Studies on Physical Properties of Snow Based on Multi Channel Microwave Radiometer

The analysis of the data observed over a snow field with a breadboard model of MSR (microwave scanning radiometer) to be installed in MOS-1 (Marine Observation Satellite-1) indicates that: (1) the influence of incident angle on brightness temperature is larger in horizontal polarization component than in vertical polarization component. The effect of incident angle depends upon the property of snow with larger value for dry snow; (2) the difference of snow surface configuration consisting of artifically made parallel ditches of 5 cm depth and 5 cm width with spacing of 10 and 30 cm respectively which are oriented normal to electrical axis do not affect brightness temperature significantly; and (3) there is high negative correlation between brightness temperature and snow depth up to the depth of 70 cm which suggests that the snow depth can be measured with a two channel microwave radiometer up to this depth

Application of ERTS data to the detection of thin cirrus and clean air turbulence

The author has identified the following significant results. The feasibility of detecting a thin cirrus and clear air turbulence from ERTS-1 MSS data is explored. The result of analyses indicates that a thin cirrus not shown in a conventional meteorological satellite picture can be revealed in ERTS-1 MSS pictures. Is also found that the core of jet stream can be located with high accuracy from ERTS-1 pictures and the possible area of clear air turbulence can be predicted if the data of the quality of ERTS-1 data are available in real time

Study of mesoscale phenomena, winter monsoon clouds and snow area based on LANDSAT data

The author has identified the following significant results. Most longitudinal clouds which appear as continuous linear clouds are composed of small transversal clouds. There are mountain waves of different wavelength in a comparatively narrow area indicating complicated orographical effects on wind and temperature distribution or on both dynamical and static stability condition. There is a particular shape of cirrus cloud suggestive of turbulence in the vicinity of CAT in the upper troposphere near jet stream level and its cold air side. Thin cirrus of overcast condition can be distinguished by MSS; however, extremely thin cirrus of partly cloudy condition cannot be detected even in LANDSAT data. This presents a serious problem in the interpretation of satellite thermal infrared radiation data since they affect the value

Quantum Gravity and Black Hole Dynamics in 1+1 Dimensions

We study the quantum theory of 1+1 dimensional dilaton gravity, which is an interesting toy model of the black hole dynamics. The functional measures are explicitly evaluated and the physical state conditions corresponding to the Hamiltonian and the momentum constraints are derived. It is pointed out that the constraints form the Virasoro algebra without central charge. In ADM formalism the measures are very ambiguous, but in our formalism they are explicitly defined. Then the new features which are not seen in ADM formalism come out. A singularity appears at \df^2 =\kappa (>0) , where $\kappa =(N-51/2)/12$ and $N$ is the number of matter fields. Behind the singularity the quantum mechanical region \kappa > \df^2 >0 extends, where the sign of the kinetic term in the Hamiltonian constraint changes. If $\kappa <0$, the singularity disappears. We discuss the quantum dynamics of black hole and then give a suggestion for the resolution of the information loss paradox. We also argue the quantization of the spherically symmetric gravitational system in 3+1 dimensions. In appendix the differences between the other quantum dilaton gravities and ours are clarified and our status is stressed.Comment: phyztex, UT-Komaba 92-14. A few misleading sentences are corrected and some references are adde

Application of ERTS data to the detection of thin cirrus and clear air turbulence

The feasibility of detecting a thin cirrus and clear air turbulence from ERTS MSS data is explored. The result of analyses indicates that a thin cirrus not shown in conventional meteorological satellite picture can be revealed in ERTS MSS picture. It is also found that the core of jet stream can be located with high accuracy from ERTS pictures and the possible area of clear air turbulence can be predicted if the data of the quality of ERTS data are available in real time

Orphan drugs and the NHS: Should we value rarity

Cost effectiveness plays an important part in current decisions about the funding of health technologies. Drugs for rare disease (orphan drugs) are often expensive to produce and, by definition, will benefit only small numbers of patients. Several countries have put measures in place to safeguard research and development of orphan drugs, but few get close to meeting the cost effectiveness criteria for funding by healthcare providers. We examine the justifications for special status for rare diseases and ask whether the cost effectiveness of drugs for rare or very rare diseases should be treated differently from that of other drugs and interventions

Abelian Conformal Field theories and Determinant Bundles

The present paper is the first in a series of papers, in which we shall construct modular functors and Topological Quantum Field Theories from the conformal field theory developed in [TUY]. The basic idea is that the covariant constant sections of the sheaf of vacua associated to a simple Lie algebra over Teichm\"uller space of an oriented pointed surface gives the vectorspace the modular functor associates to the oriented pointed surface. However the connection on the sheaf of vacua is only projectively flat, so we need to find a suitable line bundle with a connection, such that the tensor product of the two has a flat connection. We shall construct a line bundle with a connection on any family of pointed curves with formal coordinates. By computing the curvature of this line bundle, we conclude that we actually need a fractional power of this line bundle so as to obtain a flat connection after tensoring. In order to functorially extract this fractional power, we need to construct a preferred section of the line bundle. We shall construct the line bundle by the use of the so-called $bc$-ghost systems (Faddeev-Popov ghosts) first introduced in covariant quantization [FP]. We follow the ideas of [KNTY], but decribe it from the point of view of [TUY].Comment: A couple of typos correcte

Drugs for exceptionally rare diseases: a commentary on Hughes et al

Recently in this journal, Hughes and colleagues discussed special funding status to ultra-orphan drugs. They concluded that there should be a uniform policy for the provision of orphan drugs across Europe; that complete restriction was impractical, and that UK policy should aspire to the values of the EU directive on orphan drugs. We critically assess these arguments, demonstrating that they failed to justify special status for treatments for rare diseases