Secular and Koranic Literacies in South Asia: From Colonisation to Contemporary Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maddox, Bryan

2007-01-01

This paper explores the distinction between "secular" and "Koranic" schooling and literacy in South Asia. It begins by tracing an archaeology of the distinction between secular "literacy" and religious "illiteracy". It locates the emergence of the distinction in the colonial census of the 19th century, in…

Re-Imagining a Christian University in a Secular Age

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Warner, Rob

2013-01-01

The contours of a secular age, as delineated by classical and contemporary sociologists of religion, have tended to result in secularising trajectories for church-founded institutions of Higher Education, some of which have migrated towards secular normativity. This article explores these trends and then proposes five characteristics of an…

Rethinking Institutional Secularization as an (Im)possible "Policy"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gomez Caride, Ezequiel

2015-01-01

The paper analyzes through a genealogical discourse analysis how religion as a cultural practice escapes into the borders of state institutions. While most studies about secularization focus on institutional aspects, such approaches tend to link state secularist policies with cultural secularization. This essay argues that state promotion of…

The Jesuit Imaginary: Higher Education in a Secular Age

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hendrickson, Daniel Scott

2012-01-01

The philosopher Charles Taylor argues in "A Secular Age" (2007) that people who live in secular cultures are losing the capacity to experience genuine "fullness." Described by Taylor as a philosophical-anthropological conception of human flourishing that corresponds with existential senses of meaning and purpose, fullness is…

A study of alternative schemes for extrapolation of secular variation at observatories

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alldredge, L.R.

1976-01-01

The geomagnetic secular variation is not well known. This limits the useful life of geomagnetic models. The secular variation is usually assumed to be linear with time. It is found that attenative schemes that employ quasiperiodic variations from internal and external sources can improve the extrapolation of secular variation at high-quality observatories. Although the schemes discussed are not yet fully applicable in worldwide model making, they do suggest some basic ideas that may be developed into useful tools in future model work. ?? 1976.

Loners, Groupies, and Long-term Eccentricity (and Inclination) Behavior: Insights from Secular Theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Laerhoven, Christa L.

2015-05-01

Considering the secular dynamics of multi-planet systems provides substantial insight into the interactions between planets in those systems. Secular interactions are those that don't involve knowing where a planet is along its orbit, and they dominate when planets are not involved in mean motion resonances. These interactions exchange angular momentum among the planets, evolving their eccentricities and inclinations. To second order in the planets' eccentricities and inclinations, the eccentricity and inclination perturbations are decoupled. Given the right variable choice, the relevant differential equations are linear and thus the eccentricity and inclination behaviors can be described as a sum of eigenmodes. Since the underlying structure of the secular eigenmodes can be calculated using only the planets' masses and semi-major axes, one can elucidate the eccentricity and inclination behavior of planets in exoplanet systems even without knowing the planets' current eccentricities and inclinations. I have calculated both the eccentricity and inclination secular eigenmodes for the population of known multi-planet systems whose planets have well determined masses and periods. Using this catalog of secular character, I will discuss the prevalence of dynamically grouped planets ('groupies') versus dynamically uncoupled planets ('loners') and how this relates to the exoplanets' long-term eccentricity and inclination behavior. I will also touch on the distribution of the secular eigenfreqiencies.

Secular trends and smoke-free policy development in rural Kentucky

PubMed Central

Fallin, Amanda; Parker, Lindsay; Lindgreen, Janine; Riker, Carol; Kercsmar, Sarah; Hahn, Ellen J.

2011-01-01

Secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure causes cardiovascular disease, lung cancer and pulmonary disorders. Smoke-free policies are the most effective way to prevent exposure to SHS. A 5-year community-based randomized control trial (RCT) is in progress to assess factors associated with smoke-free policy development in rural communities. Considering secular trends is critical when conducting community-based RCTs as they may threaten the internal validity of the study. For the purposes of this paper, secular trends are defined as patterns or recurring events that are not directly related to smoke-free policy but have the potential to influence policy development. There are no established protocols to monitor secular trends in the study of smoke-free policy in rural communities. The purpose of this paper is to (i) describe the development of a protocol to identify and monitor secular trends that may threaten the internal validity of a community-based RCT to promote smoke-free policy development and (ii) describe secular trends identified in the first 2 years of the RCT. The sample includes 854 secular events captured from media outlets covering the 40 study counties over the first 2 years of the RCT. Of these 854 events, there were 281 secular events in Year 1 and 573 in Year 2. This paper focuses on five specific categories: ‘tobacco use and cessation activities’, ‘farming’, ‘economics’, ‘city/county infrastructure’ and ‘wellness’. This protocol is a feasible yet time-intensive method of identifying events that may threaten the internal validity of a community-based RCT. PMID:21558440

Human Rights Education and the Post Secular Turn

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowie, Bob

2012-01-01

This article questions whether human rights education (HRE) scholarship is responding adequately to the post secular turn in thinking about the place and nature of religion in society. Here the post secular turn is used to describe the discrediting of secularisation theory, the recognition of religion as an enduring and pervasive global cultural…

Secular Ethics Education as an Alternative to Religious Education--Finnish Teachers' Views

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zilliacus, Harriet; Kallioniemi, Arto

2016-01-01

This study provides a Finnish perspective to international discussions on religious and worldviews education through the subject of secular ethics. This subject has been offered in Finland since 1985 throughout comprehensive schools and is primarily directed at students who are non-affiliated. Secular ethics education has scarcely been researched…

Unsafe Gods: Security, Secularism and Schooling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davies, Lynn

2014-01-01

This book makes the compelling argument that religion can be complicit in conflict and that a new secularism is vital to foster security. Using insights from complexity science, it shows how dynamic secularism can be used to accommodate diverse faiths and beliefs within worldly politics. Exploration of the interplay of religion and education in…

The Other Partition: Religious and Secular Education in British Palestine

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schneider, Suzanne

2014-01-01

The recent critical turn toward post-secularism, particularly on behalf of theorists working from the perspective of Christian societies, has highlighted the difficulty of approaching the history of the Middle East through the binary of religion and secularism. This article argues that such terms are of little explanatory value in and of…

Addressing Religious Plurality--A Teacher Perspective on Minority Religion and Secular Ethics Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zilliacus, Harriet

2013-01-01

The Finnish education system recognizes religious plurality by offering education in pupils' own religion or in secular ethics. However, little research has been undertaken on how plurality is addressed in classroom practice. This study investigates how 31 minority religion and secular ethics teachers view the task of supporting and including…

Substitution or Symbiosis? Assessing the Relationship between Religious and Secular Giving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hill, Jonathan P.; Vaidyanathan, Brandon

2011-01-01

Research on philanthropy has not sufficiently examined whether charitable giving to religious causes impinges on giving to secular causes. Examining three waves of national panel data, we find that the relationship between religious and secular giving is generally not of a zero-sum nature; families that increase their religious giving also…

The effect of secular resonances in the asteroid region between 2.1 and 2.4 AU

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Froeschle, Christiane; Scholl, Hans

1992-01-01

The asteroid region between 2.1 and 2.4 AU appears to be depopulated at inclinations i greater than 12 deg. This region is surrounded by the three main secular resonances nu(sub 5), nu(sub 6), and nu(sub 16) and is crossed by higher order secular resonances. Secular resonances appear to overlap in this region. Numerical integrations of the orbits of seventeen fictituous asteroids with initial inclinations 12 deg less than or equal to i less than or equal to 20 deg show the following: (1) this particular asteroid region is not depopulated in our computer experiment on timescales of 2.7 Myrs; (2) inclinations are pumped up by successive crossings through higher order secular resonances while eccentricities are not increased sufficiently to produce planet-crossers; (3) bodies located in the bordering nu(sub 6) resonance with semi-major axes a less than or equal to 2.4 AU become Earth-crossers on a time scale of 1 Myr; and (4) we confirm the result that modes due to higher order secular resonances must be eliminated when proper elements are computed.

The Role of Secularism of State on the Relationship Between Catholic Identity, Political Orientation, and Gay Rights Issues.

PubMed

Hichy, Zira; Gerges, Mina Halim Helmy; Platania, Silvia; Santisi, Giuseppe

2015-01-01

In discussions of regulations governing same-sex marriage and adoption by gays and lesbians, the issue of state secularism is often called into question. This study aims to test the mediating effects of state secularism on the relationship between Catholic identity, political orientation, and gay civil rights. Participants were Catholic Italians who completed a questionnaire measuring the constructs under investigation. Results showed that state secularism mediates the effects of Catholic identity and political orientation on attitudes toward same-sex marriage and adoption by gays and lesbians.

Secular dynamics of multiplanetary circumbinary systems: stationary solutions and binary-planet secular resonance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andrade-Ines, Eduardo; Robutel, Philippe

2018-01-01

We present an analytical formalism to study the secular dynamics of a system consisting of N-2 planets orbiting a binary star in outer orbits. We introduce a canonical coordinate system and expand the disturbing function in terms of canonical elliptic elements, combining both Legendre polynomials and Laplace coefficients, to obtain a general formalism for the secular description of this type of configuration. With a quadratic approximation of the development, we present a simplified analytical solution for the planetary orbits for both the single planet and the two-planet cases. From the two-planet model, we show that the inner planet accelerates the precession rate of the binary pericenter, which, in turn, may enter in resonance with the secular frequency of the outer planet, characterizing a secular resonance. We calculate an analytical expression for the approximate location of this resonance and apply it to known circumbinary systems, where we show that it can occur at relatively close orbits, for example at 2.4 au for the Kepler-38 system. With a more refined model, we analyse the dynamics of this secular resonance and we show that a bifurcation of the corresponding fixed points can affect the long- term evolution and stability of planetary systems. By comparing our results with complete integrations of the exact equations of motion, we verified the accuracy of our analytical model.

