The 11.2 μ\mum emission of PAHs in astrophysical objects

The 11.2 $\mu$m emission band belongs to the family of the `Unidentified' Infrared (UIR) emission bands seen in many astronomical environments. In this work we present a theoretical interpretation of the band characteristics and profile variation for a number of astrophysical sources in which the carriers are subject to a range of physical conditions. The results of Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations for the solo out-of-plane (OOP) vibrational bending modes of large polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) molecules are used as input for a detailed emission model which includes the temperature and mass dependence of PAH band wavelength, and a PAH mass distribution that varies with object. Comparison of the model with astronomical spectra indicates that the 11.2 $\mu$m band asymmetry and profile variation can be explained principally in terms of the mass distribution of neutral PAHs with a small contribution from anharmonic effects.Comment: 13 pages, 10 figures, 3 table. Accepted for publication in MNRA

Ascending the Avon: fishes of the Northam Pool, and the Swan-Avon catchment

The fish fauna in the vicinity of the Northam Pool Weir was sampled seasonally between winter 2008 and autumn 2009. The results indicate that the fish community was characterised by species that are halotolerant including two estuarine species, the Western Hardyhead and Swan River Goby that are likely to have undergone large upstream expansions in the Swan‐Avon catchment due to secondary salinisation. However, two freshwater endemic species, the Western Minnow and Nightfish were also recorded in the vicinity of the weir. These, and other freshwater endemic species, have undergone large range reductions in this catchment as a result of salinisation. The study found evidence that the weir may be impeding the upstream movements of native fishes as found elsewhere in south‐western Australia and that construction of a well‐designed fishway would enhance population connectivity and increase their sustainability. It is recommended that additional sampling occurs during the major spawning periods of the freshwater species immediately below the weir to determine precisely when a future fishway would need to operate to allow maximum usage by resident native species. It is also recommended that fresh refuge habitats for freshwater fishes be identified to allow effective management measures to be implemented in those systems to halt their decline and reduce the risk of complete loss of these species from the Swan‐Avon catchment

A Search for Origins : Proper Names in The Story of Kullervo

In this thesis, I examine the proper names found in J.R.R. Tolkien’s adaptation The Story of Kullervo and their relation to the source text, the Kullervo cycle found in the Finnish epic Kalevala. The main purpose of this study is to provide more insight into Tolkien’s early language creation and to determine the role Finnish and the Kalevala had in it. The Story of Kullervo is an informative source on the subject, since it is Tolkien’s first work of mythic prose and filled with invented proper names. In more detail, the aim is to determine how Tolkien’s version of the Kullervo cycle differs from the original regarding its proper names, where Tolkien drew inspiration for the new or alternative names he created, and whether any of these proper names are connected to Tolkien’s earliest Elvish language, Qenya. With its many changes to the plot, structure and nomenclature, The Story of Kullervo is no ordinary translation. The theoretical framework of this study is founded on the role proper names play in a narrative – the different functions proper names contain within themselves and with respect to the context their used in and the strategies established in the translation field for conveying their semantic content. I consider The Story of Kullervo to be an adaptation and keep this in mind throughout the thesis, touching on topics of adaptation studies and its relation to translation studies. I conduct my research through document analysis, the primary sources being the Finnish Kalevala and The Story of Kullervo from which I collect all proper names and epithets to be used as data. In addition, I try to determine whether the choices Tolkien made when constructing his nomenclature were affected by other works, such as W.F. Kirby’s English translation of the Kalevala and C.N.E. Eliot’s Finnish grammar, which Tolkien used when studying the language. Tolkien transferred some of the original names into The Story of Kullervo unchanged, although most of them he either modified in some way or replaced completely with inventions of his own. He also created several bynames for many of the referents. A little over half of these invented proper names can be connected to either Finnish or the Kalevala, whereas a little less than half are connected to the early version of Qenya. This division is not mutually exclusive, and some of the names contain both Finnish and Qenya elements. It is difficult to determine which came first, however: the proper names in The Story of Kullervo or their Qenya counterparts, or if the construction was somewhat simultaneous. The impact other literary works and mythologies had on his work is less notable, yet there are instances of this as well. Less than ⅕ of all proper names couldn’t be connected to any of the above-mentioned sources. Signs of Tolkien’s early language creation can certainly be seen in the nomenclature of The Story of Kullervo. His motivation for writing the short story was to bring out the beauty and magic of the Kalevala, a task in which he thought W.F. Kirby had failed. This is probably one of the reasons why Tolkien wanted to add some of his own distinctive features to the story and why he didn’t pay much attention to conventional translation practices

The ethics of sociocultural risk research

In socio-cultural risk research, an epistemological tension often follows if real hazards in the world are juxtaposed against the essentially socially constructed nature of all risk. In this editorial, we consider how this paradox is manifest at a practical level in a number of ethical dilemmas for the risk researcher. (1) In terms of strategies for seeking informed consent, and for addressing the power inequalities involved in interpretative and analytical work, researchers can find themselves pushing at the boundaries of standard understandings of ethical practices and ways of engaging informants in their studies. (2) Impact on participants is another key area of concern, since the subject matter on which data are collected in risk research may be a source of uncertainty, anxiety or unwanted self knowledge. (3) Risk researchers also face the possibility of institutional repercussions of raising risk issues with people who usually normalize the risks, thereby stimulating distrust in the institutions or organizations with formal responsibilities for risk management. There are no simple formulae to guide the researcher in dealing with such ethical issues and paradoxes. It is important, though, to recognize their specificity in risk studies, including the ambiguous status of questions about vulnerability since judgements about 'who is vulnerable' and 'in what ways' are themselves influenced by the situational framings and understandings of participants and researchers

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons with armchair edges and the 12.7 {\mu}m band

In this Letter we report the results of density functional theory calculations on medium-sized neutral Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) molecules with armchair edges. These PAH molecules possess strong C-H stretching and bending modes around 3 {\mu}m and in the fingerprint region (10-15 {\mu}m), and also strong ring deformation modes around 12.7 {\mu}m. Perusal of the entries in the NASA Ames PAHs Database shows that ring deformation modes of PAHs are common - although generally weak. We then propose that armchair PAHs with NC >65 are responsible for the 12.7 {\mu}m Aromatic Infrared Band in HII regions and discuss astrophysical implications in the context of the PAH life-cycle.Comment: Minor editin