Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Sfa Weather Station-March 2009, Arthur Temple College Of Forestry And Agriculture, Stephen F. Austin State University

Weather Station Data

No abstract provided.

Modeling West Antarctic Ice Sheet Growth And Collapse Through The Past Five Million Years, David Pollard, Robert M. Deconto

ANDRILL Research and Publications

The West Antarctic ice sheet (WAIS), with ice volume equivalent to ~5 m of sea level, has long been considered capable of past and future catastrophic collapse. Today, the ice sheet is fringed by vulnerable floating ice shelves that buttress the fast flow of inland ice streams. Grounding lines are several hundred meters below sea level and the bed deepens upstream, raising the prospect of runaway retreat. Projections of future WAIS behavior have been hampered by limited understanding of past variations and their underlying forcing mechanisms. Its variation since the Last Glacial Maximum is best known, with grounding lines advancing …

Broad Relativistic Iron Emission Line Observed In Sax J1808.4-3658, E. M. Cackett, D. Altamirano, A. Patruno, J. M. Miller, M. Reynolds, M. Linares, R. Wijnands

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

During the 2008 September-October outburst of the accreting millisecond pulsar SAX J1808.4-3658, the source was observed by both Suzaku and XMM-Newton approximately 1 day apart. Spectral analysis reveals a broad relativistic Fe Kα emission line which is present in both data sets, as has recently been reported for other neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries. The properties of the Fe K line observed during each observation are very similar. From modeling the Fe line, we determine the inner accretion disk radius to be 13.2 ± 2.5 GM c^-2. The inner disk radius measured from the Fe K line suggests …

Long-Term Optical And X-Ray Variability Of The Seyfert Galaxy Markarian 79, E. Breedt, P. Arévalo, I. M. Mchardy, P. Uttley, S. G. Sergeev, T. Minezaki, Y. Yoshii, C. M. Gaskell, E. M. Cackett, K. Horne, S. Koshida

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Publications

We present the results of concurrent X-ray and optical monitoring of the Seyfert 1 galaxy Mrk 79 over a period of more than 5yr. We find that on short to medium time-scales (days to a few tens of days) the 2-10 keV X-ray and optical u- and V-band fluxes are significantly correlated, with a delay between the bands consistent with 0d. We show that most of these variations may be well reproduced by a model where the short-term optical variations originate from reprocessing of X-rays by an optically thick accretion disc. The optical light curves, however, also display long time-scale …

The Analysis Of 2-Amino-2-Thiazoline-4-Carboxylic Acid In The Plasma Of Smokers And Non-Smokers, Brian A. Logue, Wendy K. Maserek, Gary A. Rockwood, Michael W. Keebaugh, Steven I. Baskin

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications

ATCA (2-amino-2-thiazoline-4-carboxylic acid) is a promising marker to assess cyanide exposure because of several advantages of ATCA analysis over direct determination of cyanide and alternative cyanide biomarkers (i.e. stability in biological matrices, consistent recovery, and relatively small endogenous concentrations). Concentrations of ATCA in the plasma of smoking and non-smoking human volunteers were analyzed using gaschromatography mass-spectrometry to establish the feasibility of using ATCA as a marker for cyanide exposure. The levels of ATCA in plasma of smoking volunteers, 17.2 ng/ml, were found to be significantly (p < 0.001) higher than that of non-smoking volunteers, 11.8 ng/ml. Comparison of ATCA concentrations of smokers relative to nonsmokers in both urine and plasma yielded relatively similar results. The concentration ratio of ATCA for smokers versus non-smokers in plasma and urine was compared to similar literature studies of cyanide and thiocyanate, and correlations are discussed. This study supports previous evidence that ATCA can be used to determine past cyanide exposure and indicates that further studies should be pursued to validate the use of ATCA as a marker of cyanide exposure.

Sci-Tech Book News Reviews, Susan Fingerman

Sci-Tech News

This section consists of 100 book reviews selected from Sci-Tech Book News, reprinted with the permission of Book News, Inc.