Faith and Reason in a Post Secular Age

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Radford, Mike

2012-01-01

The problems that this article seeks to address are those that are raised in the context of the bilateralism that is established when we think in terms of secularism as primarily orientated towards reason and post secularism, towards faith. The objective of the article is to show that the distinction between the two can be collapsed. Post…

"Doing the Secular": Academic Practices in the Study of Religion at Two Danish Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johansen, Birgitte Schepelern

2011-01-01

The academic study of religion at the public university often presents itself as a secular, non-religious, scientific endeavor. The identity of the study is thus firmly rooted within one of the central secular-religious divides, namely that between science and religion. Based on the assumption that such distinctions between religion and the…

One Size Does Not Fit All: Complexity, Religion, Secularism and Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davies, Lynn

2014-01-01

The continuing incidence of extremist acts committed in the name of religion underscores the need to examine the interplay between religion and learning. This article argues for a secular foundation in society and school to protect against religion contributing to conflict and extremism. However, this is not a hard version of secularism, but a…

The Secular University and Its Critics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jobani, Yuval

2016-01-01

Universities in the USA have become bastions of secularity in a distinctly religious society. As such, they are subjected to a variety of robust and rigorous religious critiques. In this paper I do not seek to engage in the debate between the supporters of the secular university and its opponents. Furthermore, I do not claim to summarize the…

Disruptive Behaviour in Religious and Secular High Schools: Teachers' and Students' Attitudes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romi, Shlomo

2004-01-01

This two-phase study, conducted in religious and secular high schools, investigated the attitudes of teachers and students to disruptive behaviour. The first phase examined a religious school, then applied the same research tools to a secular school. It was assumed that differences of attitude would be found, with teachers viewing disruptive…

Unholy Trinity? Secularism Institute Renews Liberal Arts Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keysar, Ariela

2010-01-01

Secularism is controversial in today's political debates, championed by some and vilified by others. So when Trinity College in Hartford, Conn., opened a center for the study of secularism in September 2005, some people worried that it could become a source of friction on campus--yet another battleground in the culture wars that are wreaking havoc…

Habermas and the Meaning of the Post-Secular Society: Complementary Learning Processes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Welton, Michael R.

2014-01-01

This essay argues that if social justice is to prevail in our world, we must understand the post-secular nature of our globalized society as a prerequisite for moving beyond "might is right" to national and international relations that heed all voices towards evidence-based interaction. Our post-secular world and postmetaphysical…

On the secular change of spring onset at Stockholm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qian, Cheng; Fu, Congbin; Wu, Zhaohua; Yan, Zhongwei

2009-06-01

A newly developed method, the Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition, was applied to adaptively determine the timing of climatic spring onset from the daily temperature records at Stockholm during 1756-2000. Secular variations of spring onset and its relationships to the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and to the temperature variability were analyzed. A clear turning point of secular trend in spring onset around 1884/1885, from delaying to advancing, was found. The delaying trend of spring onset (6.9 days/century) during 1757-1884 and the advancing one (-7 days/century) during 1885-1999 were both significant. The winter NAO indices were found to be correlated with the spring onset at Stockholm at an inter-annual timescale only for some decades, but unable to explain the change of the long-term trends. The secular change from cooling to warming around the 1880s, especially in terms of spring temperature, might have led to the secular change of spring onset.

Sex, secularism and religious influence in US politics.

PubMed

Bernstein, Elizabeth; Jakobsen, Janet R

2010-01-01

Through an analysis of alliances between secular and religious actors in US politics and a specific case study on anti-trafficking policy, we show that the intertwining of religion and politics in the US comes from two sources: 1) the secular political and cultural institutions of American public life that have developed historically out of Protestantism, and which predominantly operate by presuming Protestant norms and values; and 2) the direct influence on US politics of religious groups and organisations, particularly in the past quarter-century of lobby groups and political action committees identified with conservative evangelical Christianity. The sources of policies that promote gender and sexual inequality in the US are both secular and religious and we conclude that it is inaccurate to assume that religious influence in politics is necessarily conservative or that more secular politics will necessarily be more progressive than the religious varieties.

Ten-Year Secular Trends in Youth Violence: Results from the Philadelphia Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2003-2013

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pool, Andrew C.; Patterson, Freda; Luna, Ingrid Y.; Hohl, Bernadette; Bauer, Katherine W.

2017-01-01

Background: Youth violence reduction is a public health priority, yet few studies have examined secular trends in violence among urban youth, who may be particularly vulnerable to numerous forms of violence. This study examines 10-year secular trends in the prevalence of violence-related behaviors among Philadelphia high school students. Methods:…

Secular dynamics of hierarchical multiple systems composed of nested binaries, with an arbitrary number of bodies and arbitrary hierarchical structure - II. External perturbations: flybys and supernovae

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamers, Adrian S.

2018-05-01

We extend the formalism of a previous paper to include the effects of flybys and instantaneous perturbations such as supernovae on the long-term secular evolution of hierarchical multiple systems with an arbitrary number of bodies and hierarchy, provided that the system is composed of nested binary orbits. To model secular encounters, we expand the Hamiltonian in terms of the ratio of the separation of the perturber with respect to the barycentre of the multiple system, to the separation of the widest orbit. Subsequently, we integrate over the perturber orbit numerically or analytically. We verify our method for secular encounters and illustrate it with an example. Furthermore, we describe a method to compute instantaneous orbital changes to multiple systems, such as asymmetric supernovae and impulsive encounters. The secular code, with implementation of the extensions described in this paper, is publicly available within AMUSE, and we provide a number of simple example scripts to illustrate its usage for secular and impulsive encounters and asymmetric supernovae. The extensions presented in this paper are a next step towards efficiently modelling the evolution of complex multiple systems embedded in star clusters.

Secular Evolution of Spiral Galaxies

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-01-01

recombination (z=1000). Furthermore, the BigBang nucleosynthesis model also requires a signi cantamount of non- baryonic dark matter (Primack 1999) ifthe universe...momentum (as well as energy) outward. Associ-ated with this outward angular momentum transport isan expected secular redistribution of disk matter , co...mode, a secular transfer of energy andangular momentum between the disk matter and thedensity wave. The existence of the phase shift betweenthe

[Nursing care at home and secularism].

PubMed

Lecointre, Brigitte

2015-12-01

The question of secularism, long-time confined to schools and the relationships between the Church and State, is today being raised in the field of public health. Nurses are directly affected and are integrating this dimension of secularism into their care practices. A private practice nurse describes the effect these changes are having on her practice in patients' homes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

What Lies between the Religious and the Secular?: Education beyond the Human

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seo, Yong-Seok

2014-01-01

The current age is characterised by many as secular, and a source of such a characterisation can be found in the Nietzschean claim that thoughts about there being some ultimate reality have to be jettisoned, and human existence and the world need to be embraced as they are. That claim is renewed by some secular thinkers who insist that education…

Craniofacial Secular Change in Recent Mexican Migrants.

PubMed

Spradley, Katherine; Stull, Kyra E; Hefner, Joseph T

2016-01-01

Research by economists suggests that recent Mexican migrants are better educated and have higher socioeconomic status (SES) than previous migrants. Because factors associated with higher SES and improved education can lead to positive secular changes in overall body form, secular changes in the craniofacial complex were analyzed within a recent migrant group from Mexico. The Mexican group represents individuals in the act of migration, not yet influenced by the American environment, and thus can serve as a starting point for future studies of secular change in this population group. The excavation of a historic Hispanic cemetery in Tucson, Arizona, also allows for a comparison between historic Hispanics and recent migrants to explore craniofacial trends over a broad time period, as both groups originate from Mexico. The present research addresses two main questions: (1) Are cranial secular changes evident in recent Mexican migrants? (2) Are historic Hispanics and recent Mexican migrants similar? By studying secular changes within a migrant population group, secular trends may be detected, which will be important for understanding the biological variation of the migrants themselves and will serve as a preliminary investigation of secular change within Mexican migrants. The comparison of a sample of recent Mexican migrants with a historic Hispanic sample, predominantly of Mexican origin, allows us to explore morphological similarities and differences between early and recent Mexicans within the United States. Vault and face size and a total of 82 craniofacial interlandmark distances were used to explore secular changes within the recent Mexican migrants (females, n = 38; males, n = 178) and to explore the morphological similarities between historic Hispanics (females, n = 54; males, n = 58) and recent migrants. Sexes were separated, and multivariate adaptive regression splines and basis splines (quadratic with one knot) were used to assess the direction and magnitude of secular trends for the recent Mexican migrants. Because dates of birth were unavailable for the historic sample, partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) was used to evaluate morphological differences between historic and recent Mexican migrant samples. The data were separated into a training data set and a testing data set to ensure realistic results. Males had eight variables (four positive and four negative) and females had six variables (two positive and four negative) that demonstrated significant differences over time. In the PLS-DA, three components were identified as important in model creation and resulted in a classification accuracy of 87% when applied to a testing sample. The high classification accuracy demonstrates significant morphological differences between the two groups, with the historic Hispanic sample displaying overall larger craniofacial dimensions. While differences in cranial morphology are evident between historic Hispanics and recent Mexican migrants, relatively few positive and negative secular trends were detected within the recent migrant sample.

Secular humanism and "scientific psychiatry".

PubMed

Szasz, Thomas

2006-04-25

The Council for Secular Humanism identifies Secular Humanism as a "way of thinking and living" committed to rejecting authoritarian beliefs and embracing "individual freedom and responsibility ... and cooperation." The paradigmatic practices of psychiatry are civil commitment and insanity defense, that is, depriving innocent persons of liberty and excusing guilty persons of their crimes: the consequences of both are confinement in institutions ostensibly devoted to the treatment of mental diseases. Black's Law Dictionary states: "Every confinement of the person is an 'imprisonment,' whether it be in a common prison, or in private house, or in the stocks, or even by forcibly detaining one in the public streets." Accordingly, I maintain that Secular Humanism is incompatible with the principles and practices of psychiatry.

Analysis of geomagnetic secular variation during 1980-1985 and 1985- 1990, and geomagnetic models proposed for the 1991 revision of the International Geomagnetic Reference Field

USGS Publications Warehouse

Peddie, N.W.

