2,819 research outputs found
Petrogenesis and tectonic implications of cordierite-orthoamphibole gneisses (COG) in the NW Wyoming Province
Studying cordierite orthoamphibole gneisses (COG) from five different mountain ranges across the Montana Metasedimentary Terrane (MMT) of the Wyoming Province offers a unique opportunity to elucidate the enigmatic origins and petrogenesis of the lithology in addition to gaining a further understanding of Precambrian crustal assembly processes. Geochemical analyses suggest that COG originates from a basalt that underwent metasomatic alteration, likely via seawater, prior to metamorphism. Moreover, COG is considered to represent oceanic crust that was part of the epicontinental sea adjacent to the Wyoming Province before collision with the Medicine Hat Block. Field observations of associated lithologies such as marbles, quartzites, and amphibolites provide context for the interpretation of the geologic environment which coincides with the proposed petrogenetic model. Petrography and phase equilibria models show that COG retains a robust geologic record that includes ocean basin closure prior to collision, the tectonics of the Big Sky Orogeny (ca. 1.78-1.72 Ga), and the regional tectonic unroofing and orogenic collapse that followed. Phase equilibria models from across the MMT depict an overall trend of thermotectonic conditions in the Big Sky Orogeny being the highest in the Tobacco Root Mountains and decreasing in grade as you increase in proximity to Giletti’s Line. However, the Highland Mountains are considered the exception to this trend, as they are interpreted to be island arc terrane that was accreted onto the margin of the Province during basin closure
Jump-Starting the Internet Revolution: How Structural Conduciveness and Global Connections Help Diffuse the Internet
The growing perception that the Internet is becoming an engine of global economic and social change has inspired both governments and intergovernmental agencies to accelerate the diffusion of the Internet around the globe via multimillion dollar programs and initiatives. Unfortunately, few empirical studies guide these initiatives. The purpose of this research is to investigate the causes that drive Internet capacity, with special emphasis on diffusion theory. Global diffusion of IT requires some degree of structural conduciveness (similarities between developed and developing countries in economic, political, and social structures) as well as contact with developed countries. In our pooled time-series models of 58 developing nations over the 1995-2000 time period, we find that both structural conduciveness (i.e., teledensity, service economies, political openness, and global urban share) and globalization (i.e., aid share, tourist share, foreign investment share, and trade share) shape the distribution and growth of Internet usage
Simultaneous X-ray and Ultraviolet spectroscopy of the Seyfert galaxy NGC 5548. III. X-ray time variability
The Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 5548 was observed for a week by Chandra using both
the HETGS and LETGS spectrometers. In this paper we study the time variability
of the continuum radiation. During our observation, the source showed a gradual
increase in flux over four days, followed by a rapid decrease and flattening of
the light curve afterwards. Superimposed upon these relatively slow variations
several short duration bursts or quasi-periodic oscillations occured with a
typical duration of several hours and separation between 0.6-0.9 days. The
bursts show a delay of the hard X-rays with respect to the soft X-rays of a few
hours. We interprete these bursts as due to a rotating, fluctuating hot spot at
approximately 10 gravitational radii; the time delay of the hard X-rays from
the bursts agree with the canonical picture of Inverse Compton scattering of
the soft accretion disk photons on a hot medium that is relatively close to the
central black hole.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and
Astrophysic
The Lotic Intersite Nitrogen Experiments: an example of successful ecological research collaboration
Collaboration is an essential skill for modern ecologists because it brings together diverse expertise, viewpoints, and study systems. The Lotic Intersite Nitrogen eXperiments (LINX I and II), a 17-y research endeavor involving scores of early- to late-career stream ecologists, is an example of the benefits, challenges, and approaches of successful collaborative research in ecology. The scientific success of LINX reflected tangible attributes including clear scientific goals (hypothesis-driven research), coordinated research methods, a team of cooperative scientists, excellent leadership, extensive communication, and a philosophy of respect for input from all collaborators. Intangible aspects of the collaboration included camaraderie and strong team chemistry. LINX further benefited from being part of a discipline in which collaboration is a tradition, clear data-sharing and authorship guidelines, an approach that melded field experiments and modeling, and a shared collaborative goal in the form of a universal commitment to see the project and resulting data products through to completion
