Reconstructing the interaction term between dark matter and dark energy

We apply a parametric reconstruction method to a homogeneous, isotropic and spatially flat Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) cosmological model filled of a fluid of dark energy (DE) with constant equation of state parameter interacting with dark matter (DM). The reconstruction method is based on expansions of the general interaction term and the relevant cosmological variables in terms of Chebyshev polynomials which form a complete set orthonormal functions. This interaction term describes an exchange of energy flow between the DE and DM within dark sector. To show how the method works we do the reconstruction of the interaction function expanding it in terms of only the first three Chebyshev polynomials and obtain the best estimation for the coefficients of the expansion as well as for the DE equation of the state constant parameter w using the type Ia Supernova SCP Union data set (307 SNe-Ia). The preliminary reconstruction shows that in the best scenario there is an energy transfer from DM to DE which worsen the problem of the cosmic coincidence in comparison with the LCDM model. We conclude that this fact is an indication of a serious drawback for the existence of such interaction between dark components.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures, Talk presented at the Conference "Gravitational Physics: Testing gravity from submillimeter to cosmic. Playa del Carmen, Mexico (2009). To appear in Proceedings of the VIII Mexican School on Gravitation and Mathematical Physics, AIP Conference Proceeding

The Impact of Anchorage's 2000 and 2007 Smoke-Free Policies on Select Restaurants and Bars

The American Lung Association in Alaska (ALAA) asked the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) to investigate the impact of the Anchorage 2000 and 2007 Clean Indoor Air (CIA) municipal ordinances on selected restaurants and bars. As previous U.S. studies have been conducted that speak to the economic and health impacts of CIA laws, ALAA also requested that ISER synthesize results of these existing studies and conduct a survey on restaurant and bar representatives’ perceptions of the impact of the ordinances.The American Lung Association in AlaskaExecutive Summary / Introduction / Anchorage Municipal Ordinances / Policy Enforcement / Literature Review: Impact of Smoke-Free Laws on Employment and Air Quality / Methodology / Key Informant Interview Findings / Survey Findings / Limitations / References / Appendice