1992-01-01

The secular variation of the main geomagnetic field during the periods 1980-1985 and 1985-1990 was analyzed in terms of spherical harmonics up to the eighth degree and order. Data from worldwide magnetic observatories and the Navy's Project MAGNET aerial surveys were used. The resulting pair of secular-variation models was used to update the Definitive Geomagnetic Reference Field (DGRF) model for 1980, resulting in new mainfield models for 1985.0 and 1990.0. These, along with the secular-variation model for 1985-1990, were proposed for the 1991 revision of the International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF). -Author

Sacred Spaces: Religious and Secular Coping and Family Relationships in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

PubMed

Brelsford, Gina M; Ramirez, Joshua; Veneman, Kristin; Doheny, Kim K

2016-08-01

Preterm birth is an unanticipated and stressful event for parents. In addition, the unfamiliar setting of the intensive care nursery necessitates strategies for coping. The primary study objective of this descriptive study was to determine whether secular and religious coping strategies were related to family functioning in the neonatal intensive care unit. Fifty-two parents of preterm (25-35 weeks' gestation) infants completed the Brief COPE (secular coping), the Brief RCOPE (religious coping), and the Family Environment Scale within 1 week of their infant's hospital admission. This descriptive study found that parents' religious and secular coping was significant in relation to family relationship functioning. Specifically, negative religious coping (ie, feeling abandoned or angry at God) was related to poorer family cohesion and use of denial. These findings have relevance for interventions focused toward enhancing effective coping for families. Further study of religious and secular coping strategies for neonatal intensive care unit families is warranted in a larger more diverse sample of family members.

Evaluating secular acceleration in geomagnetic field model GRIMM-3

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lesur, V.; Wardinski, I.

2012-12-01

Secular acceleration of the magnetic field is the rate of change of its secular variation. One of the main results of studying magnetic data collected by the German survey satellite CHAMP was the mapping of field acceleration and its evolution in time. Questions remain about the accuracy of the modeled acceleration and the effect of the applied regularization processes. We have evaluated to what extent the regularization affects the temporal variability of the Gauss coefficients. We also obtained results of temporal variability of the Gauss coefficients where alternative approaches to the usual smoothing norms have been applied for regularization. Except for the dipole term, the secular acceleration of the Gauss coefficients is fairly well described up to spherical harmonic degree 5 or 6. There is no clear evidence from observatory data that the spectrum of this acceleration is underestimated at the Earth surface. Assuming a resistive mantle, the observed acceleration supports a characteristic time scale for the secular variation of the order of 11 years.

N-body simulations of collective effects in spiral and barred galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, X.

2016-10-01

We present gravitational N-body simulations of the secular morphological evolution of disk galaxies induced by density wave modes. In particular, we address the demands collective effects place on the choice of simulation parameters, and show that the common practice of the use of a large gravity softening parameter was responsible for the failure of past simulations to correctly model the secular evolution process in galaxies, even for those simulations where the choice of basic state allows an unstable mode to emerge, a prerequisite for obtaining the coordinated radial mass flow pattern needed for secular evolution of galaxies along the Hubble sequence. We also demonstrate that the secular evolution rates measured in our improved simulations agree to an impressive degree with the corresponding rates predicted by the recently-advanced theories of dynamically-driven secular evolution of galaxies. The results of the current work, besides having direct implications on the cosmological evolution of galaxies, also shed light on the general question of how irreversibility emerges from a nominally reversible physical system.

Zero secular torque on asteroids from impinging solar photons in the YORP effect: A simple proof

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rubincam, David Parry; Paddack, Stephen J.

2010-10-01

YORP torques, where "YORP" stands for "Yarokovsky-O'Keefe-Radzievskii-Paddack," arise mainly from sunlight reflected off a Solar System object and the infrared radiation emitted by it. We show here, through the most elementary demonstration that we can devise, that secular torques from impinging solar photons are generally negligible and thus cause little secular evolution of an asteroid's obliquity or spin rate.

Technical Limitations in Merging Secular and Sacred Functions in Monumental Churches

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Piatkowska, Ksenia

2017-10-01

The abandonment of churches and their adaptation for secular purposes is a current subject in Europe and worldwide. Most cases involve objects that were desacralized and then rebuilt as a whole object for alternative functions. Thus far, the merging of secular and sacred functions in one monumental Catholic church has not raised any issues. The paper describes the case of St. Catherine’s Church in Gdansk, Poland, where sacred function exists parallel to the new secular function being implemented. The study is based on the authentic, professional experience of the author. It describes the technical limitations arising from the need to ensure destinies for the optimal conditions of both sacred and secular function, while avoiding undesirable interference between them. The author further identifies architectural solutions most relevant to current requirements for protection of sacred zones in the church, for preservation of the monument, and for optimal function of a modern science museum. Significant design issues include: the inviolability of the sacred zone, preservation of the historical value of the monument, proper operation of new secular zones in compliance with contemporary standards of safety, performance of the assumed mission and profitability. The research indicates specific areas where the highest probability of collision exists between the sacred and profane and where technical problems are likely to occur.

Zero Secular Torque on Asteroids from Impinging Solar Photons in the YORP Effect: A Simple Proof

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rubincam, David Perry; Paddack, Stephen J.

2010-01-01

YORP torques, where "YORP" stands for "Yarokovsky-O'Keefe-Radzievskii-Paddack." arise mainly from sun light reflected off a Solar System object and the infrared radiation emi tted by it. We show here, through the most elementary demonstration that we Can devise, that secular torques from impinging solar photons are generally negligible and thus cause little secular evolution of an asteroid's obliquity or spin rate.

"Text-Books and Textpeople" (A. J. Heschel): What Is the Role of the Mehanekh in the Jewish Secular High School in Israel, and What Is the Place of Jewish Texts within That Role?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sela Kol, Aviva Helena

2011-01-01

My study concerns the teacher knowledge of "mehankhim," teachers in Israeli high schools entrusted to promote students' moral, civic, and social growth. It examines two "mehankhim" from a secular Israeli high school who participated in a long-term professional development program in secular Jewish education, centered by…

Secular humanism and "scientific psychiatry"

PubMed Central

Szasz, Thomas

2006-01-01

The Council for Secular Humanism identifies Secular Humanism as a "way of thinking and living" committed to rejecting authoritarian beliefs and embracing "individual freedom and responsibility ... and cooperation." The paradigmatic practices of psychiatry are civil commitment and insanity defense, that is, depriving innocent persons of liberty and excusing guilty persons of their crimes: the consequences of both are confinement in institutions ostensibly devoted to the treatment of mental diseases. Black's Law Dictionary states: "Every confinement of the person is an 'imprisonment,' whether it be in a common prison, or in private house, or in the stocks, or even by forcibly detaining one in the public streets." Accordingly, I maintain that Secular Humanism is incompatible with the principles and practices of psychiatry. PMID:16759353

On the consequences of strong stable stratification at the top of earth's outer core

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bloxham, Jeremy

1990-01-01

The consequences of strong stable stratification at the top of the earth's fluid outer core are considered, concentrating on the generation of the geomagnetic secular variation. It is assumed that the core near the core-mantle boundary is both strongly stably stratified and free of Lorentz forces: it is found that this set of assumptions severely limits the class of possible motions, none of which is compatible with the geomagnetic secular variation. Relaxing either assumption is adequate: tangentially geostrophic flows are consistent with the secular variation if the assumption that the core is strongly stably stratified is relaxed (while retaining the assumption that Lorentz forces are negligible); purely toroidal flows may explain the secular variation if Lorentz forces are included.

Secular change in the growth status of urban and rural schoolchildren aged 6-13 years in Oaxaca, southern Mexico.

PubMed

Malina, Robert M; Peña Reyes, Maria Eugenia; Little, Bertis B

2008-01-01

Populations in the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico are at high risk for malnutrition and marginalization. The study compared secular changes in the growth status of urban and rural schoolchildren in the Valley of Oaxaca between the 1970s and 2000. Cross-sectional surveys of boys and girls aged 6-13 years (n = 1472) were carried out in an urban colonia populares in 1972 and 2000 and a rural indigenous community in 1978 and 2000. Height, sitting height and weight were measured; leg length, sitting height ratio, BMI, and prevalence of stunting, underweight, overweight and obesity were calculated. Sex-specific ANCOVA controlling for age was used. Both urban and rural children experienced significant secular gains in linear dimensions, body weight and the BMI between the 1970s and 2000. Estimated rates of secular gain overlapped considerably between urban and rural children. Secular gains in the BMI are significantly greater in urban than rural boys and girls. Urban-rural differences in linear dimensions and body weight in 2000 compared to the 1970s do not differ in either sex, but urban-rural differences in the BMI are greater in boys and girls in 2000 compared to the 1970s. The prevalence of stunting declined while that of overweight and obesity increased. Significant secular increases in body size occurred between the 1970s and 2000, but there was considerable overlap between urban and rural children. Only secular gains in the BMI were significantly greater in urban than rural boys and girls and the magnitudes of urban-rural differences in the BMI were greater in 2000 than in the 1970s.

Secular and Religious Social Support Better Protect Blacks than Whites against Depressive Symptoms.

PubMed

Assari, Shervin; Moghani Lankarani, Maryam

2018-05-04

Purpose: Although the protective effect of social support against depression is well known, limited information exists on racial differences in this association. The current study examined Black-White differences in the effects of religious and secular emotional social support on depressive symptoms in a national sample of older adults in the United States. Methods: With a longitudinal prospective design, the Religion, Aging and Health Survey, 2001⁻2004, followed 1493 Black ( n = 734) and White ( n = 759) elderly individuals (age 66 and older) for three years. Race, demographics (age and gender), socio-economics (education and marital status) and frequency of church attendance were measured at baseline in 2001. Secular social support, religious social support, chronic medical conditions and depressive symptoms [8- item Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale (CES-D)] were measured in 2004. Multiple linear regression models were used for data analysis. In the pooled sample, secular and religious social support were both protective against depressive symptoms, net of all covariates. Race interacted with secular ( β = −0.62 for interaction) and religious ( β = −0.21 for interaction) social support on baseline depressive symptoms ( p < 0.05 for both interactions), suggesting larger protections for Blacks compared to Whites. In race-specific models, the regression weight for the effect of secular social support on depressive symptoms was larger for Blacks ( β = −0.64) than Whites ( β = −0.16). Conclusion: We found Black—White differences in the protective effects of secular and religious social support against depressive symptoms. Blacks seem to benefit more from the same level of emotional social support, regardless of its source, compared to Whites.