Spatially-Resolved Spectra of the "Teacup" AGN: Tracing the History of a Dying Quasar
The Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Galaxy Zoo project has revealed a number
of spectacular galaxies possessing Extended Emission-Line Regions (EELRs), the
most famous being Hanny's Voorwerp galaxy. We present another EELR object
discovered in the SDSS endeavor: the Teacup Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN),
nicknamed for its EELR, which has a handle like structure protruding 15 kpc
into the northeast quadrant of the galaxy. We analyze physical conditions of
this galaxy with long-slit ground based spectroscopy from Lowell, Lick, and
KPNO observatories. With the Lowell 1.8m Perkin's telescope we took multiple
observations at different offset positions, allowing us to recover spatially
resolved spectra across the galaxy. Line diagnostics indicate the ionized gas
is photoionized primarily by the AGN. Additionally we are able to derive the
hydrogen density from the [S II] 6716/6731 ratio. We generated two-component
photoionization models for each spatially resolved Lowell spectrum. These
models allow us to calculate the AGN bolometric luminosity seen by the gas at
different radii from the nuclear center of the Teacup. Our results show a drop
in bolometric luminosity by more than two orders of magnitude from the EELR to
the nucleus, suggesting that the AGN has decreased in luminosity by this amount
in a continuous fashion over 46,000 years, supporting the case for a dying AGN
in this galaxy independent of any IR based evidence. We demonstrate that
spatially resolved photoionization modeling could be applied to EELRs to
investigate long time scale variability.Comment: 38 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journa
Transnationalism and Social Work Education
Transnational movements, networks, and relationships are everywhere in this “world on the move” (Williams & Graham, 2014, p. i1). Transnational peoples maintain relationships of interdependence and support with families and communities in their places of origin, often returning regularly, while starting new lives and making new connections. Transnationalism is characterized by mobilities and networks, by social integration, and by extended and extensive relationship ties of family, neighborhood, religious faith, or combinations thereof (Valtonen, 2008). While disciplines across the world including sociology, human geography, and cultural anthropology engage with the implications of transnationalism (Bauböck & Faist, 2010), social work in England and mainland Europe has not achieved similar levels of engagement. As Cox and Geisen state: “the social world is being transformed by migration and social work is playing catch-up” (2014, p. i162)
Simultaneous X-ray and UV spectroscopy of the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 5548.II. Physical conditions in the X-ray absorber
We present the results from a 500 ks Chandra observation of the Seyfert 1
galaxy NGC 5548. We detect broadened emission lines of O VII and C VI in the
spectra, similar to those observed in the optical and UV bands. The source was
continuously variable, with a 30 % increase in luminosity in the second half of
the observation. No variability in the warm absorber was detected between the
spectra from the first 170 ks and the second part of the observation. The
velocity structure of the X-ray absorber is consistent with the velocity
structure measured simultaneously in the ultraviolet spectra. We find that the
highest velocity outflow component, at -1040 km/s, becomes increasingly
important for higher ionization parameters. This velocity component spans at
least three orders of magnitude in ionization parameter, producing both highly
ionized X-ray absorption lines (Mg XII, Si XIV) as well as UV absorption lines.
A similar conclusion is very probable for the other four velocity components.
Based upon our observations, we argue that the warm absorber probably does not
manifest itself in the form of photoionized clumps in pressure equilibrium with
a surrounding wind. Instead, a model with a continuous distribution of column
density versus ionization parameter gives an excellent fit to our data. From
the shape of this distribution and the assumption that the mass loss through
the wind should be smaller than the accretion rate onto the black hole, we
derive upper limits to the solid angle as small as 10^{-4} sr. From this we
argue that the outflow occurs in density-stratified streamers. The density
stratification across the stream then produces the wide range of ionization
parameter observed in this source. Abridged.Comment: 21 pages, 12 figures accepted for publication in A&
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