experimental and numerical techniques with the overall aim being to produce useful engineering level correlations for use in vehicle design. This paper presents initial experiments performed in the Oxford High Density Tunnel (HDT). Heat flux and pressure data have been acquired for a range of step and cavity geometries, and capability of a sophisticated experimental model has been shown

Standardized catch and survival rates, and effect of a ban on shark retention, Palau pelagic longline fishery

Pelagic longline fisheries affect both market and vulnerable bycatch species and can have broad effects on community structure and processes. Observer data from the Palau longline fishery were analysed to identify opportunities to mitigate vulnerable species bycatch, determine temporal trends in local abundance, and assess changes following a ban on shark retention and wire leaders. Catch and haulback condition data for bigeye and yellowfin tunas, blue and silky sharks and pelagic stingrays were fitted to standardized catch and survival rate models. The fishery caught silky and blue sharks, olive ridley sea turtles and other species of conservation concern. Changing from shallow sets to deep daytime sets might reduce shark and sea turtle catch rates but increase turtle haulback mortality rates, maintain economically viable tuna catch rates, but increase catch rates of pelagic stingrays, a lower conservation concern than main caught species of sharks and turtles. Focusing fishing effort during the middle of the calendar year would maximize yellowfin tuna and minimize silky shark standardized catch rates, but maximize blue shark catch rates. A large decline in shark fishing mortality rate very likely occurred following a ban on shark retention and wire leaders. This was due to large reductions in the nominal shark catch rate and shark retention, partially offset by decreases in the shark haulback survival rate and pre-catch survival rate. Significantly higher blue shark and lower pelagic stingray nominal catch rates occurred on wire vs. monofilament leaders. Significantly higher blue shark and lower yellowfin tuna nominal catch rates occurred on sets using shallow ‘shark lines’. It is a research priority to compare the probability of shark pre-catch survival after escaping from monofilament leaders with an ingested hook and trailing line to the survival probability when captured on wire leaders

Ecological responses to blue water MPAs

Marine protected areas (MPAs) can contribute to protecting biodiversity and managing ocean activities, including fishing. There is, however, limited evidence of ecological responses to blue water MPAs. We conducted the first comprehensive evaluation of impacts on fisheries production and ecological responses to pelagic MPAs of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. A Bayesian time series-based counterfactual modelling approach using fishery-dependent data was used to compare the temporal response in the MPAs to three reference regions for standardized catch rates, lengths, trophic level of the catch and species diversity. Catch rates of bigeye tuna, the main target species (Kingman/Palmyra MPA, causal effect probability >99% of an 84% reduction; 95% credible interval: -143%, -25%), and blue shark (Johnston MPAs, causal effect probability >95%) were significantly lower and longnose lancetfish significantly higher (Johnston MPAs, causal effect probability >95%) than predicted had the MPAs not been established, possibly from closing areas near shallow features, which aggregate pelagic predators, and from 'fishing-the-line'. There were no apparent causal impacts of the MPAs on species diversity, lengths and trophic level of the catch, perhaps because the MPAs were young, were too small, did not contain critical habitat for specific life-history stages, had been lightly exploited or experienced fishing-the-line. We also assessed model-standardized catch rates for species of conservation concern and mean trophic level of the catch within and outside of MPAs. Displaced effort produced multi-species conflicts: MPAs protect bycatch hotspots and hotspots of bycatch-to-target catch ratios for some at-risk species, but coldspots for others. Mean trophic level of the catch was significantly higher around MPAs, likely due to the aggregating effect of the shallow features and there having been light fishing pressure within MPAs. These findings demonstrate how exploring a wide range of ecological responses supports evidence-based evaluations of blue water MPAs