Secular and Religious Social Support Better Protect Blacks than Whites against Depressive Symptoms

PubMed Central

Moghani Lankarani, Maryam

2018-01-01

Purpose: Although the protective effect of social support against depression is well known, limited information exists on racial differences in this association. The current study examined Black-White differences in the effects of religious and secular emotional social support on depressive symptoms in a national sample of older adults in the United States. Methods: With a longitudinal prospective design, the Religion, Aging and Health Survey, 2001–2004, followed 1493 Black (n = 734) and White (n = 759) elderly individuals (age 66 and older) for three years. Race, demographics (age and gender), socio-economics (education and marital status) and frequency of church attendance were measured at baseline in 2001. Secular social support, religious social support, chronic medical conditions and depressive symptoms [8- item Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale (CES-D)] were measured in 2004. Multiple linear regression models were used for data analysis. Results: In the pooled sample, secular and religious social support were both protective against depressive symptoms, net of all covariates. Race interacted with secular (β = −0.62 for interaction) and religious (β = −0.21 for interaction) social support on baseline depressive symptoms (p < 0.05 for both interactions), suggesting larger protections for Blacks compared to Whites. In race-specific models, the regression weight for the effect of secular social support on depressive symptoms was larger for Blacks (β = −0.64) than Whites (β = −0.16). Conclusion: We found Black—White differences in the protective effects of secular and religious social support against depressive symptoms. Blacks seem to benefit more from the same level of emotional social support, regardless of its source, compared to Whites. PMID:29734662

A model for solar constant secular changes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schatten, Kenneth H.

1988-01-01

In this paper, contrast models for solar active region and global photospheric features are used to reproduce the observed Active Cavity Radiometer and Earth Radiation Budget secular trends in reasonably good fashion. A prediction for the next decade of solar constant variations is made using the model. Secular trends in the solar constant obtained from the present model support the view that the Maunder Minimum may be related to the Little Ice Age of the 17th century.

Talking ethics with strangers: a view from Jewish tradition.

PubMed

Newman, L E

1993-12-01

The work of H. Tristram Engelhardt provides an important set of reflections for bioethics in a secular context. Taking Engelhardt's work as its point of departure this article explores the challenges that Jewish ethicists face in contributing to bioethics in a secular context. The article explores how the Jewish tradition can address issues in bioethics in ways that are true to its tradition and at the same time accessible and relevant to "moral strangers" in a secular society.

Modelling the secular evolution of migrating planet pairs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michtchenko, T. A.; Rodríguez, A.

2011-08-01

The subject of this paper is the secular behaviour of a pair of planets evolving under dissipative forces. In particular, we investigate the case when dissipative forces affect the planetary semimajor axes and the planets move inwards/outwards the central star, in a process known as planet migration. To perform this investigation, we introduce fundamental concepts of conservative and dissipative dynamics of the three-body problem. Based on these concepts, we develop a qualitative model of the secular evolution of the migrating planetary pair. Our approach is based on the analysis of the energy and the orbital angular momentum exchange between the two-planet system and an external medium; thus no specific kind of dissipative forces is invoked. We show that, under the assumption that dissipation is weak and slow, the evolutionary routes of the migrating planets are traced by the Mode I and Mode II stationary solutions of the conservative secular problem. The ultimate convergence and the evolution of the system along one of these secular modes of motion are determined uniquely by the condition that the dissipation rate is sufficiently smaller than the proper secular frequency of the system. We show that it is possible to reassemble the starting configurations and the migration history of the systems on the basis of their final states and consequently to constrain the parameters of the physical processes involved.

Striking Seasonality in the Secular Warming of the Northern Continents: Structure and Mechanisms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nigam, S.; Thomas, N. P.

2017-12-01

The linear trend in twentieth-century surface air temperature (SAT)—a key secular warming signal— exhibits striking seasonal variations over Northern Hemisphere continents; SAT trends are pronounced in winter and spring but notably weaker in summer and fall. The SAT trends in historical twentieth-century climate simulations informing the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change's Fifth Assessment show varied (and often unrealistic) strength and structure, and markedly weaker seasonal variation. The large intra-ensemble spread of winter SAT trends in some historical simulations was surprising, especially in the context of century-long linear trends, with implications for the detection of the secular warming signal. The striking seasonality of observed secular warming over northern continents warrants an explanation and the representation of related processes in climate models. Here, the seasonality of SAT trends over North America is shown to result from land surface-hydroclimate interactions and, to an extent, also from the secular change in low-level atmospheric circulation and related thermal advection. It is argued that the winter dormancy and summer vigor of the hydrologic cycle over middle- to high-latitude continents permit different responses to the additional incident radiative energy from increasing greenhouse gas concentrations. The seasonal cycle of climate, despite its monotony, provides an expanded phase space for the exposition of the dynamical and thermodynamical processes generating secular warming, and an exceptional cost-effective opportunity for benchmarking climate projection models.

Religious and Secular Coping and Family Relationships in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

PubMed Central

Brelsford, Gina M.; Ramirez, Joshua; Veneman, Kristin; Doheny, Kim K.

2017-01-01

Background Preterm birth is an unanticipated and stressful event for parents. In addition, the unfamiliar setting of the intensive care nursery necessitates strategies for coping. Purpose The primary study objective of this descriptive study was to determine whether secular and religious coping strategies were related to family functioning in the neonatal intensive care unit. Methods Fifty-two parents of preterm (25–35 weeks’ gestation) infants completed the Brief COPE (secular coping), the Brief RCOPE (religious coping), and the Family Environment Scale within 1 week of their infant’s hospital admission. Findings This descriptive study found that parents’ religious and secular coping was significant in relation to family relationship functioning. Specifically, negative religious coping (ie, feeling abandoned or angry at God) was related to poorer family cohesion and use of denial. Implications for Practice These findings have relevance for interventions focused toward enhancing effective coping for families. Implications for Research Further study of religious and secular coping strategies for neonatal intensive care unit families is warranted in a larger more diverse sample of family members. PMID:27391569

Secular evolution of asteroid families: the role of Ceres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Novaković, Bojan; Tsirvoulis, Georgios; Marò, Stefano; Đošović, Vladimir; Maurel, Clara

2016-01-01

We consider the role of the dwarf planet Ceres on the secular dynamics of the asteroid main belt. Specifically, we examine the post impact evolution of asteroid families due to the interaction of their members with the linear nodal secular resonance with Ceres. First, we find the location of this resonance and identify which asteroid families are crossed by its path. Next, we summarize our results for three asteroid families, namely (1726) Hoffmeister, (1128) Astrid and (1521) Seinajoki which have irregular distributions of their members in the proper elements space, indicative of the effect of the resonance. We confirm this by performing a set of numerical simulations, showcasing that the perturbing action of Ceres through its linear nodal secular resonance is essential to reproduce the actual shape of the families.

Ethics of surrogacy: a comparative study of Western secular and islamic bioethics.

PubMed

Islam, Sharmin; Nordin, Rusli Bin; Bin Shamsuddin, Ab Rani; Mohd Nor, Hanapi Bin; Al-Mahmood, Abu Kholdun

2012-01-01

The comparative approach regarding the ethics of surrogacy from the Western secular and Islamic bioethical view reveals both commensurable and incommensurable relationship. Both are eager to achieve the welfare of the mother, child and society as a whole but the approaches are not always the same. Islamic bioethics is straightforward in prohibiting surrogacy by highlighting the lineage problem and also other social chaos and anarchy. Western secular bioethics is relative and mostly follows a utilitarian approach.

The Importance of Turkish and US Relations: Contributing for Joint Objectives of a Secure Middle East

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-03-31

As a Muslim-majority country that is transitioning from being a secular democratic state toward its Islamic roots, a member of NATO, and a long...being a secular democratic state toward its Islamic roots, a member of NATO, and a long-standing US ally, Turkey is pivotal to the US strategy to shape...productive country needed education, so Kemal advocated a unified school system with secular, Turkish language schools.2 Under Mustafa Kemal’s leadership

Ethics of Surrogacy: A Comparative Study of Western Secular and Islamic Bioethics

PubMed Central

Islam, Sharmin; Nordin, Rusli Bin; Bin Shamsuddin, Ab Rani; Mohd Nor, Hanapi Bin; Al-Mahmood, Abu Kholdun

2012-01-01

The comparative approach regarding the ethics of surrogacy from the Western secular and Islamic bioethical view reveals both commensurable and incommensurable relationship. Both are eager to achieve the welfare of the mother, child and society as a whole but the approaches are not always the same. Islamic bioethics is straightforward in prohibiting surrogacy by highlighting the lineage problem and also other social chaos and anarchy. Western secular bioethics is relative and mostly follows a utilitarian approach. PMID:23864994

Time to Exorcise Another Ghost From the Vietnam War: Restructuring the In-Service Conscientious Objector Program

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-04-01

rely on Lemon v . Kurtzman , 403 U.S. 602 (1971), in its analysis even though Lemon previously had been the most commonly applied analytical approach to...U.S. 203, (1963) (applying a secular purpose and principle effects test to measure neutrality); Lemon v . Kurtzman , 403 U.S. 602 (1971) (applying a...from Lemon along with measuring secular symbols as impacting determination of secular purpose and principle effect); Lee v . Weisman, 112 S. Ct. 2649

Secular resonances with massive asteroids and their impact on the dynamics of small bodies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsirvoulis, Georgios; Novaković, Bojan; Djošović, Valdimir

2015-08-01

The quest for understanding the dynamical structure of the main belt has been a long-lasting endeavor. From the discovery of the Kirkwood gaps and the Hirayama families, to the more recent advances in secular perturbation theory, the refinement of the proper elements and the discovery of the three-body mean-motion resonances, only to name a few, the progress has been immense. Dynamical models coupled with the outbursts in computational power and observations have greatly improved our knowledge of the dynamical evolution of the small bodies in the Solar System.While our set of tools for studying the dynamical porperties of the main belt is believed to be sufficiently complete, our assumptions on how to use them seem to have hindered this effort.The concensus has been that, judging by their mass, only the planets, especially the giant ones, can act as efficient perturbers of the orbits of asteroids. Thus a lot of studies have been made on the locations and effects of secular resonances with the giant planets in different parts of the main belt, explaining among other things the presence of gaps in the distribution of asteroids, strange shapes of some asteroid families and transport mechanisms of asteroids to the near-Earth region.Our work is motivated by the first discovery that a secular resonance with the most massive asteroid, Ceres, is the dominant dynamical mechanism responsible for the post-impact evolution of the Hoffmeister family members. Thus the concensus is wrong. Knowing now, that secular resonances with massive asteroids can be effective on asteroid dynamics, we set out to construct a dynamical map of these resonances across the main belt.Our study is focused on the linear and degree four non-linear secular resonances with the two most massive asteroids (1) Ceres and (4) Vesta. First we determine the locations of these secular resonances in the proper elements space, acquiring an understanding of the potentially affected regions, and then we perform numerical simulations to investigate the importance of each secular resonance on the dynamical evolution of asteroid orbits in the different parts of the main belt.