Kpca-Rvm Modeling Method And Its Application For Soft Sensor, Xuefeng Yan, Jia Chen, Chunping Hu, Feng Qian

Chunping Hu

A novel modeling method integrated KPCA with RVM is proposed. Firstly, kernel primary component analysis (KPCA) is employed to identify the principal components from the nonlinear transform data of independent variables, which are regarded as character variables. Then, regression between character variables and dependent variables is done based on RVM, and the optimal number of the character variables is adaptively determined according to the generalization performance of the regression model. Thus, KPCA-RVM method can eliminate the disturbance of redundant information and achieve the best nonlinear model with good generalization performance. Finally, the method of KPCA-RVM is demonstrated by a 4-CBA's …

Enhancing The Communication Competency Of Business Undergraduates: A Consumer Socialization Perspective, K. C. Gehrt, M. O'Brien, David Mease

David Mease

Explaining how individuals acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively participate in society is often accomplished through Socialization Theory. We investigate numerous socialization agents and their relationship with the communication competency of university business majors. Communication competency (reading, writing, and verbal) was measured via both a standardized skill test and self report. Exploratory analysis was conducted upon high and low communication competency groups that were identified via cluster analysis. Our findings generally indicate the most important socialization agents are via personal interactions whereas the least important socialization agents are influencing via primarily electronic or media-based methods.

Examination Of The Regional Supply And Demand Balance For Renewable Electricity In The United States Through 2015, Lori Bird, David Hurlbut, Pearl Donohoo, Karlynn Cory, Claire Kreycik

Publications (E)

This report examines the balance between the demand and supply of new renewable electricity in the United States on a regional basis through 2015. It expands on a 2007 NREL study (Swezey et al. 2007) that assessed the supplynational basis. As with the earlier study, this analysis relies on estimates of renewable energy supplies compared to demand for renewable energy generation needed to meet existing state renewable portfolio standard (RPS) policies in 28 states, as well as demand by consumers who voluntarily purchase renewable energy. However, it does not address demand by utilities that may procure cost-effective renewables through an …

It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time, James Huggins, Jonas Boustedt, Robert Mccartney, Katherine Deibel, Beth Simon, Suzanne Westbrook

Computer Science Presentations And Conference Materials

We often learn of successful pedagogical experiments, but we seldom hear of the the ones that failed. For this special session we solicited submissions from the SIGCSE membership, selected the best from among these, and will have presentations at the session by the selected authors. Our contributions describe pedagogical approaches that seemed to be good ideas but turned out as failures. At the session, contributors will describe their pedagogical experiment, the rationale for the experiment, evidence of failure, and lessons learned.

Choose Wisely: Static Or Kinetic Friction—The Power Of Dimensionless Plots, Daniel O. Ludwigsen, Kathryn A. Svinarich

Physics Publications

Consider a problem of sliding blocks, one stacked atop the other, resting on a friction-less table. If the bottom block is pulled horizontally, nature makes a choice: if the applied force is small, static friction between the blocks accelerates the blocks together, but with a large force the blocks slide apart. In that case, kinetic friction still forces the upper block forward but with less acceleration than the lower block. The choice, then, lies in the relative terms—what is meant by small and large? After a confusing experience during a recent exam, we’ve found a demonstration and graphical presentation that …

Introducing Students To Raman Spectroscopy As A Research Tool, Bahram Roughani, David Warner, Uma Ramabadran

Physics Publications

We describe an experiment designed as an upper level physics laboratory that introduces students to Raman Scattering of electronic materials and research methodology. This experiment is an effective approach in demonstrating the relationship between the Raman intensity of the scattered light from crystals and symmetry dependent Raman selection rules. In our measurements we alter the angle between the crystal axis and the polarization of the incident laser beam by sample rotation. The three dimensional plot of the intensity profile versus the theoretical model is used to distinguish between various crystal plans of the same electronic material. This experiment combines knowledge …

A University-Based Forensics Training Center As A Regional Outreach, Education, And Research Activity, Rayford B. Vaughn, David A. Dampier

Computer Sciences and Electrical Engineering Faculty Research

This paper describes a university-based Forensics Training Center (FTC) established by a Department of Justice grant for the purpose of improving the ability of state and local law enforcement in the Southeastern part of the United States to address the rising incidence of computer based crime. The FTC effort is described along with supporting evidence of its need. The program is not only a service activity, but also contributes to the Mississippi State University (MSU) security program pedagogy, and research effort.

