Morphological Properties of PPNs: Mid-IR and HST Imaging Surveys

We will review our mid-infrared and HST imaging surveys of the circumstellar dust shells of proto-planetary nebulae. While optical imaging indirectly probes the dust distribution via dust-scattered starlight, mid-IR imaging directly maps the distribution of warm dust grains. Both imaging surveys revealed preferencially axisymmetric nature of PPN dust shells, suggesting that axisymmetry in planetary nebulae sets in by the end of the asymptotic giant branch phase, most likely by axisymmetric superwind mass loss. Moreover, both surveys yielded two morphological classes which have one-to-one correspondence between the two surveys, indicating that the optical depth of circumstellar dust shells plays an equally important role as the inclination angle in determining the morphology of the PPN shells.Comment: 6 pages + 8 figures, to appear in the proceedings of the conference, "Post-AGB Objects (proto-planetary nebulae) as a Phase of Stellar Evolution", Torun, Poland, July 5-7, 2000, eds. R. Szczerba, R. Tylenda, and S.K. Gorny. Figures have been degraded to minimize the total file siz

Atmospheres of Hot Super-Earths

Hot super-Earths likely possess minimal atmospheres established through vapor saturation equilibrium with the ground. We solve the hydrodynamics of these tenuous atmospheres at the surface of Corot-7b, Kepler 10b and 55 Cnc-e, including idealized treatments of magnetic drag and ohmic dissipation. We find that atmospheric pressures remain close to their local saturation values in all cases. Despite the emergence of strongly supersonic winds which carry sublimating mass away from the substellar point, the atmospheres do not extend much beyond the day-night terminators. Ground temperatures, which determine the planetary thermal (infrared) signature, are largely unaffected by exchanges with the atmosphere and thus follow the effective irradiation pattern. Atmospheric temperatures, however, which control cloud condensation and thus albedo properties, can deviate substantially from the irradiation pattern. Magnetic drag and ohmic dissipation can also strongly impact the atmospheric behavior, depending on atmospheric composition and the planetary magnetic field strength. We conclude that hot super-Earths could exhibit interesting signatures in reflection (and possibly in emission) which would trace a combination of their ground, atmospheric and magnetic properties.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, 1 table, accepted for publication in ApJ

African American Male Initiative

The Kirwan Institute presents a call to action to close gaps in the literature on African-American males and to move forward with policy solutions based on what is already known. The paper summarizes findings from an extensive literature review, a national advisory board and a national conference, and a project on mapping opportunity

Virginia Waterways and the Underground Railroad

The past several years have seen a new energy and heightened scholarly attention to many diverse aspects of American race-based slavery. Details of the economic complexities of the slave trade, for example, have been studied intensely. This general movement has brought many new and old conversations into the mainstream—some for the first time—and reemphasized the centrality of slavery to the American experience before, during, and after the Civil War. However, there still remain many myths, problematic archetypes, and stereotypes associated with American slavery and its component parts. Perhaps the greatest of the myths are those that persist about the system itself

Sculpting the Senses: Architecture for the Body in Place

True architecture has the ability to engage the human body and its senses from a holistic standpoint. However, there is a growing presence of architecture that is created with a bias toward the visual sense, lacking sensuality, and leaving the other senses unstimulated. Negative emotions, like anxiety, experienced by individuals within a particular space can be attributed to various factors, including the sensorial qualities encountered and the memories associated with that space. Within the field of this study, there have been architects who have confronted the issues of contemporary architecture, neglecting the holistic experience of the body within space. An example of this can be seen in An Architecture of the Seven Senses by Juhani Pallasmaa, where he uses materiality and spatial experiences to give significance to the role of the senses within architecture. Similar themes can be found in the book Atmospheres by Peter Zumthor, where he extracts the elements of the impactful experiences, or atmospheres, that he has encountered, providing a framework for the process of creating architecture that moves its inhabitants. Embodied examples of these ideas can be seen in Therme Vals and the Swiss Sound Box, two projects by Zumthor that use the sensorial qualities of the spaces to define circulation, placing a greater emphasis on movement about the space and its role in impacting the user. Using the ideas and principles of these architects, an exploration will be conducted to explore how the sensorial qualities of different experiences can be used to create body-centered and memory-evoking spaces. This approach will involve incorporating principles from the literature, themes of everyday atmospheric experiences formulated within an index, and qualities of the precedents within the index. This approach will also aim to address the following research questions: How can a multi-sensory design approach emphasize the importance of bodily awareness while creating memorable experiences? What factors contribute to the felt emotions in a space? What environmental or cultural factors influence the perception of multi-sensory design? How does multi-sensory design contribute to a sense of place and belonging? Sculpting the Senses: Architecture for the body in place is a collection of spaces being designed in order to address the issue of the neglected senses in architecture. The spaces exist within a community center located in Atlanta, Georgia. This community center will house programs that encourage moments of both introspection and communion amongst individuals using the sensorial qualities of the atmospheres. Further expected outcomes of the thesis aim to establish a new approach to contextualizing experiences and using them to create atmospheres for a particular environment

Bobwhite quail : I. some physiological parameters during late breeding season : II. wing fat as an indicator of total body fat