Importance of selecting archaeomagnetic data for geomagnetic modelling: example of the new Western Europe directional and intensity secular variation curves from 1500 BC to 200 AD

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herve, Gwenael; Chauvin, Annick; Lanos, Philippe

2014-05-01

At the regional scale, the dispersion between archaeomagnetic data and especially archaeointensities suggests that some of them may be biased. As a consequence, it appears necessary to perform a selection of available data before to compute mean regional secular variation curves or geomagnetic models. However the definition of suitable selection criteria is not obvious and we need to know how to manage "old" data acquired during the 60-70s. The Western Europe directional and intensity data set from 1500 BC to 200 AD allows to discuss these issues. It has recently been enhanced by 39 new archaeodirections and 23 new archaeointensities (Hervé et al., 2013a and 2013b data sets and 5 unpublished data). First, the whole Western Europe data set was selected but the strong dispersion restricted the accuracy and the reliability of the new Western Europe secular variation curves at Paris. The causes of the dispersion appear different between archaeodirections and archaeointensities. In the directional data set, the main problem comes from some age errors in the oldest published data. Since their publication their archaeological dating may have changed of 50 years or more. For intensity data that were acquired much more recently, the dispersion mainly results from the use of unreliable archaeointensity protocols. We propose a weighting approach based on the number of specimens and the use of pTRM-checks, anisotropy and cooling rate corrections. Only 63% of available archaeodirections and 32% of archaeointensities were used to build the new Western Europe secular variation curves from 1500 BC to 200 AD. These curves reveal that selecting the reference data avoids wrong estimations of the shape of the secular variation curves, the secular variation rate, the dating of archaeomagnetic jerks... Finally, it is worth pointing out that current geomagnetic global models take into account almost all the data that we decided to reject. It could partly explain why their predictions at Paris do not fit our local secular variation curves. Hervé, G., Chauvin, A. & Lanos, P., 2013a. Geomagnetic field variations in Western Europe from 1500BC to 200AD. Part I : Directional secular variation curve, Phys. Earth Planet. Inter., 218, 1-13. Hervé, G., Chauvin, A. & Lanos, P., 2013b. Geomagnetic field variations in Western Europe from 1500BC to 200AD. Part II : New intensity secular variation curve, Phys. Earth Planet. Inter., 218, 51-65.

Towards the Implementation of Semi-Dynamic Datum for Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shariff, N. S.; Gill, J.; Amin, Z. M.; Omar, K. M.

2017-10-01

A semi-dynamic datum provides positions with respect to time while taking into account the secular and non-secular deformations, making it the best approach to adapt with the dynamic processes of the earth. Malaysia, as yet, employs a static datum, i.e., GDM2000, at epoch 2000; though Malaysia has evidently been affected by seismic activity for the past decade. Therefore, this paper seeks to propose a design for implementing a semi-dynamic datum for Malaysia. Methodologically, GPS time series analyses are carried out to investigate the seismic activity of Malaysia, which essentially contributes to the proposed design of the semi-dynamic datum for Malaysia. The implications of implementing a semi-dynamic datum for Malaysia are discussed as well. The results indicate that Malaysia undergoes a complex deformation; whereby the earthquakes - primarily the 2004 Sumatra-Andaman, 2005 Nias and 2012 Northern Sumatra earthquakes - have affected the underlying secular velocities of Malaysia. Consequently, from this information, the proposed design, particularly the secular and non-secular deformation models, is described in detail. The proposed semi-dynamic datum comprises a transformation, temporal, and spatial module, and utilizes a bilinear interpolation method. Overall, this paper aims to contribute to the feasibility of a semi-dynamic datum approach for Malaysia.

Localized sudden changes in the geomagnetic secular variation.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alldredge, L.R.

1987-01-01

There is much debate as to whether there was a worldwide geomagnetic jerk in 1969 or 1970. It is agreed that there was an unusual sharp change in the secular variation in the east component, Y, in Europe at that time. This note points out how a localized sudden change in the secular variation pattern of one component in Europe can occur without having any large worldwide effects in any of the components. The accompanying changes in the spherical harmonic coefficients for such a localized change are also discussed. -after Author

Secular Acceleration of Barnard's Star

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bartlett, Jennifer L.; Ianna, P. A.

2009-01-01

Barnard's Star should have significant secular acceleration because it lies close to the Sun and has the highest known proper motion along with a large radial velocity. It will pass within about 1.4 pc in another 9,750 years. Secular changes in proper motion and radial velocity are essentially the Coriolis and centrifugal accelerations, respectively, arising from use of a rotating coordinate system defined by the Sun-star radius vector. Although stellar space velocities measured with respect to the Sun are essentially constant, these perspective effects arise with changing distance and viewing angle. Hipparcos-2 plus Nidever et al. (2002) predict a perspective change in the proper motion of 1.285±0.006 mas yr-2 for Barnard's Star. Recent analysis of 900+ photographic plates between 1968 and 1998 with the 26.25-in (0.67-m) McCormick refractor detected a secular acceleration of 1.25±0.04 mas yr-2, which agrees with the predicted value within the measurement errors. Earlier, Benedict et al. (1999) measured its secular acceleration to be 1.2±0.2 mas yr-2 using 3 years of HST FGS observations. Similarly, a perspective change in radial velocity of 4.50±0.01 m s-1 yr-1 can be predicted for Barnard's Star. Kürster et al. (2003) detected variations in their observations of it that are largely attributable to secular acceleration along the line of sight with some contribution from stellar activity. Although secular acceleration effects have been limited for past studies of stellar motions, they can be significant for observations extending over decades or for high-precision measurements required to detect extrasolar planets. Future studies will need to consider this factor for the nearest stars and for those with large proper motions or radial velocities. NSF grant AST 98-20711; Litton Marine Systems; Peninsula Community Foundation Levinson Fund; UVa Governor's Fellowship, Dean's F&A Fellowship, and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences; and, US Naval Observatory supported this research.

Sandstone: secular trends in lithology in southwestern montana.

PubMed

McLane, M

1972-11-03

Long-term secular trends in the composition and texture of sandstones in southwestern Montana reflect changing provenance and depositional environment, which in turn reflect changing tectonic patterns in the Cordilleran mobile belt just to the west.

Relative secular variations of the geomagnetic field along the Zgorzelec-Wiżajny profile, Poland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wojas, Anna; Grabowska, Teresa; Mikołajczak, Mateusz

2018-03-01

The paper presents results of the study on relative secular variations of total magnetic intensity (TMI) of the geomagnetic field along the 700 km long profile crossing the area of Poland. Surveys were carried out at annual intervals between 1966 and 2016 (50 measurement series), in 31 survey sites (secular points) separated by about 22 km. The studied profile of the SW-NE direction, called Zgorzelec-Wiżajny (Z-W), crosses large parts of the main tectonic units of Europe, namely the Palaeozoic Platform of Central and Western Europe (PLZ) and the East European Craton (EEC), connected by the Teisseyre-Tornquist Zone (TTZ). Using the original methodology of analysis of measured data, reduced to the values of geomagnetic field recorded at the Central Geophysical Observatory in Belsk, the relative secular variations of TMI with the magnetic anomalies (ΔT) and the terrestrial heat flow density (Q) were graphically presented.

Gender identity, nationalism, and social action among Jewish and Arab women in Israel: redefining the social order?

PubMed

Moore, D

2000-01-01

In the study this article explores, the meaning of gender identity for religious and secular Jewish and Arab women in Israeli society is examined. The study focuses on how Israeli women, rank gender identity, relative to other identities like being Jewish/Arab, being Israeli/Palestinian, religious or secular, of a certain ethnic group, and political identity. It examines the characteristics of gender identity and the attitudes that are associated with it. The analysis shows that the hierarchies of identities are different for religious and secular Jewish and Arab women, and that this is related to having different sociopolitical attitudes (e.g., Women's social and political involvement, social obedience, social influence). Thus, the hierarchy of identities and the sociopolitical attitudes of religious women indicate a more consensual acceptance of the social order than the hierarchy of identities and the sociopolitical attitudes of secular women, especially among Arab women.

Reference frame access under the effects of great earthquakes: a least squares collocation approach for non-secular post-seismic evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gómez, D. D.; Piñón, D. A.; Smalley, R.; Bevis, M.; Cimbaro, S. R.; Lenzano, L. E.; Barón, J.

2016-03-01

The 2010, (Mw 8.8) Maule, Chile, earthquake produced large co-seismic displacements and non-secular, post-seismic deformation, within latitudes 28°S-40°S extending from the Pacific to the Atlantic oceans. Although these effects are easily resolvable by fitting geodetic extended trajectory models (ETM) to continuous GPS (CGPS) time series, the co- and post-seismic deformation cannot be determined at locations without CGPS (e.g., on passive geodetic benchmarks). To estimate the trajectories of passive geodetic benchmarks, we used CGPS time series to fit an ETM that includes the secular South American plate motion and plate boundary deformation, the co-seismic discontinuity, and the non-secular, logarithmic post-seismic transient produced by the earthquake in the Posiciones Geodésicas Argentinas 2007 (POSGAR07) reference frame (RF). We then used least squares collocation (LSC) to model both the background secular inter-seismic and the non-secular post-seismic components of the ETM at the locations without CGPS. We tested the LSC modeled trajectories using campaign and CGPS data that was not used to generate the model and found standard deviations (95 % confidence level) for position estimates for the north and east components of 3.8 and 5.5 mm, respectively, indicating that the model predicts the post-seismic deformation field very well. Finally, we added the co-seismic displacement field, estimated using an elastic finite element model. The final, trajectory model allows accessing the POSGAR07 RF using post-Maule earthquake coordinates within 5 cm for ˜ 91 % of the passive test benchmarks.

