On the Dynamical Stability of Gamma Cephei, an S-Type Binary Planetary System

Precision radial velocity measurements of the Gamma Cephei (HR8974) binary system suggest the existence of a planetary companion with a minimum mass of 1.7 Jupiter-mass on an elliptical orbit with a ~2.14 AU semimajor axis and 0.12 eccentricity (hatzes et al. 2003). I present in this paper a summary of the results of an extensive numerical study of the orbital stability of this three-body system for different values of the semimajor axis and orbital eccentricity of the binary, and also the orbital inclination of the planet. Numerical integrations indicate that the system is stable for the planet's orbital inclination ranging from 0 to 60 degrees, and for the binary's orbital eccentricity less than 0.5. The results also indicate that for large values of the inclination, the system may be locked in a Kozai resonance.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, to appear in the proceedings of "The Search For Other Worlds." The 14th Annual October Astrophysics Conference in Maryland. Eds. De. Deming and S. Holt (PASP Style

THE LABYRINTH OF PHILOSOPHY IN ISLAM

This paper focuses on the methodological issues related to the obstacles and potential horizons of approaching the philosophical traditions in Islam from the standpoint of comparative studies in philosophy, while also presenting selected case-studies that may potentially illustrate some of the possibilities of renewing the impetus of a philosophical thought that is inspired by Islamic intellectual history. This line of inquiry is divided into two parts: the first deals with questions of methodology, and the second focuses on ontology and phenomenology of perception, by way of offering pathways in investigating the history of philosophical and scientific ideas in Islam from the viewpoint of contemporary debates in philosophy. A special emphasis will be placed on: (a) interpreting the ontology of the eleventh century metaphysician Ibn Sina (known in Latin as: Avicenna; d. 1037 CE) in terms of rethinking Heidegger\u27s critique of the history of metaphysics, and (b) analyzing the philosophical implications of the theory of vision of the eleventh century polymath Ibn al-Haytham (known in Latin as Alhazen; d. ca. 1041 CE) in terms of reflecting on Merleau-Ponty\u27s phenomenology of perception

Visibility and Citation Impact

The number of publications is the first criteria for assessing a researcher output. However, the main measurement for author productivity is the number of citations, and citations are typically related to the paper's visibility. In this paper, the relationship between article visibility and the number of citations is investigated. A case study of two researchers who are using publication marketing tools confirmed that the article visibility will greatly improve the citation impact. Some strategies to make the publications available to a larger audience have been presented at the end of this paper