Beta-Peptides With Improved Affinity For Hdm2 And Hdmx, Elizabeth A. Harker, Douglas S. Daniels, Danielle A. Guarracino, Alanna S. Schepartz

Chemistry Faculty Publications

We previously described a series of 314-helical β-peptides that bind the hDM2 protein and inhibit its interaction with a p53-derived peptide in vitro. Here we present a detailed characterization of the interaction of these peptides with hDM2 and report two new β-peptides in which non-natural side chains have been substituted into the hDM2-recognition epitope. These peptides feature both improved affinity and inhibitory potency in fluorescence polarization and ELISA assays. Additionally, one of the new β-peptides also binds the hDM2-related protein, hDMX, which has been identified as another key therapeutic target for activation of the p53 pathway in tumors.

Approximability Of The Unsplittable Flow Problem On Trees, Chrisil Arackaparambil, Amit Chakrabarti, Chien-Chung Huang

Computer Science Technical Reports

We consider the approximability of the Unsplittable Flow Problem (UFP) on tree graphs, and give a deterministic quasi-polynomial time approximation scheme for the problem when the number of leaves in the tree graph is at most poly-logarithmic in $n$ (the number of demands), and when all edge capacities and resource requirements are suitably bounded. Our algorithm generalizes a recent technique that obtained the first such approximation scheme for line graphs. Our results show that the problem is not APX-hard for such graphs unless NP \subseteq DTIME(2^{polylog(n)}). Further, a reduction from the Demand Matching Problem shows that UFP is APX-hard when …

The Importance Of Being Neural-Symbolic - A Wilde Position, Pascal Hitzler, Kai-Uwe Kuhnberger

Computer Science and Engineering Faculty Publications

We argue that Neural-Symbolic Integration is a topic of central importance for the advancement of Artificial General Intelligence.

Aztec Millimetre Survey Of The Cosmos Field - Ii. Source Count Overdensity And Correlations With Large-Scale Structure, J. E. Austermann, I. Aretxaga, D. H. Hughes, Y. Kang, S. Kim, James D. Lowenthal, T. A. Perera, D. B. Sanders, K. S. Scott, N. Scoville, G. W. Wilson, M. S. Yun

Astronomy: Faculty Publications

We report an overdensity of bright submillimetre galaxies (SMGs) in the 0.15 deg AzTEC/COSMOS survey and a spatial correlation between the SMGs and the optical-IR galaxy density at z ≲ 1.1. This portion of the COSMOS field shows a ∼3σ overdensity of robust SMG detections when compared to a background, or 'blank-field', population model that is consistent with SMG surveys of fields with no extragalactic bias. The SMG overdensity is most significant in the number of very bright detections (14 sources with measured fluxes S > 6 mJy), which is entirely incompatible with sample variance within our adopted blank-field number densities …

Using Moored Arrays And Hyperspectral Aerial Imagery To Develop Eelgrass-Based Nutrient Criteria For New Hampshire's Great Bay Estuary, John Ru Morrison, Shachak Pe'eri, Phil Trowbridge, Frederick T. Short

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

Increasing nitrogen concentrations and declining eelgrass beds in the Great Bay Estuary, NH are clear indicators of impending problems for the state’s estuaries. A workgroup established in 2005 by the NH Department of Environmental Services and the NH Estuaries Project (NHEP) adopted eelgrass survival as the water quality target for nutrient criteria development for NH’s estuaries. In 2007, the NHEP received grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to collect water quality information including that from moored sensors and hyper-spectral imagery data of the Great Bay Estuary. A second grant in 2008 was directed at determining the influence of nuisance …

Dimer-Dimer Collisions At Finite Energies In Two-Component Fermi Gases, J P. D'Incao, Seth T. Rittenhouse, Nirav P. Mehta, Chris H. Greene

