Discovery of an isolated compact elliptical galaxy in the field

We present the discovery of an isolated compact elliptical (cE) galaxy, found during a search of SDSS DR7 for cEs, and for which we obtained WHT/ACAM imaging. It is ~900 kpc distant from its nearest neighbour, has an effective r-band radius of ~500 pc and a B-band mean surface brightness within its effective radius of 19.75 mag/arcsec. Serendipitous deep SuprimeCam imaging shows that there is no underlying disk. Its isolated position suggests that there is an alternative channel to the stripping scenario for the formation of compact ellipticals. We also report analysis of recent deeper imaging of the previous candidate free-flying cE, which shows that it is, in fact, a normal dwarf elliptical (dE). Hence the new cE reported here is the first confirmed isolated compact elliptical to be found in the field.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figures. Accepted to MNRA

Ambipolar diffusion in smoothed particle magnetohydrodynamics

In partially ionised plasmas, the magnetic field can become decoupled from the neutral gas and diffuse through it in a process known as ambipolar diffusion. Although ambipolar diffusion has been implemented in several grid codes, we here provide an implementation in smoothed particle magnetohydrodynamics (SPMHD). We use the strong coupling approximation in which the ion density is negligible, allowing a single fluid approach. The equations are derived to conserve energy, and to provide a positive definite contribution to the entropy. We test the implementation in both a simple 1D SPMHD code and the fully 3D code PHANTOM. The wave damping test yields agreement within 0.03-2 per cent of the analytical result, depending on the value of the collisional coupling constant. The oblique C-shocks test yields results that typically agree within 4 per cent of the semi-analytical result. Our algorithm is therefore suitable for exploring the effect ambipolar diffusion has on physical processes, such as the formation of stars from molecular clouds.Comment: Accepted for publication by MNRA

Estimates of Marine Mammal, Sea Turtle, and Seabird Mortality in the California Drift Gillnet Fishery for Swordfish and Thresher Shark, 1996–2002

Estimates of incidental marine mammal, sea turtle, and seabird mortality in the California drift gillnet fishery for broadbill swordfish, Xiphias gladius, and common thresher shark, Alopias vulpinus, are summarized for the 7-year period, 1996 to 2002. Fishery observer coverage was 19% over the period (3,369 days observed/17,649 days fished). An experiment to test the effectiveness of acoustic pingers on reducing marine mammal entanglements in this fishery began in 1996 and resulted in statistically significant reductions in marine mammal bycatch. The most commonly entangled marine mammal species were the short-beaked common dolphin, Delphinus delphis; California sea lion, Zalophus californianus; and northern right whale dolphin, Lissodelphis borealis. Estimated mortality by species (CV and observed mortality in parentheses) from 1996 to 2002 is 861 (0.11, 133) short-beaked common dolphins; 553 (0.16, 103) California sea lions; 151 (0.25, 31) northern right whale dolphins; 150 (0.21, 27) northern elephant seals, Mirounga angustirostris; 54 (0.41, 10) long-beaked common dolphins, Delphinus capensis; 44 (0.53, 6) Dall’s porpoise, Phocoenoides dalli; 19 (0.60, 5) Risso’s dolphins, Grampus griseus; 11 (0.71, 2) gray whales, Eschrichtius robustus; 7 (0.83, 2) sperm whales, Physeter macrocephalus; 7 (0.96, 1) short-finned pilot whales, Globicephala macrorhychus; 12 (1.06, 1) minke whales, Balaenoptera acutorostrata; 5 (1.05, 1) fin whales, Balaenoptera physalus; 11 (0.68, 2) unidentified pinnipeds; 33 (0.52, 4) leatherback turtles, Dermochelys coriacea; 18 (0.57, 3) loggerhead turtles, Caretta caretta; 13 (0.73, 3) northern fulmars, Fulmarus glacialis; and 6 (0.86, 2) unidentified birds

Investigation of the Feasibility of Reconstructing a School District Owned Athletic Facility

Frank “Buck” Weeber Gymnasium has been a pillar of the suburban Detroit city River Rouge, Michigan since the 1940’s when the emphasis of athletics became established within the community. The gym is the home of 14 state championship basketball teams (13 boys, 1 girls) and many great athletes. However, in 2000 the gym along with the conjoined high school were closed down due to asbestos and poor piping in favor of a new high school across the street (Price, 2016-1017). The new gym inside the high school lacks the same prestige and luster of the “The Buck.” The purpose of this investigation is to analyze why the gym has been left abandoned for over a decade, has there been any efforts to reestablish, and what problems does one face in pursuit of updating the facility for reopening. There have been efforts to open the gym again under the power of the school district, especially under the leadership of new superintendent Derrick Coleman but the efforts have been futile (Price, 2016-1017). The community cannot support the gym with levies and the like due to economic blight. Investors do not see the promise of “return on investment” from the facility. The community does not spend enough money for a sponsor or sponsors to feel comfortable paying in total of roughly $2 million to update the facility. The promising factor is the social construct and feeling of pride the venue hosts within the community may be powerful enough to garner support from citizens to the point where community effort trumps economic woes. However, this looks unlikely for the successful natives of the city are likely to leave the city after success, only to return for special events (Price, 2016-1017). These analytical efforts have led to the development of a SWOT analysis after various investigative conversations with city officials and citizens interested in seeing the gym reopen

