Seasonal variation of the three-dimensional mean circulation over the Scotian Shelf

The seasonal-mean circulation over the Scotian Shelf is studied numerically by computing mean and tidal current fields for winter, spring, and summer using a three-dimensional nonlinear diagnostic model. The mean current fields are forced by seasonal-mean baroclinic pressure gradients, tidal rectification, uniform wind stresses, and associated barotropic pressure gradients. A historical hydrographic database is used to determine the climatological mean baroclinic forcing. Upstream open boundary conditions are estimated from the density fields to give no normal geostrophic bottom flow and are specified as either along-boundary elevation gradients or depth-integrated normal velocities. The numerical solutions for nominal bimonthly periods (January–February, April–May, and July–August) reveal the dominant southwestward nearshore and shelf-break flows of relatively cool and fresh shelf water from the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Newfoundland Shelf, with speeds up to about 20 cm/s. The seasonal intensification of the southwestward flows is reproduced by the model, with the transport increasing from 0.3 Sv in summer to 0.9 Sv in winter on the inner Halifax section. There are also pronounced topographic-scale influences of submarine banks, basins, and cross-shelf channels on the circulation, such as anticyclonic gyres over banks and cyclonic gyres over basins. Baroclinicity is the dominant forcing throughout the domain, but tidal rectification is comparable on the southwestern Scotian Shelf (e.g., about 0.2 Sv recirculating transport around Browns Bank for all the periods). The mean wind stress generates offshore surface drift in winter. The solutions are in approximate agreement with observed currents and transports over the Scotian Shelf, although there are local discrepancies

Anisotropic focusing characteristics of micro-domain structures within crystalline Sr_0.61Ba_0.39Nb₂O₆ : the crystal ball

We report the anisotropic focusing characteristics of a spherically configured region of micro-domains that have been induced within a cubic shaped crystal of Ce:doped Sr0.61Ba0.39Nb2O6. The internal spherical structure focuses extraordinary polarised light, but not ordinary polarised. The spherical region, which is easily observed via scattering, is formed as the crystal cools down, after a repoling cycle through the Curie temperature, with an applied field. Analytic modelling of the thermal gradients that exist within the crystal during cooling reveals a small (< 1°) temperature difference between the central and outside regions. The similarity in shape between these temperature profiles and the observed scattering region suggests a possible mechanism for the growth of this spherical micro-domained structure

Ongoing astrometric microlensing events from VVV and Gaia

6 pages, 2 figures, accepted MNRAS LettersWe extend predictive microlensing event searches using the Vista Variables in the Via Lactea survey and the second Gaia data release. We identify two events with maxima in 2019 that require urgent follow-up. First, we predict that the nearby M2 dwarf L 338-152 will align with a background source with a closest approach of $35^{+35}_{-23}$ mas on 2019 November $16^{+28}_{-27}$ d. This will cause a peak astrometric shift and photometric amplification of the background source of $2.7^{+3.5}_{-1.5}$ mas and $5.6^{+143.2}_{-5.2}$ mmag respectively. This event should be astrometrically detectable by both the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and the Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exoplanet Research instrument on the Very Large Telescope. Secondly, we predict the likely K dwarf NLTT 45128 will lens a background source with a closest approach of $105.3^{+12.2}_{-11.7}$ mas on 2019 September $26^{+15}_{-15}$ d. This will produce a peak astrometric shift of $0.329^{+0.065}_{-0.059}$ mas. NLTT 45128 is only 3.6 magnitudes brighter than the background source which makes it an excellent candidate for follow-up with HST. Characterisation of these signals will allow direct gravitational masses to be inferred for both L 338-152 and NLTT 45128 with an estimated precision of $\sim9$ and $\sim13$ per cent respectively.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Estudo dos líquenes dos Açores. Parte 2 - Líquenes das encostas de altitude da montanha do Pico. Comparação entre as floras de líquenes de altitude das ilhas dos Açores, Madeira e Canárias

Descreve-se a flora de líquenes das encostas alas do Pico, a maior montanha dos Açores, entre 1200-2300 m de altitude. Reconhecem-se duas zonas florísticas distintas: uma elevada, 1500-2300 m, acima da camada de inversão, pobre em espécies, e uma zona baixa, entre 1200-1500 m com maior diversidade específica, dependente da persistência da faixa de nuvens. Registaram-se 49 espécies de líquenes, 14 das quais são novas ocorrências para os Açores, incluindo duas que se descrevem de novo: Ochrolechia azorica e Stereocaulon macaronesicum. Compara-se a comunidade de líquenes acima de faixa de nuvens do Pico, dominada principalmente por Stereocaulon e Placopsis gelida, com as floras documentadas de altitude de outras ilhas da Macaronésia. Considera-se que a escassez de espécies de líquenes nas encostas de altitude do Pico é, em primeiro lugar, o resultado do isolamento recente dos Açores, mas também da natureza recente do substracto e das severas condições climatéricas.ABSTRACT: The lichen flora of the upper slopes of Pico, the major mountain in the Azores, is described between altitudes 1200-2300 m. Two distinct floristic zones are recognised: an upper, species poor, zone from 1500-2300 m above the inversion layer and a lower, more species diverse, zone from 1200-1500 m dependent on the persistence of the cloud layer, 49 species are reported, 14 of which are new records for the Azores, including two which are newly described: Ochrolechia azorica and Stereocaulon macaronesicum. The lichen communities above the cloud layer, dominated principally by species of Stereocaulon and Placopsis gelida are compared with those of other documented floras of Macaronesian islands al high elevations. The paucity of species on the upper slopes of Pico is considered to be primarily the result of the isolation of the Azores, the recent nature of the substrate and severity of the climatic conditions

Financing an Increased State Role in Funding K-12 Education: An Analysis of Issues and Options

This report presents an analysis of replacing school property tax with alternative state revenue sources. FRC Report 11

Gordon College and the Future of the Ministerial Exception

In Gordon College v. DeWeese-Boyd, a social work professor at a religious college sued after she was denied promotion. The college asserted the “ministerial exception,” a judicially crafted and constitutionally grounded exception to the ordinary rules of liability arising out of the employment relationship between religious institutions and their ministers. Although the plaintiff had no distinctively religious duties, the college expected her (and all other faculty) to integrate the faith into her teaching and scholarship. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) held that this obligation, standing alone, was insufficient to qualify the plaintiff as a minister within the meaning of the exception. The U.S. Supreme Court denied the college’s petition for certiorari, but Justice Alito, joined by three other Justices, issued a statement respecting the denial. He criticized the SJC’s view of religious education, suggested that the mere duty to infuse the faith into teaching and scholarship was sufficient to qualify a professor as a minister, and expressed willingness to review the SJC’s decision after a final judgment. Nonetheless, DeWeese-Boyd’s claims may proceed to litigation. Justice Alito’s statement is significant both for the scope of the ministerial exception—as applied to religious colleges and other employers—and for the future of the relationship between the Constitution’s Religion Clauses. Justice Alito’s capacious understanding of the ministerial exception—and his view that it is grounded primarily in the Free Exercise Clause, rather than the Establishment Clause—will likely leave little room for civil courts to adjudicate claims that assert wrongful treatment by religious institutions of ministerial employees. Equally important, Justice Alito’s view suggests a continued marginalization of the Establishment Clause in ways that will have effects far beyond the world of higher education