Twenty six bobwhite quail were trapped on Ames Plantation during July and August, 1981. Each bird was analyzed for body weight, body fat, gastrointestinal parasites, food habits and blood plasma biochemical values. Adrenal, pancreas, testes, follicle and oviduct measurements were also taken. Several parameters were compared to values from April/May bobwhite (McRae, 1978). Adult females were significantly heavier (180.3 g) than adult males (154.7 g) (P≤.05). Mean body weight of juveniles was 140.9 g. The significant July to August increase in adult male body weight (P≤.05) was believed to be associated with changing hormone levels and reduced breeding activity. Percent body fat was 15.5 in adult females, 12.9 in adult males and 8.4 in juvenile males. Adult male and female values were higher than earlier breeding adults. The 57% fat increase in August males was accompanied by a significantly lower FFA level (as indicated by albumin level). Plasma triglyceride increased in adult males and decreased in adult females from April/May levels. Plasma glucose also declined and was significantly lower in adult females than in adult males. Lower glucose in females and a substantially increased plasma globulin may have indicated a response to large numbers of gastrointestinal parasites. Plasma uric acid increased in males and decreased in females over summer. Five nematode, 1 cestode and 2 trematode species were recovered from the gastrointestinal tracts. Heterakis bonasae occurred in every bird, averaging 138 worms per adult bird. Female quail harbored significantly more worms than males (P≤.05). Tetrameres pattersoni were found in the proventriculus of 50% of the birds. Cyrnea colini, and Dispharnyx nasuta were recovered from few birds in low numbers. The cestode Rhabdometra odiosa was found in 3 females. Two trematodes, Leucochloridium sp. and Echinoparyphium sp. were recovered from the intestines of 2 hens. Mean adrenal percent of body weight was 0.105. It was lower than during winter, suggesting that bobwhites were not experiencing stress. Mean pancreas percent was.1226. The 4 largest ovarian follicles and the oviducts were weighed and measured. Follicles appeared to be in normal hierarchal arrangement. The oviduct length averaged 23.5 cm. The left testis was heavier and larger in adults and juveniles. Juvenile testes were significantly smaller than adults. Mean testis percent of body weight showed a significant negative correlation to increasing body fat in adults (r=-.66, P≤.01, n=17). In July, the bobwhite diet contained about equal volumes of animal and plant matter but animal matter dropped to 27% in August. Seeds of Sassafras albidum and grasshoppers were the most abundant plant and animal foods. Because of the increasing body weight and fat percent, the seemingly unstressed biochemical values and normal gonad development, late summer quail appeared to be in good condition. Studies to determine the physiologic condition of a population often entail special sampling and lengthy analytical procedures. A simpler method of assessing condition would be needed for yearly evaluations of a managed, wild population. Bobwhite wings are collected annually by some wildlife agencies and represent a potential source of valuable physiologic information. Twenty six bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus) were collected from Tall Timbers Research Station during the winter of 1981. Fat was extracted from the total body, the total feathers, the left wing and the left wing feathers. Fat levels of the wing and the total body were compared. The significance of feathers in the fat comparisons was determined. Only juvenile males showed a significant correlation between wing and total body fat weights (r=.87, P≤.05, n=6) and percentages (r=.79, P≤.06, n=6). A significant correlation was not found between wing and total body fat when data were pooled. There was a significant difference between the fat of the wing and total body when fat was expressed as a percentage of oven-dry weight (P=.004). Wing fat proved to be a poor index of total lipid reserves in this study. Though feather fat contributed significantly to total body and wing fat, it weakened the correlations between the wing and body in the feathered and unfeathered analyses. The left wing feathers comprised 32.5% of total feather fat. The significant variation in wing feather fat (c.v.= 1.41) indicated that exclusion of feathers from fat comparisons was preferable. Fat levels were not significantly affected by variation of wet body weights. Fat weight was significantly correlated to oven-dry weight in the body, but not in the wing

The Use of Embark in Teaching About Genetic Relatedness

Because of the increasing importance of precision medicine, it is vital that future healthcare providers master concepts related to genetic variation taught during their undergraduate classes. However, studies have shown that physicians often lack an adequate understanding of genetics, which serves as a hindrance to effectively caring for their patients. To address this issue, we created a collaborative active-learning protocol to improve pre-health students\u27 comprehension of key concepts such as genetic relatedness and the source of genetic variation between siblings. Our worksheet guides students to compare the genetic profiles of two canine siblings using the Embark DNA genotyping platform. Embark direct-to-consumer tests provide curated genetic information about an individual dog’s health conditions, traits, breed composition and DNA relatives. The target audience for our worksheet is an advanced genetics course at the University of Mississippi

Emitted Power Of Jupiter Based On Cassini CIRS And VIMS Observations

The emitted power of Jupiter and its meridional distribution are determined from observations by the Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS) and Visual and Infrared Spectrometer (VIMS) onboard Cassini during its flyby en route to Saturn in late 2000 and early 2001. Jupiter's global- average emitted power and effective temperature are measured to be 14.10+/-0.03 W/sq m and 125.57+/-0.07 K, respectively. On a global scale, Jupiter's 5-micron thermal emission contributes approx. 0.7+/-0.1 % to the total emitted power at the global scale, but it can reach approx. 1.9+/-0.6% at 15degN. The meridional distribution of emitted power shows a significant asymmetry between the two hemispheres with the emitted power in the northern hemisphere 3.0+/-0.3% larger than that in the southern hemisphere. Such an asymmetry shown in the Cassini epoch (2000-01) is not present during the Voyager epoch (1979). In addition, the global-average emitted power increased approx. 3.8+/-1.0% between the two epochs. The temporal variation of Jupiter's total emitted power is mainly due to the warming of atmospheric layers around the pressure level of 200 mbar. The temporal variation of emitted power was also discovered on Saturn (Li et al., 2010). Therefore, we suggest that the varying emitted power is a common phenomenon on the giant planets