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research

We discuss a major theoretical generalization of existing techniques for handling the three-body problem that accurately describes the interactions among four fermionic atoms. Application to a two-component Fermi gas accurately determines dimer-dimer scattering parameters at finite energies and can give deeper insight into the corresponding many-body phenomena. To account for finite temperature effects, we calculate the energydependent complex dimer-dimer scattering length, which includes contributions from elastic and inelastic collisions. Our results indicate that strong finite-energy effects and dimer dissociation are crucial for understanding the physics in the strongly interacting regime for typical experimental conditions. While our results for dimer-dimer relaxation …

Science-Technology Division

Sci-Tech News

The objectives of the Science-Technology Division shall be to draw together those members of the Special Libraries Association having an interest in the role of library and information science as applied to the recording, retrieval and dissemination of knowledge and information in all areas of science and technology, and to promote and improve the communication, dissemination and use of such knowledge for the benefit of libraries and their users.

Improving Travel Information Products Via Robust Estimation Techniques, David Maier, Kristin A. Tufte, Rafael J. Fernández Moctezuma

TREC Final Reports

Traffic-monitoring systems, such as those using loop detectors, are prone to coverage gaps, arising from sensor noise, processing errors and transmission problems. Such gaps adversely affect the accuracy of Advanced Traveler Information Systems. This project will explore models based on historical data that can provide estimates to fill such gaps. We build on an initial study by Mr. Rafael J. Fernandez-Moctezuma, using both a linear model and an artificial neural network (ANN) trained on historical data to estimate values for reporting gaps. These initial models were 80% and 89% accurate, respectively, in estimating the correct speed range, and misclassifications were …

Enhancing The Communication Competency Of Business Undergraduates: A Consumer Socialization Perspective, K. C. Gehrt, M. O'Brien, David Mease

Faculty Publications

Explaining how individuals acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively participate in society is often accomplished through Socialization Theory. We investigate numerous socialization agents and their relationship with the communication competency of university business majors. Communication competency (reading, writing, and verbal) was measured via both a standardized skill test and self report. Exploratory analysis was conducted upon high and low communication competency groups that were identified via cluster analysis. Our findings generally indicate the most important socialization agents are via personal interactions whereas the least important socialization agents are influencing via primarily electronic or media-based methods.

Refuge Update – March/April 2009, Volume 6, Number 2

RefugeUpdate (USFWS-NWRS)

Table of Contents:
America’s Birds: In an Alarming State
Snakes Alive!
Title Sub Title East Coast Wetlands Are Disappearing
Chief’s Corner: What We Do Now
Extreme Makeover for Bird Sightings by Mike Carlo
Taking Care of Our World War II Legacy by Lisa Matlock
Whatever Happened to . . . . San Francisco Bay Wetland Restoration Projects
Recalling the Battle of Long Island Sound by David Klinger
Bold Approaches for Climate Change
How Alligator River Refuge Is Planning and Adapting by Mike Bryant
Rapid Climate Change Is Transforming the Arctic by David Payer
Tracking Change on Wildlife Refuges by Kathy …

One-Pot Formation Of Large Macrocycles With Modifiable Peripheries And Internal Cavities, Joseph S. Ferguson, Kazuhiro Yamato, Rui Liu, Lan He, Xiao Cheng Zeng, Bing Gong

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

Macrocycles with persistent shape and large, noncollapsible lumens have attracted increasing interest because of their unique properties and potential applications.[1] Although most of the macrocycles with well-defined shape have hydrocarbon backbones formed from the stepwise coupling of sp- or sp2-hybridized carbon atoms,[1a,b,d, 2] macrocycles with other rigid backbones have also been reported.[3] For example, we discovered a series of aromatic oligoamide macrocycles that could be generated in high yield by a one-pot macrocyclization process.[4] These readily available macrocycles contain hydrophilic cavities that are rich in carbonyl oxygen atoms. With their persistent shape and noncollapsible cavities, these macrocycles have demonstrated unique …

Quantitative Rescattering Theory For Laser-Induced High-Energy Plateau Photoelectron Spectra, Zhangjin Chen, Anh-Thu Le, Toru Morishita, C. D. Lin

