Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 1996/1997 Report

This report is part of an on-going series of annual reports and special project reports that document the Lake Whatcom monitoring program. This work is conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies and other departments at Western Washington University. The major objective of this program is to provide long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and selected tributaries. Each section contains brief explanations about the water quality data, along with discussions of patterns observed in Lake Whatcom

A Reactor Model for Hydrogen Generation from Sodium Borohydride and Water Vapor

This paper reports new data on the production of hydrogen from water vapor plus NaBH4, or NaBH4 þ 10% CoCl2. Data were collected with the aid of an isothermal semi-batch reactor with in-situ H2 rate measurement. The reaction of NaBH4 to generate H2 proceeds via three steps: deliquescence, dissolution and reaction. The deliquescence regime of NaBH4 in the presence of 10 weight percent CoCl2 is defined. The H2 yield is quantified at various reaction conditions (reaction temperature 70-120 C, relative humidity 31-69%). CoCl2 significantly accelerates the rate of H2 production compared to deliquescence + reaction of pure NaBH4. It is also found that a combination of high temperature and high relative humidity contributes to high H2 rate and yield, and either of the two factors dominates the reaction at different conditions. A two-part reactor model accounting for the mechanism of the steam hydrolysis by NaBH4 is developed. The model captures the dissolution + reaction step as well as reaction-only step and was validated by experimental data

Extended Photometry for the DEEP2 Galaxy Redshift Survey: A Testbed for Photometric Redshift Experiments

This paper describes a new catalog that supplements the existing DEEP2 Galaxy Redshift Survey photometric and spectroscopic catalogs with ugriz photometry from two other surveys; the Canada-France-Hawaii Legacy Survey (CFHTLS) and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Each catalog is cross-matched by position on the sky in order to assign ugriz photometry to objects in the DEEP2 catalogs. We have recalibrated the CFHTLS photometry where it overlaps DEEP2 in order to provide a more uniform dataset. We have also used this improved photometry to predict DEEP2 BRI photometry in regions where only poorer measurements were available previously. In addition, we have included improved astrometry tied to SDSS rather than USNO-A2.0 for all DEEP2 objects. In total this catalog contains ~27,000 objects with full ugriz photometry as well as robust spectroscopic redshift measurements, 64% of which have r > 23. By combining the secure and accurate redshifts of the DEEP2 Galaxy Redshift Survey with ugriz photometry, we have created a catalog that can be used as an excellent testbed for future photo-z studies, including tests of algorithms for surveys such as LSST and DES.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures and 5 tables. Accepted to The Astrophysical Journal Supplement. Catalogs are publicly available at http://deep.ps.uci.edu/DR4/photo.extended.htm

Near Infrared Imaging of the Hubble Deep Field with The Keck Telescope

Two deep K-band ($2.2 \mu m$) images, with point-source detection limits of $K=25.2$ mag (one sigma), taken with the Keck Telescope in subfields of the Hubble Deep Field, are presented and analyzed. A sample of objects to K=24 mag is constructed and $V_{606}-I_{814}$ and $I_{814}-K$ colors are measured. By stacking visually selected objects, mean $I_{814}-K$ colors can be measured to very faint levels; the mean $I_{814}-K$ color is constant with apparent magnitude down to $V_{606}=28$ mag.Comment: Replaced with slightly revised source positions and corrected V-I magnitudes (which were incorrect in the Tables and Figure 5). 18 pages. The data are publicly available at http://www.cco.caltech.edu/~btsoifer/hdf.html along with a high-resolution version of Fig.

Austin Creek and Beaver Creek Sampling Project

Beaver Creek and Austin Creek were sampled intensively on November 20, 2004 to measure temperature, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, total suspended solids, and fecal coliforms. The objective was to assess the amount of variability that can be expected for water quality measurements collected from these creeks at different times during the day and in different locations within the Austin Creek and Beaver Creek watersheds

Lifestyle and Genetic Contributions to Cognitive Decline and Hippocampal Structure and Function in Healthy Aging

