A Quantitative Analysis of IRAS Maps of Molecular Clouds

We present an analysis of IRAS maps of five molecular clouds: Orion, Ophiuchus, Perseus, Taurus, and Lupus. For the classification and description of these astrophysical maps, we use a newly developed technique which considers all maps of a given type to be elements of a pseudometric space. For each physical characteristic of interest, this formal system assigns a distance function (a pseudometric) to the space of all maps; this procedure allows us to measure quantitatively the difference between any two maps and to order the space of all maps. We thus obtain a quantitative classification scheme for molecular clouds. In this present study we use the IRAS continuum maps at 100$\mu$m and 60$\mu$m to produce column density (or optical depth) maps for the five molecular cloud regions given above. For this sample of clouds, we compute the ``output'' functions which measure the distribution of density, the distribution of topological components, the self-gravity, and the filamentary nature of the clouds. The results of this work provide a quantitative description of the structure in these molecular cloud regions. We then order the clouds according to the overall environmental ``complexity'' of these star forming regions. Finally, we compare our results with the observed populations of young stellar objects in these clouds and discuss the possible environmental effects on the star formation process. Our results are consistent with the recently stated conjecture that more massive stars tend to form in more ``complex'' environments.Comment: 27 pages Plain TeX, submitted to ApJ, UM-AC 93-15, 15 figures available upon reques

Exoplanets, Exo-Solar Life, and Human Significance

With the recent detection of over 500 extrasolar planets, the existence of "other worlds", perhaps even other Earths, is no longer in the realm of science fiction. The study of exoplanets rapidly moved from an activity on the fringe of astronomy to one of the highest priorities of the world's astronomical programs. Actual images of extrasolar planets were revealed over the past two years for the first time. NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is already characterizing the atmospheres of Jupiter-like planets, in other systems. And the recent launch of the NASA Kepler space telescope is enabling the first statistical assessment of how common solar systems like our own really are. As we begin to characterize these "other worlds" and assess their habitability, the question of the significance and uniqueness of life on Earth will impact our society as never before. I will provide a comprehensive overview of the techniques and status of exoplanet detection, followed by reflections as to the societal impact of finding out that Earths are common, or rare. Will finding other potentially habitable planets create another "Copernican Revolution"? Will perceptions of the significance of life on Earth change when we find other Earth-like planets? I will discuss the plans of the scientific community for future telescopes that will be abe to survey our solar neighborhood for Earth-like planets, study their atmospheres, and search for biological signs of life

The Hubble Space Telescope: UV, Visible, and Near-Infrared Pursuits

The Hubble Space Telescope continues to push the limits on world-class astrophysics. Cameras including the Advanced Camera for Surveys and the new panchromatic Wide Field Camera 3 which was installed nu last year's successful servicing mission S2N4,o{fer imaging from near-infrared through ultraviolet wavelengths. Spectroscopic studies of sources from black holes to exoplanet atmospheres are making great advances through the versatile use of STIS, the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph. The new Cosmic Origins Spectrograph, also installed last year, is the most sensitive UV spectrograph to fly io space and is uniquely suited to address particular scientific questions on galaxy halos, the intergalactic medium, and the cosmic web. With these outstanding capabilities on HST come complex needs for laboratory astrophysics support including atomic and line identification data. I will provide an overview of Hubble's current capabilities and the scientific programs and goals that particularly benefit from the studies of laboratory astrophysics

Hubble Space Telescope - Scientific, Technological and Social Contributions to the Public Discourse on Science

The Hubble Space Telescope has unified the world with a sense of awe and wonder for 2 I years and is currently more scientifically powerful than ever. I will present highlights of discoveries made with the Hubble Space Telescope, including details of planetary weather, star formation, extra-solar planets, colliding galaxies, and a universe expanding with the acceleration of dark energy. I will also present the unique technical challenges and triumphs of this phenomenal observatory, and discuss how our discoveries in the cosmos affect our sense of human unity, significance, and wonder

Servicing Mission 4 and the Extraordinary Science of the Hubble Space Telescope

Just two years ago, NASA astronauts performed a challenging and flawless final Space Shuttle servicing mission to the orbiting Hubble Space Telescope. With science instruments repaired on board and two new ones installed, the observatory. is more powerful now than ever before. I will show the dramatic highlights of the servicing mission and present some of the early scientific results from the refurbished telescope. Its high sensitivity and multi-wavelength capabilities are revealing the highest redshift galaxies ever seen, as well as details of the cosmic web of intergalactic medium, large scale structure formation, solar system bodies, and stellar evolution. Enlightening studies of dark matter, dark energy, and exoplanet atmospheres add to the profound contributions to astrophysics that are being made with Hubble, setting a critical stage for future observatories such as the James Webb Space Telescope

VLA Ammonia Observations of IRAS 16253-2429: A Very Young and Low Mass Protostellar System