The Dynamics of Tightly-packed Planetary Systems in the Presence of an Outer Planet: Case Studies Using Kepler-11 and Kepler-90

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Granados Contreras, A. P.; Boley, A. C.

2018-03-01

We explore the effects of an undetected outer giant planet on the dynamics, observability, and stability of Systems with Tightly-packed Inner Planets (STIPs). We use direct numerical simulations along with secular theory and synthetic secular frequency spectra to analyze how analogues of Kepler-11 and Kepler-90 behave in the presence of a nearly co-planar, Jupiter-like outer perturber with semimajor axes between 1 and 5.2 au. Most locations of the outer perturber do not affect the evolution of the inner planetary systems, apart from altering precession frequencies. However, there are locations at which an outer planet causes system instability due to, in part, secular eccentricity resonances. In Kepler-90, there is a range of orbital distances for which the outer perturber drives planets b and c, through secular interactions, onto orbits with inclinations that are ∼16° away from the rest of the planets. Kepler-90 is stable in this configuration. Such secular resonances can thus affect the observed multiplicity of transiting systems. We also compare the synthetic apsidal and nodal precession frequencies with the secular theory and find some misalignment between principal frequencies, indicative of strong interactions between the planets (consistent with the system showing TTVs). First-order libration angles are calculated to identify MMRs in the systems, for which two near-MMRs are shown in Kepler-90, with a 5:4 between b and c, as well as a 3:2 between g and h.

Secular trends are associated with the demographic and epidemiologic transitions in an indigenous community in Oaxaca, Southern Mexico.

PubMed

Malina, Robert M; Little, Bertis B; Peña Reyes, Maria Eugenia

2018-01-01

To test the hypothesis that secular changes in body size and age at menarche are related to the demographic and epidemiologic transitions in an indigenous community in Oaxaca, southern Mexico. Data were derived from surveys of a Zapotec-speaking community conducted between 1968 and 2000. Segmented linear regressions of height, weight, BMI and recalled age at menarche on year of birth in cohorts of adults born before and after the demographic transition were used to evaluate secular changes. Corresponding comparisons of body size (MANCOVA controlling for age) and age at menarche (status quo, probit analysis) were done for samples of children and adolescents born before and after the epidemiological transition. Height and weight increased in adults born after the demographic transition (mid-1950s), and especially in children and adolescents born after the epidemiological transition (mid-1980s). Age at menarche also decreased significantly in women born after the demographic transition, but at a more rapid estimated rate in adolescents born after the epidemiological transition. Secular gains in body weight were proportional to those for height among children and adolescents, but adults, males more so than females, gained proportionally more weight. The secular trend in height in adults of both sexes was associated with the decade of the demographic transition in the mid-1950s. Significant secular gains in size attained and age at menarche occurred in children and youth born after the epidemiologic transition which likely reflected improved health and nutritional conditions since the mid-1980s. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Curriculum Resources.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thompson, Norma H.

1988-01-01

Discusses an article which presents a concise discussion of secular humanism. Reviews additional materials on censorship from the perspective of the new religious right, the fundamentalists, and public policy and the law. The sources provide background to enhance teaching about secular humanism and textbook censorship. (SLM)

Geomagnetic field models incorporating physical constraints on the secular variation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Constable, Catherine; Parker, Robert L.

1993-01-01

This proposal has been concerned with methods for constructing geomagnetic field models that incorporate physical constraints on the secular variation. The principle goal that has been accomplished is the development of flexible algorithms designed to test whether the frozen flux approximation is adequate to describe the available geomagnetic data and their secular variation throughout this century. These have been applied to geomagnetic data from both the early and middle part of this century and convincingly demonstrate that there is no need to invoke violations of the frozen flux hypothesis in order to satisfy the available geomagnetic data.

Formulas for precession. [motion of mean equator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kinoshita, H.

1975-01-01

Literal expressions for the precessional motion of the mean equator referred to an arbitrary epoch are constructed. Their numerical representations, based on numerical values recommended at the working meeting of the International Astronomical Union Commission held in Washington in September 1974, are obtained. In constructing the equations of motion, the second-order secular perturbation and the secular perturbation due to the long-periodic terms in the motions of the moon and the sun are taken into account. These perturbations contribute more to the motion of the mean equator than does the term due to the secular perturbation of the orbital eccentricity of the sun.

SECULAR GROWTH AND MATURATION CHANGES IN HUNGARY IN RELATION TO SOCIOECONOMIC AND DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGES.

PubMed

Bodzsar, Eva B; Zsakai, Annamaria; Mascie-Taylor, Nicholas

2016-03-01

This paper analyses the secular changes in the body development patterns of Hungarian children between the 1910s and the beginning of the 2000s in relation to socioeconomic and demographic changes in the country. Individual growth data of children were available from two national growth studies (1983-86, 2003-06), while sample-size weighted means of children's body dimensions were collected through regional studies between the 1920s and 1970s. Gross domestic product, Gini index, life expectancy at birth and under-5 mortality rate were used to assess the changes in economic status, income inequalities of the society and the population's general health status, respectively. Secular changes in food consumption habits were also examined. The positive Hungarian secular changes in socioeconomic status were associated with a continuous increase in children's body dimensions. The negative socioeconomic changes reflected only in wartime and post-war periods of children's growth, and the considerable socioeconomic changes at the beginning of the 1990s did not appear to influence the positive trend in children's growth. The positive secular trend in stature and body mass did not level off at the beginning of the 2000s: the socioeconomic conditions that support optimal growth and maturation could improve in Hungary.

Asteroid Secular Dynamics: Ceres’ Fingerprint Identified

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Novaković, Bojan; Maurel, Clara; Tsirvoulis, Georgios; Knežević, Zoran

2015-07-01

Here we report on the significant role of a so far overlooked dynamical aspect, namely, a secular resonance between the dwarf planet Ceres and other asteroids. We demonstrate that this type of secular resonance can be the dominant dynamical factor in certain regions of the main asteroid belt. Specifically, we performed a dynamical analysis of the asteroids belonging to the (1726) Hoffmeister family. To identify which dynamical mechanisms are actually at work in this part of the main asteroid belt, i.e., to isolate the main perturber(s), we study the evolution of this family in time. The study is accomplished using numerical integrations of test particles performed within different dynamical models. The obtained results reveal that the post-impact evolution of the Hoffmeister asteroid family is a direct consequence of the nodal secular resonance with Ceres. This leads us to the conclusion that similar effects must exist in other parts of the asteroid belt. In this respect, the obtained results shed light on an important and entirely new aspect of the long-term dynamics of small bodies. Ceres’ fingerprint in asteroid dynamics, expressed through the discovered secular resonance effect, completely changes our understanding of the way in which perturbations by Ceres-like objects affect the orbits of nearby bodies.

Secular and religious: the intrinsic doubleness of analytical psychology and the hegemony of naturalism in the social sciences.

PubMed

Main, Roderick

2013-06-01

In recent years a number of prominent social theorists, including Jürgen Habermas and Charles Taylor, have voiced concern about the hegemony of naturalistic, secular assumptions in the social sciences, and in their different ways have sought to address this by establishing greater parity between secular and religious perspectives. This paper suggests that C.G. Jung's analytical psychology, which hitherto has been largely ignored by social theory, may have something to contribute on this issue as it can be understood coherently both empirically, without reference to transcendent reality, and metaphysically, with reference to transcendent reality. It is argued that, despite his denials of any metaphysical intent, Jung does in fact engage in metaphysics and that together the empirical and metaphysical vectors of his thought result in a rich and distinctive double perspective. This dual secular and religious perspective can be seen as part of Jung's own critique of the hegemony of naturalism and secularism, which for Jung has profound social as well as clinical relevance. The concern and approach that Habermas and Taylor share with Jung on this issue may provide some grounds for increased dialogue between analytical psychology and the social sciences. © 2013, The Society of Analytical Psychology.

Comment on 'Can infrared gravitons screen {lambda}?'

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tsamis, N. C.; Woodard, R. P.; Department of Physics, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611

2008-07-15

We reply to the recent criticism by Garriga and Tanaka of our proposal that quantum gravitational loop corrections may lead to a secular screening of the effective cosmological constant. Their argument rests upon a renormalization scheme in which the composite operator (R{radical}(-g)-4{lambda}{radical}(-g)){sub ren} is defined to be the trace of the renormalized field equations. Although this is a peculiar prescription, we show that it does not preclude secular screening. Moreover, we show that a constant Ricci scalar does not even classically imply a constant expansion rate. Other important points are: (1) the quantity R{sub ren} of Garriga and Tanaka ismore » neither a properly defined composite operator, nor is it constant; (2) gauge dependence does not render a Green's function devoid of physical content; (3) scalar models on a nondynamical de Sitter background (for which there is no gauge issue) can induce arbitrarily large secular contributions to the stress tensor; (4) the same secular corrections appear in observable quantities in quantum gravity; and (5) the prospects seem good for deriving a simple stochastic formulation of quantum gravity in which the leading secular effects can be summed and for which the expectation values of even complicated, gauge invariant operators can be computed at leading order.« less

Predicting Precession Rates from Secular Dynamics for Extra-solar Multi-planet Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Laerhoven, Christa L.

