FUSE Observations of Galactic and Intrinsic Absorption in the Spectrum of the Seyfert 1 Galaxy 2MASX J21362313-6224008

We present the far-ultraviolet spectrum of the Seyfert 1 galaxy 2MASX J21362313-6224008 obtained with the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE). The spectrum features absorption from Galactic OVI at two velocities and redshifted HI Lyman beta and gamma, CII, CIII, and O VI. The redshifted absorption features represent a single kinematic component blueshifted by ~310 km/s relative to the AGN. We use photoionization models to derive constraints on the physical parameters of the absorbing gas. An alternative interpretation for the absorption lines is also proposed, whereby the absorbing gas is associated with an intervening galaxy cluster.Comment: Astrophysical Journal, in pres

Constitutional Law - Equal Protection - Racial Segregation of Spectator Seating in Courtroom

Defendant, judge of a municipal court in Virginia, assigned seating on the basis of race in that part of his courtroom reserved for spectators and for those awaiting the call of their business before the court. The same number of seats were provided for Negroes as for whites. There was no separation of the races in the area immediately before the bench nor was there any complaint of discrimination in the administration of justice. Plaintiffs are Negroes who have been required on more than one occasion to occupy seats in the spectator section on a racially-segregated basis. In a suit brought in the federal district court for a declaratory judgment and injunctive relief, held, complaint dismissed. Plaintiffs had no rights granted or guaranteed by the Constitution which were violated by the practice of racially-segregated seating in the spectator portion of a state courtroom. Wells v. Gilliam, 196 F. Supp. 792 (E.D. Va. 1961)

Taxation - Federal Income Tax - Deductibility of Seminar Cruise as Business Expense

Petitioner, a physician, participated in a postgraduate medical seminar held aboard a passenger ship during an eighteen-day cruise of the Mediterranean. A number of hour-long lectures followed by discussion periods were held on the ship during each of the six or seven days it was at sea and occasionally while in port; additional study was not required. Petitioner spent most of his time in leisurely activities aboard ship and in sightseeing. All expenses of the course and cruise were included in one charge which petitioner claimed as an ordinary and necessary business expense under section 162 (a) . The Commissioner of Internal Revenue disallowed the deduction. On petition to the Tax Court, held, only a small part of the total cost was an ordinary and necessary business expense because of the vacation aspect of the cruise, similar courses offered in the United States, the number and extent of the lectures, the usefulness of the subject matter, and the petitioner\u27s economic and social position. Reuben B. Hoover, 35 T.C. 566 (1961)

Footprinting with MPE•Fe(II). Complementary-strand analyses of distamycin- and actinomycin-binding sites on heterogeneous DNA

We recently reported a direct technique for determining the binding sites of small molecules on naturally occurring heterogeneous DNA (Van Dyke et al. 1982). Methidiumpropyl-EDTA·Fe(II) (MPE·Fe[II]) (Hertzberg and Dervan 1982) cleaves double-helical DNA with low sequence-specificity (Van Dyke et al. 1982). Using a combination of MPE·Fe(II) partial cleavage of drug-protected DNA fragments and Maxam-Gilbert sequencing methods, we determined the drug-protected sites on one strand of a double-helical fragment from pBR322 for the intercalator actinomycin D (Goldberg et al. 1962; Muller and Crothers 1968; Wells and Larson 1970; Sobell 1973; Krugh 1981; Patel et al. 1981; Takusagawa et al. 1982) and the minor-groove binders netropsin and distamycin A (Luck et al. 1974; Wartell et al. 1974; Zimmer 1975; Berman et al. 1979; Krylov et al. 1979). Netropsin and distamycin A gave identical DNA-cleavage inhibition patterns or footprints in regions rich in dA·dT base pairs. Actinomycin D afforded a completely different footprint..

Radiation Injuries: Statute of Limitations Inadequacies in Tort Cases

Some injuries from overexposure to radiation may manifest themselves within existing statutory limitations periods, at least under some liberal ( or loose) judicial interpretations. Many injurious manifestations, however, will not arise for a great many years after exposure; it is the thesis of this article that some new legislative solutions must be adopted. Limiting the right to sue to the existing time periods as construed by many courts will be manifestly unfair to plaintiffs. A blanket, unconditional extension of the time period to as much as thirty years for all cases regardless of the local rule as to when the cause of action accrues, however, will place unrealistic burdens on defendants. This article, after first analyzing in detail the impact and inadequacies of existing statutory time limitations for radiation cases, will outline some more realistic provisions which legislatures should enact. The analysis here will be limited to general tort liability cases, workmen\u27s compensation problems already having been considered in a companion article

Discovery of an OVI Emitting Nebula around the Hot White Dwarf KPD 0005+5106

A survey of diffuse interstellar sight lines observed with the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer has led to the serendipitous discovery of a high-ionization nebula around the hot white dwarf KPD 0005+5106. The nebula has an OVI 1032A surface brightness of up to 25,000 photons/s/cm^2/sr, making it the brightest region of extended OVI emission in our survey. Photoionization models using the incident white dwarf continuum successfully reproduce the observed OVI intensity. The OVI emission arises in the highly ionized inner region of a planetary nebula around KPD 0005+5106. This newly discovered nebula may be one member of a class of high-ionization planetary nebulae that are difficult to detect in the optical, but which can be easily identified in the ultraviolet.Comment: accepted for publication in ApJL, 11 pages including 2 figure