IRAS l6253-2429. the source of the Wasp-Waist Nebula seen in Spitzer IRAC images, is an isolated very low luminosity ("VeLLO") Class 0 protostar in the nearby rho Ophiuchi cloud. We present VLA ammonia mapping observations of the dense gas envelope feeding the central core accreting system. We find a flattened envelope perpendicular to the outflow axis, and gas cavities that appear to cradle the outflow lobes as though carved out by the flow and associated (apparently precessing) jet. Based on the NH3 (1,1) and (2,2) emission distribution, we derive the mass, velocity fields and temperature distribution for the envelope. We discuss the combined evidence for this source as possibly one of the youngest and lowest mass sources in formation yet known

Understanding and Incentivizing Workforce Housing: A Professional Project for the City of San Luis Obispo

Adding workforce housing to the City of San Luis Obispo Zoning Regulation is a needed component to successfully begin, and promote, the development of housing in the City to those making between 121 and 160% of the Area Median Income. This regulation would ensure eligible households are provided with housing choices within the community, preferably the community in which they work. The addition of Workforce Housing has been a large phenomenon throughout the State of California, and the County as a whole, as housing market prices increase and most salaries maintain at a steady rate. It is important to note that the State of California Housing and Community Development Department currently does not officially categorize workforce housing, effectively banning any funding, subsidy or mandatory incentive to be required by jurisdictions. This professional project provides initial step to the development of a workforce housing ordinance with the needed introductory research and outreach analysis of the current conditions facing our community with regards to workforce housing. It examines case studies of jurisdictions throughout the County who have taken the initial step to acknowledge workforce housing and create successful, and unsuccessful, programs which assist developers and community members with developing workforce housing. An extensive review of scholarly literature was 5 completed to understand the need of workforce housing in both an economic and health and safety need. Outreach was then conducted with local stakeholders to understand the range of barriers, opportunities and recommendations regarding workforce housing, and how City of San Luis Obispo policy could benefit or harm the community. The project concludes with the compilation and analysis of outreach and research to develop incentives and recommendations, found in the Recommendation Analysis, to overcome barriers of workforce housing and begin increasing the supply of quality workforce housing within San Luis Obispo

The Cost of Uncertainty: Navigating the Boundary Between Legal Information and Legal Services in the Access to Justice Sector

The self-regulatory bodies that oversee legal professionals in Canada maintain strict control on the delivery of legal services, and access to justice projects must therefore always be conscious of activities that would violate certain restrictions. Careful adherence to these parameters is made difficult, however, by the lack of clarity about where the relevant boundaries are drawn. Using a project that provides legal assistance for refugees as a case study, this article highlights the challenges that the unclear distinction between “legal information” and “legal services” creates for access to justice initiatives. We conclude that the uncertainty can carry a variety of significant costs—including financial expense, human resource burdens, and unnecessary limits on program innovation—in a sector where affordable and creative solutions are desperately needed as a result of a persistent access to justice crisis. Ultimately, it is not merely the under-resourced access to justice sector that bears these costs, but rather disadvantaged individuals and society as a whole

Formal Results Regarding Metric-Space Techniques for the Study of Astrophysical Maps

We extend a newly developed formal system for the description of astrophysical maps. In this formalism, we consider the difference between maps to be the distance between elements of a pseudometric space (the space of all such maps). This ansatz allows us to measure quantitatively the difference between any two maps and to order the space of all maps. For each physical characteristic of interest, this technique assigns an ``output'' function to each map; the difference between the maps is then determined from the difference between their corresponding output functions. In this present study, we show that the results of this procedure are invariant under a class of transformations of the maps and the domains of the maps. In addition, we study the propagation of errors (observational uncertainties) through this formalism. We show that the uncertainties in the output functions can be controlled provided that the signal to noise ratios in the original astrophysical maps are sufficiently high. The results of this paper thus increase the effectiveness of this formal system for the description, classification, and analysis of astrophysical maps.Comment: 30 pages Plain Tex, submitted to ApJ, UM-AC 93-1

The Cost of Uncertainty: Navigating the Boundary Between Legal Information and Legal Services in the Access to Justice Sector

The self-regulatory bodies that oversee legal professionals in Canada maintain strict control on the delivery of legal services, and access to justice projects must therefore always be conscious of activities that would violate certain restrictions. Careful adherence to these parameters is made difficult, however, by the lack of clarity about where the relevant boundaries are drawn. Using a project that provides legal assistance for refugees as a case study, this article highlights the challenges that the unclear distinction between “legal information” and “legal services” creates for access to justice initiatives. We conclude that the uncertainty can carry a variety of significant costs—including financial expense, human resource burdens, and unnecessary limits on program innovation—in a sector where affordable and creative solutions are desperately needed as a result of a persistent access to justice crisis. Ultimately, it is not merely the under-resourced access to justice sector that bears these costs, but rather disadvantaged individuals and society as a whole