58,799 research outputs found
Anthony\u27s Silence: The Intersection of Sex, Gender and Race in \u3cem\u3eDesigning Women\u3c/em\u3e
Editor\u27s Note: Lynn H. Turner and Helen Sterk examine one small part of the Designing Women script, a short speech by Anthony (one of the series\u27 regulars). They argue that, as the only African American male in the series, Anthony was in a unique position to examine the gender and race issues posed by the Thomas/Hill hearings, and by the Thomas nomination itself. Calling on writings by African .American scholars commenting on the Senate hearings and on race and gender issues generally, the authors conclude that the structure of Anthony\u27s speech represents a missed opportunity
Extrema statistics in the dynamics of a non-Gaussian random field
When the equations that govern the dynamics of a random field are nonlinear,
the field can develop with time non-Gaussian statistics even if its initial
condition is Gaussian. Here, we provide a general framework for calculating the
effect of the underlying nonlinear dynamics on the relative densities of maxima
and minima of the field. Using this simple geometrical probe, we can identify
the size of the non-Gaussian contributions in the random field, or
alternatively the magnitude of the nonlinear terms in the underlying equations
of motion. We demonstrate our approach by applying it to an initially Gaussian
field that evolves according to the deterministic KPZ equation, which models
surface growth and shock dynamics.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure
The PL calibration for Milky Way Cepheids and its implications for the distance scale
The rationale behind recent calibrations of the Cepheid PL relation using the
Wesenheit formulation is reviewed and reanalyzed, and it is shown that recent
conclusions regarding a possible change in slope of the PL relation for
short-period and long-period Cepheids are tied to a pathological distribution
of HST calibrators within the instability strip. A recalibration of the
period-luminosity relation is obtained using Galactic Cepheids in open clusters
and groups, the resulting relationship, described by log L/L_sun =
2.415(+-0.035) + 1.148(+-0.044)log P, exhibiting only the moderate scatter
expected from color spread within the instability strip. The relationship is
confirmed by Cepheids with HST parallaxes, although without the need for
Lutz-Kelker corrections, and in general by Cepheids with revised Hipparcos
parallaxes, albeit with concerns about the cited precisions of the latter. A
Wesenheit formulation of Wv = -2.259(+-0.083) - 4.185(+-0.103)log P for
Galactic Cepheids is tested successfully using Cepheids in the inner regions of
the galaxy NGC 4258, confirming the independent geometrical distance
established for the galaxy from OH masers. Differences between the extinction
properties of interstellar and extragalactic dust may yet play an important
role in the further calibration of the Cepheid PL relation and its application
to the extragalactic distance scale.Comment: Accepted for Publication (Astrophysics & Space Science
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