Has September 11 affected New York City's growth potential?

In addition to exacting a tremendous human toll, the September 11 attack on the World Trade Center caused billions of dollars in property damage and a temporary contraction in New York City's economy. This article explores the effect of these events on the longer run economic prospects for the city. For many years, growth in New York has taken the form of rising property prices, reflecting a steady transition from low- to high-paying jobs. During the 1990s, the city's expansion was built on several factors, including improving fiscal conditions, better public services, and shifting industrial and population structures that favored job and income growth. The study suggests that the effects of September 11 will not eliminate these advantages in the medium term; in fact, preliminary indications are that the city remains an attractive location for businesses as well as households. Nevertheless, New York City will face many challenges as it attempts to return to its pre-attack growth path.Economic conditions - New York (N.Y.) ; Federal Reserve District, 2nd ; War - Economic aspects ; Terrorism

Foehn warming distributions in nonlinear and linear flow regimes: a focus on the Antarctic Peninsula

The structure of lee-side warming during foehn events is investigated as a function of cross-barrier flow regime linearity. Two contrasting cases of westerly flow over the Antarctic Peninsula (AP) are considered – one highly nonlinear, the other relatively linear. Westerly flow impinging on the AP provides one of the best natural laboratories in the world for the study of foehn, owing to its maritime setting and the Larsen C Ice Shelf (LCIS) providing an expansive, homogeneous and smooth surface on its east side. Numerical simulations with the Met Office Unified Model (at 1.5 km grid size) and aircraft observations are utilized. In case A, relatively weak southwesterly cross-Peninsula flow and an elevated upwind inversion dictate a highly nonlinear foehn event, with mountain wave breaking observed. The consequent strongly accelerated downslope flow leads to high-amplitude warming and ice-shelf melt in the immediate lee of the AP. However this foehn warming diminishes rapidly downwind due to upward ascent of the foehn flow via a hydraulic jump. In case C, strong northwesterly winds dictate a relatively linear flow regime. There is no hydraulic jump and strong foehn winds are able to flow at low levels across the entire ice shelf, mechanically mixing the near-surface flow, preventing the development of a strong surface inversion and delivering large fluxes of sensible heat to the ice shelf. Consequently, in case C ice-melt rates are considerably greater over the LCIS as a whole than in case A. Our results imply that although nonlinear foehn events cause intense warming in the immediate lee of mountains, linear foehn events will commonly cause more extensive lee-side warming and, over an ice surface, higher melt rates. This has major implications for the AP, where recent east-coast warming has led to the collapse of two ice shelves immediately north of the LCIS

The price of land in the New York metropolitan area

The price of vacant land in an urban area is a fundamental indicator of an area's attractiveness. However, because the value of vacant land is hard to measure, indirect methods are typically used to gauge prices. A more direct approach to measuring land prices, using a unique data set, reveals that the price of unimproved land in the New York area is high, and rose sharply from 1999 to 2006. The rising trend suggests the underlying strength of the area's economy and the increasing value of the area's productivity and amenities.Land use ; Urban economics ; Federal Reserve District, 2nd ; Economic conditions ; Prices

Developing physical capability standards that are predictive of success on special forces selection courses

Free to read This study aimed to develop minimum standards for physical capability assessments (vertical jump, sit and reach, push-ups, seven-stage sit-ups, heaves, agility, 20-m shuttle run, loaded 5-km pack march, and 400-m swim) that candidates must pass before they can commence Australian Army Special Forces (SF) selection courses. Soldiers (Part A: n = 104; Part B: n = 92) completed the physical capability assessments before commencing a SF selection course. At the beginning of these selection courses, participants attempted two barrier assessments (3.2-km battle run and 20-km march). Statistical analysis revealed several physical capability assessments were associated with performance on the barrier assessments and selection course outcome (Part A); however, these statistical models were unable to correctly classify all candidates as likely to pass or fail the selection course. Alternatively, manual analysis identified a combination of physical capability standards that correctly classified 14% to 18% of candidates likely to fail, without excluding any candidates able to pass (Part A). The standards were applied and refined through Part B and included completing the 5-km pack march in ≤45:45 minutes : seconds, achieving ≥level five on the sit-up test, or completing ≥66 push-ups. Implementation of these standards may reduce attrition rates and enhance the efficiency of the SF recruitment process

Velocity map imaging of the dynamics of the CH3 + HCl -> CH4 + Cl reaction using a dual molecular beam method

International audienceThe reactions CH3 + HCl → CH4 + Cl(²P_3/2) and CD₃ + HCl → CD₃H + Cl(²P_3/2) have been studied by photo-initiation (by CH₃I or CD₃I photolysis at 266 nm) in a dual molecular beam apparatus. Product Cl(²P</sub>3/2</sub>) atoms were detected using resonance enhanced multi-photon ionisation and velocity map imaging, revealing product translational energy and angular scattering distributions in the centre-of-mass frame. Image analysis is complicated by the bimodal speed distribution of CH₃ (and CD₃) radicals formed in coincidence with I(²P_3/2) and I(²P_1/2) atoms from CH₃I (CD₃I) photodissociation, giving overlapping Newton diagrams with displaced centre of mass velocities. The relative reactivities to form Cl atoms are greater for the slower CH₃ speed group than the faster group by factors of ~1.5 for the reaction of CH₃ and ~2.5 for the reaction of CD₃, consistent with the greater propensity of the faster methyl radicals to undergo electronically adiabatic reactions to form Cl(²P_1/2). The average fraction of the available energy becoming product translational energy is = 0.48 ± 0.05 and 0.50 ± 0.03 for reaction of the faster and slower sets of CH₃ radicals, respectively. The Cl atoms are deduced to be preferentially forward scattered with respect to the HCl reagents, but the angular distributions from the dual beam imaging experiments require correction for under-detection of forward scattered Cl products