2015-11-01

Considering the secular dynamics of multi-planet systems provides substantial insight into the interactions between planets in those systems. Secular interactions are those that don't involve knowing where a planet is along its orbit, and they dominate when planets are not involved in mean motion resonances. These interactions exchange angular momentum among the planets, evolving their eccentricities and inclinations. To second order in the planets' eccentricities and inclinations, the eccentricity and inclination perturbations are decoupled. Given the right variable choice, the relevant differential equations are linear and thus the eccentricity and inclination behaviors can be described as a sum of eigenmodes. Since the underlying structure of the secular eigenmodes can be calculated using only the planets' masses and semi-major axes, one can elucidate the eccentricity and inclination behavior of planets in exoplanet systems even without knowing the planets' current eccentricities and inclinations. I have calculated both the eccentricity and inclination secular eigenmodes for the population of known multi-planet systems whose planets have well determined masses and periods. Using this catalog, and assuming a Gausian distribution for the eigenmode amplitudes and a uniform distribution for the eigenmode phases, I have predicted what range of precession rates the planets may have. Generally, planets that have more than one eigenmode significantly contribute to their eccentricity ('groupies') can have a wide range of possible precession rates, while planets that are 'loners' have a narrow range of possible precession rates. One might have assumed that in any given system, the planets with shorter periods would have faster precession rates. However, I show that in systems where the planets suffer strong secular interactions this is not necessarily the case.

Secular Trends in Menarcheal Age in India-Evidence from the Indian Human Development Survey

PubMed Central

Pathak, Praveen Kumar; Tripathi, Niharika; Subramanian, S. V.

2014-01-01

Background Evidence from a number of countries in Europe and North America point towards the secular declining trend in menarcheal age with considerable spatial variations over the past two centuries. Similar trends were reported in several developing countries from Asia, Africa and Latin America. However, data corroborating any secular trend in the menarcheal age of the Indian population remained sparse and inadequately verified. Methods We examined secular trends, regional heterogeneity and association of socioeconomic, anthropometric and contextual factors with menarcheal age among ever-married women (15–49 years) in India. Using the pseudo cohort data approach, we fit multiple linear regression models to estimate secular trends in menarcheal age of 91394 ever-married women using the Indian Human Development Survey. Results The mean age at menarche among Indian women was 13.76 years (95 % CI: 13.75, 13.77) in 2005. It declined by three months from 13.83 years (95% CI: 13.81, 13.85) among women born prior to 1955–1964, to nearly 13.62 years (95% CI: 13.58, 13.67) among women born during late 1985–1989. However, these aggregate national figures mask extensive spatial heterogeneity as mean age at menarche varied from 15.0 years in Himachal Pradesh during 1955–1964 (95% CI: 14.89–15.11) to about 12.1 years in Assam (95% CI: 11.63–12.56) during 1985–1989. Conclusion The regression analysis established a reduction of nearly one month per decade, suggesting a secular decline in age at menarche among Indian women. Notably, the menarcheal age was significantly associated with the area of residence, geographic region, linguistic groups, educational attainment, wealth status, caste and religious affiliations among Indian women. PMID:25369507

Geodetic estimates of fault slip rates in the San Francisco Bay area

USGS Publications Warehouse

Savage, J.C.; Svarc, J.L.; Prescott, W.H.

1999-01-01

Bourne et al. [1998] have suggested that the interseismic velocity profile at the surface across a transform plate boundary is a replica of the secular velocity profile at depth in the plastosphere. On the other hand, in the viscoelastic coupling model the shape of the interseismic surface velocity profile is a consequence of plastosphere relaxation following the previous rupture of the faults that make up the plate boundary and is not directly related to the secular flow in the plastosphere. The two models appear to be incompatible. If the plate boundary is composed of several subparallel faults and the interseismic surface velocity profile across the boundary known, each model predicts the secular slip rates on the faults which make up the boundary. As suggested by Bourne et al., the models can then be tested by comparing the predicted secular slip rates to those estimated from long-term offsets inferred from geology. Here we apply that test to the secular slip rates predicted for the principal faults (San Andreas, San Gregorio, Hayward, Calaveras, Rodgers Creek, Green Valley and Greenville faults) in the San Andreas fault system in the San Francisco Bay area. The estimates from the two models generally agree with one another and to a lesser extent with the geologic estimate. Because the viscoelastic coupling model has been equally successful in estimating secular slip rates on the various fault strands at a diffuse plate boundary, the success of the model of Bourne et al. [1998] in doing the same thing should not be taken as proof that the interseismic velocity profile across the plate boundary at the surface is a replica of the velocity profile at depth in the plastosphere.

Religion, Education and the Post-Secular Child

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Robert A.

2014-01-01

This essay endeavours to reframe current discussion of the relationship of religion to education by highlighting an often seriously neglected element of contemporary educational thought: the changing, post-secular understanding of childhood in the globalised age. Drawing upon recent ethnographies of childhood, and an older anthropological…

Secular trends on traditional ecological knowledge: An analysis of different domains of knowledge among Tsimane' men.

PubMed

Reyes-García, Victoria; Luz, Ana C; Gueze, Maximilien; Paneque-Gálvez, Jaime; Macía, Manuel J; Orta-Martínez, Martí; Pino, Joan

2013-10-01

Empirical research provides contradictory evidence of the loss of traditional ecological knowledge across societies. Researchers have argued that culture, methodological differences, and site-specific conditions are responsible for such contradictory evidences. We advance and test a third explanation: the adaptive nature of traditional ecological knowledge systems. Specifically, we test whether different domains of traditional ecological knowledge experience different secular changes and analyze trends in the context of other changes in livelihoods. We use data collected among 651 Tsimane' men (Bolivian Amazon). Our findings indicate that different domains of knowledge follow different secular trends. Among the domains of knowledge analyzed, medicinal and wild edible knowledge appear as the most vulnerable; canoe building and firewood knowledge seem to remain constant across generations; whereas house building knowledge seems to experience a slight secular increase. Our analysis reflects on the adaptive nature of traditional ecological knowledge, highlighting how changes in this knowledge system respond to the particular needs of a society in a given point of time.

Main field and secular variation modeling with Defense Meteorological Satellite Program magnetic measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alken, P.; Olsen, N.; Finlay, C. C.; Chulliat, A.

2017-12-01

In order to investigate the spatial structure and development of rapid (sub-decadal) changes in the geomagnetic core field, including its secular variation and acceleration, global magnetic measurements from space play a crucial role. With the end of the CHAMP mission in September 2010, there has been a gap in high-quality satellite magnetic field measurements until the Swarm mission was launched in November 2013. Geomagnetic main field models during this period have relied on the global ground observatory network which, due to its sparse spatial configuration, has difficulty in resolving secular variation and acceleration at higher spherical harmonic degrees. In this presentation we will show new results in building main field models during this "gap period", based on vector magnetic measurements from four Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellites. While the fluxgate instruments onboard DMSP were not designed for high-quality core field modeling, we find that the DMSP dataset can provide valuable information on secular variation and acceleration during the gap period.

Gods, Germs, and Petri Dishes: Toward a Nonsecular Medical Anthropology.

PubMed

Roberts, Elizabeth F S

2016-01-01

This commentary calls on medical anthropology to become programmatically non-secular. Despite recent anthropological critiques of secularity, within and outside of anthropology, most contemporary medical anthropologists continue to leave deities and religiosity out of their examinations of healing practices, especially in their accounts of biomedicine. Through a critical, relational constructionist lens, which traces how all entities are both constructed and real, a non-secular medical anthropology would insist that when deities are part of medical practice, they are integral to analysis. Importantly then, within the symmetrical nature of this same constructionist lens, biomedical entities like germs and petri dishes need to be accounted for just as much as deities.

Asteroid proper elements and secular resonances

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knezevic, Zoran; Milani, Andrea

1992-01-01

In a series of papers (e.g., Knezevic, 1991; Milani and Knezevic, 1990; 1991) we reported on the progress we were making in computing asteroid proper elements, both as regards their accuracy and long-term stability. Additionally, we reported on the efficiency and 'intelligence' of our software. At the same time, we studied the associated problems of resonance effects, and we introduced the new class of 'nonlinear' secular resonances; we determined the locations of these secular resonances in proper-element phase space and analyzed their impact on the asteroid family classification. Here we would like to summarize the current status of our work and possible further developments.

Conflicts between conservative Christian institutions and secular groups in sub-Saharan Africa: Ideological discourses on sexualities, reproduction, and HIV/AIDS

PubMed Central

Mantell, Joanne E.; Correale, Jacqueline; Adams-Skinner, Jessica; Stein, Zena A.

2011-01-01

Religious and secular institutions advocate strategies that represent all points on the continuum to reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS. Drawing on an extensive literature review of studies conducted in sub-Saharan Africa, we focus on those secular institutions that support all effective methods of reducing HIV/AIDS transmission and those conservative religious institutions that support a limited set of prevention methods. We conclude by identifying topics for dialogue between these viewpoints that should facilitate cooperation by expanding the generally acceptable HIV/AIDS prevention methods, and especially the use of condoms. PMID:21834733

Self-Transcendence: Integrating Ends and Means in Value Counseling.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Conn, Walter E.

1994-01-01

Compares pastoral and secular counseling, suggesting that pastoral counseling is distinctively specified by limit experiences. Relates Lonergan's view of self-transcendence to Egan's three-stage model and various approaches summarized by Corey. Concludes that, although distinctive in some ways, pastoral counseling and secular counseling are…

Experiences of Christian Clients in Secular Psychotherapy: A Mixed-Methods Investigation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cragun, Carrie L.; Friedlander, Myrna L.

2012-01-01

Eleven Christian former clients were sampled to uncover factors contributing to positive versus negative experiences in secular psychotherapy. The qualitative results indicated that although many participants felt hesitant to discuss their faith due to uncertainty about their therapists' reactions, positive experiences were reportedly facilitated…

#Digitalfaith: Using Social Media for Professional Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Manson, Sable A.; Cordovés, Janett I.

2018-01-01

There is a need to identify and create spaces for professionals in higher education to engage religion, secularism, and spirituality in meaningful ways. #DigitalFaith resources are the digital platforms and communities supporting religious, secular, and spiritual development, and they offer potential avenues for professional development. This…

Supporting Muslim Students in Secular Public Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schlein, Candace; Chan, Elaine

2010-01-01

This article discusses the findings of a study examining the challenges and opportunities of supporting Muslim students in secular public schools. Education is explored as a multifaceted interplay between home and family life, community resources, school programs and policies, and classroom lessons to investigate the curricular experiences of…

Calling in Work: Secular or Sacred?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Steger, Michael F.; Pickering, N. K.; Shin, J. Y.; Dik, B. J.

