Elastic properties of silicate melts: Implications for low velocity zones at the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary.

Low seismic velocity regions in the mantle and crust are commonly attributed to the presence of silicate melts. Determining melt volume and geometric distribution is fundamental to understanding planetary dynamics. We present a new model for seismic velocity reductions that accounts for the anomalous compressibility of silicate melt, rendering compressional wave velocities more sensitive to melt fraction and distribution than previous estimates. Forward modeling predicts comparable velocity reductions for compressional and shear waves for partially molten mantle, and for low velocity regions associated with the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB), melt present at <5% distributed in near-textural equilibrium. These findings reconcile seismic observations for the LAB regionally and locally and favor models of strong coupling across the LAB rather than melt channeling due to shear deformation

Stratiform clouds and their interaction with atmospheric motions

During the 1987 to 1988 academic year, three projects were finished and plans were made to redirect and focus work in a proposal now being reviewed. The completed work involves study of waves on an equatorial beta-plane in shear flow, investigation of the influence of orography on the index cycle, and analysis of a model of cloud street development in a thermally-forced, sheared environment. The proposed work involves study of boundary layer circulations supporting stratocumulus decks and investigation of how the radiative effects of these clouds modulate larger-scale flows such as those associated with the index oscillation

A Global Model of β−\beta^--Decay Half-Lives Using Neural Networks

Statistical modeling of nuclear data using artificial neural networks (ANNs) and, more recently, support vector machines (SVMs), is providing novel approaches to systematics that are complementary to phenomenological and semi-microscopic theories. We present a global model of $\beta^-$-decay halflives of the class of nuclei that decay 100% by $\beta^-$ mode in their ground states. A fully-connected multilayered feed forward network has been trained using the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm, Bayesian regularization, and cross-validation. The halflife estimates generated by the model are discussed and compared with the available experimental data, with previous results obtained with neural networks, and with estimates coming from traditional global nuclear models. Predictions of the new neural-network model are given for nuclei far from stability, with particular attention to those involved in r-process nucleosynthesis. This study demonstrates that in the framework of the $\beta^-$-decay problem considered here, global models based on ANNs can at least match the predictive performance of the best conventional global models rooted in nuclear theory. Accordingly, such statistical models can provide a valuable tool for further mapping of the nuclidic chart.Comment: Proceedings of the 16th Panhellenic Symposium of the Hellenic Nuclear Physics Societ

Beta lives - some statistical perspectives on the capital asset pricing model

This note summarizes some technical issues relevant to the use of the idea of excess return in empirical modelling. We cover the case where the aim is to construct a measure of expected return on an asset and a model of the CAPM type is used. We review some of the problems and show examples where the basic CAPM may be used to develop other results which relate the expected returns on assets both to the expected return on the market and other factors

Performance statistics of the FORTRAN 4 /H/ library for the IBM system/360

Test procedures and results for accuracy and timing tests of the basic IBM 360/50 FORTRAN 4 /H/ subroutine library are reported. The testing was undertaken to verify performance capability and as a prelude to providing some replacement routines of improved performance

The use of satellite data in understanding and predicting convective and large-scale dynamical processes

Mesoscale convective processes and how they affect and interact with mid-latitude cyclones were studied. The ageostrophic and associated vertical motion field was calculated using a highly accurate iterative method of solving the semigeostrophic omega equation. The tendencies for convective destabilization in the 850-750 mb layer due to differential geostrophic and ageostrophic advection and differential moist adiabatic ascent, were found. The spectral models of the index oscillation, one barotropic and the other baroclinic, were developed. Theoretical and observational studies of cloud streets were conducted