Free radical and overtone spectroscopy

In the fall of 1987 during a photoacoustic study of hydrogen peroxide's fourth vibrational overtone band, the remarkably clear and well resolved spectrum was observed. Its periodicity and K subband structure suggested that the spectrum was not of hydrogen peroxide but of a smaller near-prolate symmetric top molecule. Furthermore, the time dependent behavior of the signal indicated that chemical changes were taking place within the photoacoustic apparatus

Short-term headline-core inflation dynamics

This article investigates empirically short-term dynamics between headline and core measures of consumer price index and personal consumption expenditure inflation over three sample periods: 1959:1-1979:1, 1979:2-2001:2, and 1985:1-2007:2. Headline and core inflation measures are co-integrated, suggesting long-run co-movement. However, the ways these two variables adjust to each other in the short run and generate co-movement have changed across these sample periods. In the pre-1979 sample period, when a positive gap opens up with headline inflation rising above core inflation, the gap is eliminated mainly as a result of headline inflation not reverting and core inflation moving toward headline inflation. These dynamics suggest headline inflation would be better than core inflation in assessing the permanent component of inflation. In post-1979 sample periods, however, the positive gap is eliminated as a result of headline inflation reverting more strongly toward core inflation than core inflation moving toward headline inflation, suggesting core inflation would be better than headline inflation in assessing the permanent component of inflation. This change in headline-core inflation dynamics may be due to the Federal Reserve having convinced the public it would no longer accommodate shocks to food and energy prices.Inflation (Finance) ; Monetary policy

Transmission Lines and Meta-Materials based on Quantum Hall Plasmonics

The characteristic impedance of a microwave transmission line is typically constrained to a value $Z_0$ = 50 $\Omega$, in-part because of the low impedance of free space and the limited range of permittivity and permeability realizable with conventional materials. Here we suggest the possibility of constructing high-impedance transmission lines by exploiting the plasmonic response of edge states associated with the quantum Hall effect in gated devices. We analyze various implementations of quantum Hall transmission lines based on distributed networks and lumped-element circuits, including a detailed account of parasitic capacitance and Coulomb drag effects, which can modify device performance. We additionally conceive of a meta-material structure comprising arrays of quantum Hall droplets and analyze its unusual properties. The realization of such structures holds promise for efficiently wiring-up quantum circuits on chip, as well as engineering strong coupling between semiconductor qubits and microwave photons

X/X/Ka-band prime focus feed antenna for the Mars Observer beacon spacecraft

The results of an X/X/Ka-band feed design concept demonstration are presented. The purpose is to show the feasibility of adding a Ka-band beacon to the Mars Observer spacecraft. Scale model radiation patterns were made and analyzed

'Anti-social' networking in Northern Ireland: policy responses to young people's use of social media for organizing anti-social behavior

Ten years after the Belfast Agreement, Northern Ireland remains a divided society as signified by the persistence and even proliferation of interface areas, often divided by so-called ‘peace walls’ and intermittent conflict between rival communities on either side. Recent media reports have suggested that online interactions between rival interface communities on social networking sites may be undermining efforts to foster better intercommunity relationships. This article explores the extent to which key stakeholders are aware of the use of the Internet by young people to plan street riots in interface areas in Northern Ireland and their responses to this ‘anti-social’ use of sites such as Bebo. It presents evidence to suggest that stakeholder awareness about the extent of the use of social media by young people to organize street riots is based on rumour and hearsay. Key stakeholders report that Internet Safety programmes have received positive feedback from local audiences but concede that they are unlikely have any significant impact upon the level of anti-social behavior in interface areas

The L-/C-band feed design for the DSS 14 70-meter antenna (Phobos mission)

A dual-frequency (1.668 and 5.01 GHz) feed was designed for the Deep Space Station (DSS) 14 70-m antenna to support the Soviet Phobos Mission. This antenna system was capable of supporting telemetry, two-way Doppler, and very long baseline interferometry (VLBI). VLBI and two-way Doppler information on the Phobos spacecraft was acquired with this antenna in 1989

Capacity Building through Education Provision: A review of the North - South collaborative programmes of MS - TCDC and Kimmage DSC between 1994 – 2014

This paper emerged from a joint research project between Kimmage DSC and MS-TCDC, Arusha, Tanzania, which aimed to discover to what extent graduates continued to use their skills in development practice and what difference their training made. The overall objective of this research was to explore what worked well in this partnership between two institutes from the 'North' and the 'South', and how this collaboration has advanced capacity building in its various forms to inform transformative learning and social change. Primarily, the study set out to explore whether in fact, capacity building of participants was achieved, and how participants experienced this both during and after the programmes attended. Secondly, the study explored the nature of the partnership model, maintained for 20 years, and to see if lessons could be drawn from this significant example of collaboration. It was largely a qualitative piece of research conducted during the period from November 2015 to July 2016, using a combination of interviews, questionnaires of graduates, and current and former staff of both institutes. Key lessons drawn from the study included the finding that capacity development did take place, for the students themselves, and in many instances, for their organisations and communities. There is evidence that the staff in both institutes developed their individual and professional capacities through the dynamic of this partnership, and strong perceptions that both institutes were also transformed – being changed, as Rosalind Eyben (2011) would say, by the relationship forged by working together. The study presented new insights on the challenges of partnerships – especially those North-South dynamics, in reflecting on the longer than normal life span of this particular relationship. Current and former staff endorsed the key importance of relationships. This study presents a strong argument that time spent by lecturers respectfully engaging with course participants, and time invested by both sets of staff to the developing of constructive but convivial relationships has borne fruit

Evaluating the Roles of Rainout and Post-Condensation Processes in a Landfalling Atmospheric River with Stable Isotopes in Precipitation and Water Vapor

Atmospheric rivers (ARs), and frontal systems more broadly, tend to exhibit prominent “V” shapes in time series of stable isotopes in precipitation. Despite the magnitude and widespread nature of these “V” shapes, debate persists as to whether these shifts are driven by changes in the degree of rainout, which we determine using the Rayleigh distillation of stable isotopes, or by post-condensation processes such as below-cloud evaporation and equilibrium isotope exchange between hydrometeors and surrounding vapor. Here, we present paired precipitation and water vapor isotope time series records from the 5–7 March 2016, AR in Bodega Bay, CA. The stable isotope composition of surface vapor along with independent meteorological constraints such as temperature and relative humidity reveal that rainout and post-condensation processes dominate during different portions of the event. We find that Rayleigh distillation controls during peak AR conditions (with peak rainout of 55%) while post-condensation processes have their greatest effect during periods of decreased precipitation on the margins of the event. These results and analyses inform critical questions regarding the temporal evolution of AR events and the physical processes that control them at local scales