Establishing the relationship of inhaler satisfaction, treatment adherence, and patient outcomes : A prospective, real-world, cross-sectional survey of US adult asthma patients and physicians

Date of Acceptance: 26/06/2015 Acknowledgements The disease-specific program, on which the analyses were based, was designed and run by Adelphi Real World. The program was supported by a number of pharmaceutical companies, including Meda Pharmaceuticals. This specific analysis, together with this publication, was supported by Meda Pharmaceuticals. The decision to publish was made jointly by all authors cited. Medical writing support and literature searching was provided by Carole Alison Chrvala, PhD of Health Matters, Inc.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Administrative Internship, Mt. Zion Community School District #3

Ideally, the best approach to learning administration for educational institutions is to observe the work of administrators in the field. While it is overly pretentious to advocate ascertaining all functions of one office, it is possible to develop a working knowledge of the primary responsibilities involved in several positions, namely, the central office administration. Under the direction of the Superintendent of Schools, the Assistant Superintendent, and the Director of Guidance for Mt. Zion Schools this writer has acquired such working knowledge. Although the basic theory for role development of each of these positions is transmitted in this paper, it is imperative that the reader be cognizant of the fact that each topic contained could indeed be expanded to a volume of its own. Foremost in this study is information as it pertains to three general areas: district operations, personnel procedures, and student services. Responsibility for district operations is, of course, vested in the Superintendent of Schools. For purposes of examining the superintendent\u27s role, the reader will find information on school board meetings, financial affairs, the school calendar, and professional negotiations. Activites of the Assistant Superintendent are reported on and discussed as they relate to employment of staff, evaluation of staff, district transportation, and student conduct codes. With the growing trend for utilization of data processing equipment, it is essential for the school administrator to be able to apply these systems as needed. The most valuable instance for computer input in schools over 500 enrollment involves the processing of data for registration and scheduling. Materials to support administrative operations are presented in the appendix for future use and development by an administrator. It is reasonable to assume that with this information, the potential administrator will be equipped with basic theory for successful operations of the central office

Metrics of hurricane-ocean interaction : vertically-integrated or vertically-averaged ocean temperature?

© 2009 The Author. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. The definitive version was published in Ocean Science 5 (2009): 351-368, doi:10.5194/os-5-351-2009The ocean thermal field is often represented in hurricane-ocean interaction by a metric termed upper Ocean Heat Content (OHC), the vertical integral of ocean temperature in excess of 26°C. High values of OHC have proven useful for identifying ocean regions that are especially favorable for hurricane intensification. Nevertheless, it is argued here that a more direct and robust metric of the ocean thermal field may be afforded by a vertical average of temperature. In the simplest version, dubbed T100, the averaging is from the surface to 100 m, a typical depth of vertical mixing by a category 3 hurricane. OHC and T100 are well correlated over the deep open ocean in the high range of OHC, ≥75 kJ cm−2. They are poorly correlated in the low range of OHC, ≤50 kJ cm−2, in part because OHC is degenerate when evaluated on cool ocean regions, ≤26°C. OHC and T100 can be qualitatively different also over shallow continental shelves: OHC will generally indicate comparatively low values regardless of the ocean temperature, while T100 will take on high values over a shelf that is warm and upwelling neutral or negative. In so far as the ocean thermal field alone is concerned, these warm, shallow continental shelves would appear to be as favorable for hurricane intensification as are warm, deep ocean regions.This research was supported by the US Office of Naval Research through the project Impact of Typhoons on the Western North Pacific (ITOP)

Responding to Natural Hazards: The Effects of Disaster on Residential Location Decisions and Health Outcomes

Exposure to natural hazards is rapidly increasing due to growing populations within floodplains and along hazard-prone coastlines. This trend, coupled with potential increases in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events from climate change, underscores the importance of disaster research and continued advancements in hazard risk mitigation. This dissertation conducts analyses regarding the effects of natural hazards on residential location choice, county migration rates, mental health status, and displacement. The results have practical implications for disaster risk management. Chapter 2 estimates household willingness-to-pay to live in lower hazard-risk areas. A model of residential location choice is developed in which households select the location that maximizes expected utility. Empirical estimates are obtained using a two-stage estimation process that exploits spatial variation in labor markets, housing markets, and environmental amenities across U.S. metropolitan statistical areas. Results indicate an annual willingness-to-pay of $275 per household for a marginal reduction in the expected number of earthquake, hurricane, and flood events per 1000 years. Chapter 3 estimates the relationship between county-level net in-migration rates and the expected frequency of hazard events. Empirical estimation is complicated by the presence of spatial dependency and heterogeneity. These issues are addressed using spatial simultaneous autoregressive estimation and geographically weighted regression. Results show that net in-migration rates are negatively correlated with expected frequency. Moreover, the effects of hazard risk are strongest in the Southern U.S.; a region susceptible to increased hazard intensity from climate change. Chapter 4 contains two separate analyses regarding the wellbeing of individuals affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The first analysis evaluates the effect of post-disaster stress and vulnerability on long-term mental health. Results show that the likelihood of being diagnosed with an adverse mental health condition increases with stress and vulnerability levels. The second analysis evaluates the determinants of displacement and the duration of displacement. Results show that housing damage is the most important predictor of displacement and displacement duration. Social support has a positive impact on displacement but a negative impact on the displacement duration, implying that social networks provide accommodations during hazard events as well as assistance in returning home