Murphy et al. Reply to the Comment by Kopeikin on "Gravitomagnetic Influence on Gyroscopes and on the Lunar Orbit"

Lunar laser ranging analysis, as regularly performed in the solar system barycentric frame, requires the presence of the gravitomagnetic term in the equation of motion at the strength predicted by general relativity. The same term is responsible for the Lense Thirring effect. Any attempt to modify the strength of the gravitomagnetic interaction would have to do so in a way that does not destroy the fit to lunar ranging data and other observations.Comment: 1 page; accepted for publication in Physcal Review Letters; refers to gr-qc/070202

Genetic Considerations for Hatchery-Based Restoration of Oyster Reefs : A summary from the September 21-22, 2000 workshop

The following is a summary of issues and considerations surrounding the use of hatchery stocks for restoration of public oyster reefs. This summary stems from a workshop conducted at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS). The original goal of the workshop was to try to develop a consensus, or at least a general agreement, on genetic policy(ies) for stocking oyster reefs. To do this, the first day of the workshop was devoted to placing the genetic concerns on the table in the context of both Maryland and Virginia oyster replenishment and restoration programs. The conclusions from the first day of presentations revealed that there are a number of scenarios for hatchery-based restoration/ replenishment and that the genetic considerations varied among them. Other genetic considerations were common to the whole Bay. This document summarizes a great deal of discussion, and consequently some detail is omitted

Statistics of Certain Models of Evolution

In a recent paper, Newman surveys the literature on power law spectra in evolution, self-organised criticality and presents a model of his own to arrive at a conclusion that self-organised criticality is not necessary for evolution. Not only did he miss a key model (Ecolab) that has a clear self-organised critical mechanism, but also Newman's model exhibits the same mechanism that gives rise to power law behaviour as does Ecolab. Newman's model is, in fact, a ``mean field'' approximation of a self-organised critical system. In this paper, I have also implemented Newman's model using the Ecolab software, removing the restriction that the number of species remains constant. It turns out that the requirement of constant species number is non-trivial, leading to a global coupling between species that is similar in effect to the species interactions seen in Ecolab. In fact, the model must self-organise to a state where the long time average of speciations balances that of the extinctions, otherwise the system either collapses or explodes. In view of this, Newman's model does not provide the hoped-for counter example to the presence of self-organised criticality in evolution, but does provide a simple, almost analytic model that can used to understand more intricate models such as Ecolab.Comment: accepted in Phys Rev E.; RevTeX; See http://parallel.hpc.unsw.edu.au/rks/ecolab.html for more informatio

Can the Pioneer anomaly be of gravitational origin? A phenomenological answer

In order to satisfy the equivalence principle, any non-conventional mechanism proposed to gravitationally explain the Pioneer anomaly, in the form in which it is presently known from the so-far analyzed Pioneer 10/11 data, cannot leave out of consideration its impact on the motion of the planets of the Solar System as well, especially those orbiting in the regions in which the anomalous behavior of the Pioneer probes manifested itself. In this paper we, first, discuss the residuals of the right ascension \alpha and declination \delta of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto obtained by processing various data sets with different, well established dynamical theories (JPL DE, IAA EPM, VSOP). Second, we use the latest determinations of the perihelion secular advances of some planets in order to put on the test two gravitational mechanisms recently proposed to accommodate the Pioneer anomaly based on two models of modified gravity. Finally, we adopt the ranging data to Voyager 2 when it encountered Uranus and Neptune to perform a further, independent test of the hypothesis that a Pioneer-like acceleration can also affect the motion of the outer planets of the Solar System. The obtained answers are negative.Comment: Latex2e, 26 pages, 6 tables, 2 figure, 47 references. It is the merging of gr-qc/0608127, gr-qc/0608068, gr-qc/0608101 and gr-qc/0611081. Final version to appear in Foundations of Physic

