Note and Comment

Power of the US Supreme Court to Enforce Judgments Against States - In the year 1460, when the perogatives of sovereignty or at least of the Crown were asserted in England much more vigorously than they are today, the Counseill of the right high and mighty Prynce Richard Duc of York, brought into the Parliament Chambre a writyng conteignyng the clayme and title of the right, that the seid Duc pretended unto the Corones of Englond and of Fraunce, and Lordship of Trelond, and the same writyng delyvered to the Right Reverent Fader in God George Bishop of Excestre, Chaunceller of Englond, desiryng hym that the same writyng myght be opened to the Lordes Spirituelx and Temporelx assembled in this present Parlement, and that the seid Duc myght have brief and expedient answere thereof. Whereupon the lords, apparently embarrassed by this extraordinary manifestation of confidence in them, declared that the said writyng shuld be radde and herd, not to be answered without the Kyngs commaundement, for so moche as the mater is so high, and of soo grete wyght and poyse.\u27 Vhen four days later the petition was again urgently presented therupon incontynent all the seid Lordes Spirituelx and Temporelx went to the Kyngs high presence, and therunto opened and declared the seid mater, by the mouth of his said Chaunceller of Englond. The King was graciously pleased to command the lords that they should serche for to fynde in asmuch as in them was, all such thyngs as myght be objecte and leyde ayenst the cleyme and title of the seid Duc. And though the King\u27s command could scarcely be regarded as indicating a judicial inquiry, the lords in their extremity sent for the Kyngs Justices into the Parlement Chambre, to have their avis and Counsell in this behalf, * * * * sadly to take avisament therin, and to serche and fynde all such objections as myght be leyde ayenst the same, in fortefying of the Kynges right. Duke of York\u27s Claim to the Crown, 5 Rot. ParI., 375, I Wambaugh\u27s Cas. Const. Law, I

Using contributing student pedagogy to enhance support for teamworking in computer science projects

This paper discusses an enhancement project completed at two Universities in the United Kingdom (UK). It is an example of contributing student pedagogy [9], exploring why whilst teamworking is valued by employers, its inclusion is less well received by learners themselves [2, 14, 25]. The work began as part of the Cardiff University Student Education Innovation Projects (CUSEIP) Scheme which provides opportunities for staff and placement students to work collaboratively on learning and teaching projects. The work explores learners’ perceptions and experiences of teamworking before and as part of taught courses which are then intercalated into an evolving set of guidelines and used to inform further enhancements. The original guidelines were developed by the CUSEIP student. The approach and outcomes will be of interest to others engaged in the delivery and enhancement of student teamwork within computing related programmes and potentially other disciplines

Sinking Organic Particles in the Ocean—Flux Estimates From in situ Optical Devices

Optical particle measurements are emerging as an important technique for understanding the ocean carbon cycle, including contributions to estimates of their downward flux, which sequesters carbon dioxide (CO2) in the deep sea. Optical instruments can be used from ships or installed on autonomous platforms, delivering much greater spatial and temporal coverage of particles in the mesopelagic zone of the ocean than traditional techniques, such as sediment traps. Technologies to image particles have advanced greatly over the last two decades, but the quantitative translation of these immense datasets into biogeochemical properties remains a challenge. In particular, advances are needed to enable the optimal translation of imaged objects into carbon content and sinking velocities. In addition, different devices often measure different optical properties, leading to difficulties in comparing results. Here we provide a practical overview of the challenges and potential of using these instruments, as a step toward improvement and expansion of their applications

Fermi Large Area Telescope Constraints on the Gamma-ray Opacity of the Universe

The Extragalactic Background Light (EBL) includes photons with wavelengths from ultraviolet to infrared, which are effective at attenuating gamma rays with energy above ~10 GeV during propagation from sources at cosmological distances. This results in a redshift- and energy-dependent attenuation of the gamma-ray flux of extragalactic sources such as blazars and Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs). The Large Area Telescope onboard Fermi detects a sample of gamma-ray blazars with redshift up to z~3, and GRBs with redshift up to z~4.3. Using photons above 10 GeV collected by Fermi over more than one year of observations for these sources, we investigate the effect of gamma-ray flux attenuation by the EBL. We place upper limits on the gamma-ray opacity of the Universe at various energies and redshifts, and compare this with predictions from well-known EBL models. We find that an EBL intensity in the optical-ultraviolet wavelengths as great as predicted by the "baseline" model of Stecker et al. (2006) can be ruled out with high confidence.Comment: 42 pages, 12 figures, accepted version (24 Aug.2010) for publication in ApJ; Contact authors: A. Bouvier, A. Chen, S. Raino, S. Razzaque, A. Reimer, L.C. Reye

Vetting of 384 TESS Objects of Interest with TRICERATOPS and Statistical Validation of 12 Planet Candidates

We present TRICERATOPS, a new Bayesian tool that can be used to vet and validate TESS Objects of Interest (TOIs). We test the tool on 68 TOIs that have been previously confirmed as planets or rejected as astrophysical false positives. By looking in the false positive probability (FPP) -- nearby false positive probability (NFPP) plane, we define criteria that TOIs must meet to be classified as validated planets (FPP < 0.015 and NFPP < 10^-3), likely planets (FPP 10^-1). We apply this procedure on 384 unclassified TOIs and statistically validate 12, classify 125 as likely planets, and classify 52 as likely nearby false positives. Of the 12 statistically validated planets, 9 are newly validated. TRICERATOPS is currently the only TESS vetting and validation tool that models transits from nearby contaminant stars in addition to the target star. We therefore encourage use of this tool to prioritize follow-up observations that confirm bona fide planets and identify false positives originating from nearby stars.Comment: Accepted to A

Multi-scale waves in sound-proof global simulations with EULAG

EULAG is a computational model for simulating flows across a wide range of scales and physical scenarios. A standard option employs an anelastic approximation to capture nonhydrostatic effects and simultaneously filter sound waves from the solution. In this study, we examine a localized gravity wave packet generated by instabilities in Held-Suarez climates. Although still simplified versus the Earth’s atmosphere, a rich set of planetary wave instabilities and ensuing radiated gravity waves can arise. Wave packets are observed that have lifetimes ≤ 2 days, are negligibly impacted by Coriolis force, and do not show the rotational effects of differential jet advection typical of inertia-gravity waves. Linear modal analysis shows that wavelength, period, and phase speed fit the dispersion equation to within a mean difference of ∼ 4%, suggesting an excellent fit. However, the group velocities match poorly even though a propagation of uncertainty analysis indicates that they should be predicted as well as the phase velocities. Theoretical arguments suggest the discrepancy is due to nonlinearity — a strong southerly flow leads to a critical surface forming to the southwest of the wave packet that prevents the expected propagation