Jewish Studies: Are They Ethnic?

The history of Jewish studies has not yet been written. Scholars engaged in this field, however, are beginning to subject it to searching analysis. Pertinent articles have appeared that offer two extreme positions on the development of Jewish studies: one sees the increase in Jewish studies as the result of heightened Jewish self-awareness during the late 1960s because of the Six Day War, growing interest in the Holocaust, and the influence of rising black and ethnic consciousnesses that resulted in the establishment of academic programs. The other, usually a reaction to the first view, argues that the study of Hebraica and Judaica has held an ancient and honorable place in the traditional university curriculum

The Spaces Between Numbers: Getting International Data on Higher Education Straight

Argues that the participation and attainment data used in international comparisons do not reflect the performance objectives of higher education systems. Suggests economic and demographic frameworks for interpreting data and changes in data collection

Learning Accountability From Bologna: A Higher Education Policy Primer

Outlines issues from the European Higher Education Area's Bologna Process, a framework for standardizing degree qualifications, credits and curriculum reform, and supplementary documentation. Suggests changes to raise accountability in U.S. institutions

Stellar model atmospheres with magnetic line blanketing. III. The role of magnetic field inclination

Context. See abstract in the paper. Aims. In the last paper of this series we study the effects of the magnetic field, varying its strength and orientation, on the model atmosphere structure, the energy distribution, photometric colors and the hydrogen Balmer line profiles. We compare with the previous results for an isotropic case in order to understand whether there is a clear relation between the value of the magnetic field angle and model changes, and to study how important the additional orientational information is. Also, we examine the probable explanation of the visual flux depressions of the magnetic chemically peculiar stars in the context of this work. Methods. We calculated one more grid of the model atmospheres of magnetic A and B stars for different effective temperatures (Teff=8000K, 11000K, 15000K), magnetic field strengths (B=0, 5, 10, 40 kG) and various angles of the magnetic field (Omega=0-90 degr) with respect to the atmosphere plane. We used the LLmodels code which implements a direct method for line opacity calculation, anomalous Zeeman splitting of spectral lines, and polarized radiation transfer. Results. We have not found significant changes in model atmosphere structure, photometric and spectroscopic observables or profiles of hydrogen Balmer lines as we vary the magnetic field inclination angle Omega. The strength of the magnetic field plays the main role in magnetic line blanketing. We show that the magnetic field has a clear relation to the visual flux depressions of the magnetic CP stars. Conclusions. See abstract in the paper.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure

Unfounded Fears About Pollution Trading and Hotspots

EPA emissions inventory and cancer risk data for criteria pollutants and air toxics show clearly that vehicles and small stationary sources emit a majority of the air pollution nationally and account for most of the cancer risks from air toxics. Industrial sources, by contrast, rarely account for more than 10% of cumulative cancer risks from all outdoor sources of air toxics. The observed pattern of emissions is replicated at spatial scales ranging from census tracts to the nation as a whole. The secondary status of industrial facilities as sources of air pollution largely neutralizes the potential for pollution trading programs to cause hotspots. In the vast majority of jurisdictions, industrial emissions are simply too low, and in the few jurisdictions in which disparities cannot be ruled out, targeted policies exist to prevent them without compromising market efficiency. These findings are generalizable to all market-based regulations.The Kay Bailey Hutchison Center for Energy, Law, and Busines