The motion of a satellite of the moon

Analytical solution for motion of lunar orbital satellit

Timing, glitches and braking index of PSR B0540-69

We report a pulse-time history of PSR B0540$-$69 based on the analysis of an extended Data set including ASCA, BeppoSAX and RXTE observations spanning a time interval of about 8 years. This interval includes also the epoch of the glitch episode reported by Zhang et al. (2001). Our analysis shows the presence of a relevant timing noise and does not give a clear evidence of the glitch occurrence. We performed an accurate evaluation of the main timing parameters, $\nu$, $\dot{\nu}$ and $\ddot{\nu}$ and derived a mean braking index of $n=2.125\pm0.001$ quite different from the lower value found by Zhang et al. (2001), but in rather good agreement with other several values reported in the literature.Comment: 9 pages 5 figures, accepted by A&A, main journa

A Candidate Protoplanet in the Taurus Star Forming Region

HST/NICMOS images of the class I protostar TMR-1 (IRAS04361+2547) reveal a faint companion with 10.0" = 1400 AU projected separation. The central protostar is itself resolved as a close binary with 0.31" = 42 AU separation, surrounded by circumstellar reflection nebulosity. A long narrow filament seems to connect the protobinary to the faint companion TMR-1C, suggesting a physical association. If the sources are physically related then we hypothesize that TMR-1C has been ejected by the protobinary. If TMR-1C has the same age and distance as the protobinary then current models indicate its flux is consistent with a young giant planet of several Jovian masses.Comment: 16 pages, 1 figure, Accepted by Astrophysical Journal Letters, Related information is available at http://www.extrasolar.co

Shapiro delay in the PSR J1640+2224 binary system

We present the results of precision timing observations of the binary millisecond pulsar PSR J1640+2224. Combining the pulse arrival time measurements made with the Effelsberg 100-m radio telescope and the Arecibo 305-m radio telescope, we have extended the existing timing model of the pulsar to search for a presence of the effect of a general-relativistic Shapiro delay in the data. At the currently attainable precision level, the observed amplitude of the effect constrains the companion mass to m_2=0.15^{+0.08}_{-0.05} M_\sun, which is consistent with the estimates obtained from optical observations of the white dwarf companion and with the mass range predicted by theories of binary evolution. The measured shape of the Shapiro delay curve restricts the range of possible orbital inclinations of the PSR J1640+2224 system to $78^{\circ}\le i\le 88^{\circ}$. The pulsar offers excellent prospects to significantly tighten these constraints in the near future.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

Recycled Pulsars Discovered at High Radio Frequency

We present the timing parameters of nine pulsars discovered in a survey of intermediate Galactic latitudes at 1400 MHz with the Parkes radio telescope. Eight of these pulsars possess small pulse periods and period derivatives thought to be indicative of ``recycling''. Six of the pulsars are in circular binary systems, including two with relatively massive white dwarf companions. We discuss the implications of these new systems for theories of binary formation and evolution. One long-period pulsar (J1410-7404) has a moderately weak magnetic field and an exceedingly narrow average pulse profile, similar to other recycled pulsars.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Ap

Conservation and Novel Futures: Managing Biodiversity in Multifunctional Landscapes in the Age of the Anthropocene

Species loss is estimated to be >1,000 times the background rate and increasing. In what has now been dubbed ‘the Anthropocene’, human actions are the major cause of biodiversity decline; while strong pressures such as climate change will likely transform landscapes that are highly valued socially, economically, and ecologically. New combinations of species, interactions, and functions (i.e. novel ecosystems) are already emerging. The discussion about how to deal with novelty has been contentious and debated on both scientific and philosophical grounds, with questions about whether deliberately managing novel ecosystems is an adaptive response to change, or whether it is simply giving up (and giving in) to failure. While humans have created the Anthropocene, they are also integral to solving its problems. This research focuses on governance, as a process for both deciding how to navigate environmental change and deploying the capacity to deal with it. Our current governance systems are not, however, fit for purpose. In a time of social and ecological transformation, anchoring conservation success to historical baselines, as is most often the case, is expensive, technically difficult, and contributes to conservation failure. This research identifies the most important factors for achieving conservation ‘success’ in transforming landscapes and tests practical ways in which governance can provide a space for positive intervention, particularly in multifunctional landscapes where the need to adapt is most urgent. Using an original conceptual framework for analysing capacity for conserving biodiversity, practical reforms are developed. These are then tested using innovative, collaborative scenario planning and citizens juries methodologies to determine not only how governance can positively influence biodiversity outcomes in the future, but also provide a means to explicitly deal with difficult questions about novel ecosystems and conservation in the Anthropocene