Background: Engagement in cognitively stimulating activities (CA) and leisure time physical activity (PA) have been associated with maintaining cognitive performance and reducing the likelihood of cognitive decline in older adults. However, neural mechanisms underlying protective effects of these lifestyle behaviors are largely unknown. In the current study, we investigated the effect of self-reported PA and CA on hippocampal volume and semantic processing activation during a fame discrimination task, as measured by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We also examined whether possession of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) ?4 allele could moderate the effect of PA or CA on hippocampal structure or function. Methods: Seventy-eight healthy, cognitively intact older adults underwent baseline neuropsychological assessment, hippocampal volume measurement via manually-traced structural MRI, and task-activated fMRI. Results: After 18 months, 27 participants declined by one standard deviation or more on follow-up neuropsychological testing. Logistic regression analyses revealed that CA alone or in combination with baseline hippocampal structure or functional activity did not predict the probability of cognitive decline. In contrast, PA interacted with APOE 4 status such that engagement in PA reduced the risk of cognitive decline in APOE 4 carriers only. Furthermore, the benefits of PA appeared to diminish with reduced functional activity or volume in the hippocampus. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that increased leisure time PA is associated with reduced probability of cognitive decline in persons who are at high risk for AD. The beneficial effects of PA in this group may be related to enhancement of the functional and structural integrity of the hippocampus

High-accuracy waveforms for binary black hole inspiral, merger, and ringdown

The first spectral numerical simulations of 16 orbits, merger, and ringdown of an equal-mass non-spinning binary black hole system are presented. Gravitational waveforms from these simulations have accumulated numerical phase errors through ringdown of ~0.1 radian when measured from the beginning of the simulation, and ~0.02 radian when waveforms are time and phase shifted to agree at the peak amplitude. The waveform seen by an observer at infinity is determined from waveforms computed at finite radii by an extrapolation process accurate to ~0.01 radian in phase. The phase difference between this waveform at infinity and the waveform measured at a finite radius of r=100M is about half a radian. The ratio of final mass to initial mass is M_f/M = 0.95162 +- 0.00002, and the final black hole spin is S_f/M_f^2=0.68646 +- 0.00004.Comment: 15 pages, 11 figures; New figure added, text edited to improve clarity, waveform made availabl

Longitudinal Associations between Physical Activity, Cognitive Status, and Brain Function in Older Adults at Genetic Risk for Alzheimer’s Disease

The apolipoproteinE epsilon4 (APOE-?4) allele is associated with cognitive decline in old age and is a risk factor for Alzheimer\u27s disease (AD). Physical activity (P A) is associated with a reduced risk of incident cognitive impairment, particularly among APOE-?4 carriers. We recently reported greater semantic memory related brain activation in cognitively intact physically active (High P A) APOE-?4 carriers compared to physically inactive (Low PA) ?4 carriers and non-carriers (Smith et al., 2011). Here, we compared longitudinal changes in semantic memory-related brain activation in High PA and Low PA APOE-?4 carriers. Thirty-two older ?4 carriers completed neuropsychological testing and a fMRI semantic memory task (famous name discrimination) at baseline and after 18 months. All participants were cognitively intact at baseline and were classified as High PA (n = 16) or Low PA (n = 16) based on self-report. After 18 months, 5 of 16 High P A and 13 of 16 Low P A were classified as cognitively declining by at least 1 SD decrease in neurocognitive performance (Group difference, p = .011, Fisher\u27s exact test). A fROI analysis of the fMRI data and repeated measures ANOV As revealed significant Group by Time interactions for intensity of semantic memory-related activation. Significantly greater activation at baseline in the High PA group was attenuated over time (no change in Low P A) and resulted in no group differences at the 18-month follow-up. These findings suggest that greater P A at baseline is associated with greater cognitive stability over 18-months in APOE-?4 carriers and reduced neural activation during fame discrimination

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2011/2012 Report

This report is part of an on-going series of annual reports and special project reports that document the Lake Whatcom monitoring program. This work is conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies and other departments at Western Washington University. The major objective of this program is to provide long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and selected tributaries. Each section contains brief explanations about the water quality data, along with discussions of patterns observed in Lake Whatcom

Lake Whatcom Monitoring Project 2005/2006 Report

This report is part of an on-going series of annual reports and special project reports that document the Lake Whatcom monitoring program. This work is conducted by the Institute for Watershed Studies and other departments at Western Washington University. The major objective of this program is to provide long-term baseline water quality monitoring in Lake Whatcom and selected tributaries. Each section contains brief explanations about the water quality data, along with discussions of patterns observed in Lake Whatcom