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

A comprehensive quantitative rescattering (QRS) theory for describing the production of high-energy photoelectrons generated by intense laser pulses is presented. According to the QRS, the momentum distributions of these electrons can be expressed as the product of a returning electron wave packet with the elastic differential cross sections (DCS) between free electrons with the target ion. We show that the returning electron wave packets are determined mostly by the lasers only and can be obtained from the strong field approximation. The validity of the QRS model is carefully examined by checking against accurate results from the solution of the time-dependent …

Parameterizing The Growth-Decline Boundary For Uncertain Population Projection Models, Joan Lubben, Derek Boeckner, Richard Rebarber, Stuart Townley, Brigitte Tenhumberg

Department of Mathematics: Faculty Publications

We consider discrete time linear population models of the form n(t + 1) = An(t) where A is a population projection matrix or integral projection operator, and represents a structured population at time t. It is well known that the asymptotic growth or decay rate of n(t) is determined by the leading eigenvalue of A. In practice, population models have substantial parameter uncertainty, and it might be difficult to quantify the effect of this uncertainty on the leading eigenvalue. For a large class of matrices and integral operators A, we …

Orion's Bar: Physical Conditions Across The Definitive H+/H0/H2 Interface, E. W. Pellegrini, J. A. Baldwin, Gary J. Ferland, G. Shaw, S. Heathcote

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

Previous work has shown the Orion Bar to be an interface between ionized and molecular gas, viewed roughly edge-on, which is excited by the light from the Trapezium cluster. Much of the emission from any star-forming region will originate from such interfaces, so the Bar serves as a foundation test of any emission model. Here we combine X-ray, optical, infrared (IR), and radio data sets to derive emission spectra along the transition from H⁺ to H⁰ to H₂ regions. We then reproduce the spectra of these layers with a simulation that simultaneously accounts for the detailed microphysics …

Multimeric Hemicellulases Facilitate Biomass Conversion, Zhanmin Fan, Kurt Wagschal, Wei Chen, Michael D. Montross, Charles C. Lee, Ling Yuan

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Two highly active trifunctional hemicellulases were constructed by linking the catalytic portion of a xylanase with an arabinofuranosidase and a xylosidase, using either flexible peptide linkers or linkers containing a cellulose-binding domain. The multifunctional enzymes retain the parental enzyme properties and exhibit synergistic effects in hydrolysis of natural xylans and corn stover.

The Prairie Naturalist, Volume 41, No. 1/2 March/June 2009, The Great Plains Natural Science Society

The Prairie Naturalist

FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH DUCK USE OF IMPOUNDED AND NATURAL WETLANDS IN WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA. J. E. Austin and D. A. Buhl

THIRD REPORT OF THE NORTH DAKOTA BIRD RECORDS COMMITTEE: 2004-2005 D. Svingen and R. E. Martin

EFFECT OF DROUGHT AND AGRICULTURE ON RING-NECKED PHEASANT ABUNDANCE, NEBRASKA PANHANDLE. C. J. Randel 55

COMMON RAVEN NESTS IN NORTH DAKOTA AFTER 1OO-YEAR HIATUS. M. P. Nenneman, T. A. Grant, and R. E. Martin

Suggestions for Contributors

Editorial Policy

Programmable Presence Virtualization For Next-Generation Context-Based Applications, Arup Acharya, Nilanjan Banerjee, Dipanjan Chakraborty, Koustuv Dasgupta, Archan Misra, Shachi Sharma, Xiping Wang, Charles P. Wright

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Presence, broadly defined as an event publish-notification infrastructure for converged applications, has emerged as a key mechanism for collecting and disseminating context attributes for next-generation services in both enterprise and provider domains. Current presence-based solutions and products lack in the ability to a) support flexible user-defined queries over dynamic presence data and b) derive composite presence from multiple provider domains. Accordingly, current uses of context are limited to individual domains/organizations and do not provide a programmable mechanism for rapid creation of context-aware services. This paper describes a presence virtualization architecture, where a virtualized presence server receives customizable queries from multiple …