2010-01-01

Recent scholarship indicates that people who view their work as a calling are more satisfied with their work and their lives. Historically, calling has been regarded as a religious experience, although modern researchers frequently have adopted a more expansive and secular conceptualization of calling, emphasizing meaning and personal fulfillment…

Magnetic Navigation in Sea Turtles: Insights from Secular Variation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Putman, N. F.; Lohmann, K.

2011-12-01

Sea turtles are iconic migrants that posses a sensitive magnetic-sense that guides their long-distance movements in a variety of contexts. In the first few hours after hatching turtles use the magnetic field to maintain an offshore compass heading to reach deeper water, out of the reach of nearshore predators. Young turtles engage in directed swimming in response to regional magnetic fields that exist along their transoceanic migratory path. Older turtles also use magnetic information to relocate foraging sites and islands used for nesting after displacement. Numerous hypotheses have been put forth to explain how magnetic information functions in these movements, however, there is little consensus among animal navigation researchers. A particular vexing issue is how magnetic navigation can function under the constraints of the constant, gradual shifting of the earth's magnetic field (secular variation). Here, I present a framework based on models of recent geomagnetic secular variation to explore several navigational mechanisms proposed for sea turtles. I show that while examination of secular variation likely falsifies some hypothetical navigational strategies, it provides key insights into the selective pressures that could maintain other navigational mechanisms. Moreover, examination of secular variation's influence on the navigational precision in reproductive migrations of sea turtles offers compelling explanations for the population structure along sea turtle nesting beaches as well as spatiotemporal variation in nesting turtle abundance.

Body image and eating behaviors in Orthodox and Secular Jewish women.

PubMed

Gluck, Marci E; Geliebter, Allan

2002-01-01

To explore the impact of religion on the development of disturbances in body image and eating behaviors. 78 Orthodox Jewish women were compared with 48 secular Jewish women. Participants completed the Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ), the Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire Version (EDE-Q), and the Figure Rating Scale (FRS). Despite a similar body mass index of 22.2 +/- 2.8 SDs, the secular women scored significantly higher on the BSQ (P = .005) and the EDE-Q (P = .004) than the Orthodox women. The secular women also had greater eating disorder symptomatology: more laxative use (P = .02) and a trend toward more vomiting (P = .06) and diuretic use (P = .06), although not more binge eating. They were twice as likely to have a fear of becoming fat (P = .05) and were four times as likely to be influenced by their shape and weight (P = .001). Also, despite increased media exposure, the secular group chose an ideal body size on the FRS similar to that of the Orthodox group, suggesting that their greater body dissatisfaction on the BSQ was related, instead, to greater cultural pressure for thinness (P = .007) and more shame about appearance (P = .04). Our findings show that membership in a strict, insulated religious group such as Orthodox Judaism may protect women, to some extent, from developing body dissatisfaction and eating pathology.

The Mid-plane of the Main Asteroid Belt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cambioni, Saverio; Malhotra, Renu

2018-03-01

We measure the mid-plane of the main asteroid belt by using the observational data of a nearly complete and unbiased sample of asteroids and find that it has inclination \\bar{I}=0\\buildrel{\\circ}\\over{.} 93+/- 0\\buildrel{\\circ}\\over{.} 04 and longitude of ascending node \\bar{{{Ω }}}=87\\buildrel{\\circ}\\over{.} 6+/- 2\\buildrel{\\circ}\\over{.} 6 (in J2000 ecliptic-equinox coordinate system). This plane differs significantly from previously published measurements, and it is also distinctly different than the solar system’s invariable plane as well as Jupiter’s orbit plane. The mid-plane of the asteroid belt is theoretically expected to be a slightly warped sheet whose local normal is controlled by the gravity of the major planets. Specifically, its inclination and longitude of ascending node varies with semimajor axis and time (on secular timescales) and is defined by the forced solution of secular perturbation theory; the ν 16 nodal secular resonance is predicted to cause a significant warp of the mid-plane in the inner asteroid belt. We test the secular theory by measuring the current location of the asteroids’ mid-plane in finer semimajor axis bins. We find that the measured mid-plane in the middle and outer asteroid belt is consistent, within the 3σ confidence level, with the prediction of secular perturbation theory, but a notable discrepancy is present in the inner asteroid belt near ∼2 au.

Geographical Distribution of Principals in Israeli Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lebental, Dana M.

2015-01-01

This quantitative investigation focuses on women high school principals at Jewish secular schools throughout Israel. Despite challenges, Israeli women have succeeded in obtaining over half of the principal positions at Jewish secular high schools, but the degree to which there is equal gender access to leadership roles in the school system remains…

Secular Life Philosophy as a Subject in Schools in Norway.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Horn, Kristian

1981-01-01

In Norway changes in legislation in recent years have loosened the firm hold of Christian philosophy in the schools and given room for alternative secular philosophy. This article presents background information and an outline of the basic plan for life philosophy as a school subject. (Author/SJL)

The elements of the Earth's magnetism and their secular changes between 1550 and 1915

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fritsche, H.

1983-01-01

The results of an investigation about the magnetic agents outside the Earth's surface as well as the Earth's magnetic elements for the epochs 1550, 1900, 1915 are presented. The secular changes of the Earth's magnetic elements during the time interval 1550 - 1900 are also included.

Religious Literacies in a Secular Literacy Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Skerrett, Allison

2014-01-01

This article examines how a literacy teacher and her students engaged students' Christian religious literacies in a secular classroom and the outcomes of those transactions. Case study methods; scholarship offering historical, cultural, and social perspectives on Christian religious literacies; and the New London Group's theory of a pedagogy of…

The Emergence of Three Distinct Worldviews among American College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keysar, Ariela

2013-01-01

American college students' worldviews affect what they value, the way they behave and potentially how they learn. The study described in this article finds that today's students are divided not dichotomously, between religious and secular, but rather among three distinct worldviews: religious, secular, and spiritual. The author asserts that…

Post-Secularism, Religious Knowledge and Religious Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carr, David

2012-01-01

Post-secularism seems to follow in the wake of other (what are here called) "postal" perspectives--post-structuralism, postmodernism, post-empiricism, post-positivism, post-analytical philosophy, post-foundationalism and so on--in questioning or repudiating what it takes to be the epistemic assumptions of "modernism." To be sure, post-secularism…

New Opportunities and Old Challenges: Romanian Denominational Higher Education in the Bologna Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Szolar, Eva

2010-01-01

The Europeanization process has created new opportunities for Romanian Christian higher education institutions, but these are coupled with new waves of secularization. The secularization and the transformation of institutional identity are the result of inner institutional decisions only apparently, since these decisions were undertaken in order…

Sociology Dismissing Religion? The Presentation of Religious Change in Introductory Sociology Textbooks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Featherstone, Richard; Sorrell, Katie L.

2007-01-01

This paper explores whether the field of sociology harbors a dismissive attitude towards religion. Specifically it examines whether introductory sociology textbooks present the classic secularization theory over the more recent religious economies explanation of religious change. The classical secularization thesis suggests that religion is…

A Multi-Disciplinary Inquiry of Secular and Christian Approaches to Sex Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yu, Chong Ho; Lee, Hyun Seo

2018-01-01

Secular scholars have criticized Christian education and counseling on sex as restrictive, ineffective, and outdated. The authors of the current study explored both common non-Christian and Christian approaches to human sexuality with reference to overarching domains of religion, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and anthropology. Secular…

The Unique and the Unifying: Children's Narratives of Cultural Differences.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roer-Strier, Dorit; Weil, Shalva; Adan, Hila

2003-01-01

Examined effects of planned encounters between religious and secular Jewish children and parents at a school in Jerusalem, Israel, on perceptions of religiosity and secularism. Results suggest that each group was aware of its affiliation, could discern similarities and differences, and did not have stereotyped perceptions. Social encounters…

Adolescents' Goal Orientations for Science in Single-Gender Israeli Religious Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fortus, David; Daphna, Limor

2017-01-01

Israeli students and their families can choose between state-funded secular, religious, orthodox, and other alternative schools (e.g., Waldorf, Montessori, democratic). Earlier studies showed that the motivation to engage with science differs greatly between Israeli students in secular schools and democratic schools, with these differences being…

Religion, Education, and Secularism in International Agencies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stambach, Amy; Marshall, Katherine; Nelson, Matthew J.; Andreescu, Liviu; Kwayu, Aikande C.; Wexler, Philip; Hotam, Yotam; Fischer, Shlomo; El Bilawi, Hassan

2011-01-01

During the interwar years of the early twentieth century, and through at least the 1980s, education was seen by scholars, state leaders, and international agency representatives alike as a way to modernize and secularize underdeveloped communities. Arguments about the modernizing power of education did not erase or discount the presence of…

Students' Attitudes toward Religion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lebedev, S. D.

2008-01-01

The problem of the study of religion in the system of secular education hinges on the "reproduction of religiousness" in the secular school and, more broadly, in Russian society space, via the process of mass education. It is the prospect of expanded reproduction of religious consciousness, of religious psychology and practices as a…

Salvaging the self in a world without soul: William James's The Principles of psychology.

PubMed

Coon, D J

2000-05-01

This article explores William James's transformation of the religious soul into the secular self in The Principles of Psychology. Although James's views on the self are familiar to many historians of psychology, the article places his treatment of the self within the broader social and cultural context of a secularizing, industrializing society. There were palpable tensions and anxieties that accompanied the cultural shift, and these are particularly transparent in James's Principles. James attempted the project of secularizing the soul in order to promote a natural science of the mind but with marked ambivalence for the project, because it left out some of the moral and metaphysical questions of great interest to him.

Career plans for male-dominated occupations among female seniors in religious and secular high schools.

PubMed

Rich, Y; Golan, R

1992-01-01

This study investigated the hypothesis that the religious beliefs of young women significantly affect their career planning. All female seniors (N = 315) in one public religious and two public secular high schools in Israel responded to inventories examining their (1) orientation to homemaking or career, (2) interest in male-dominated occupations, and (3) preference for male-dominated occupations. Results from regression analyses indicated that young women from the secular schools, as compared to those from the religious school, expressed greater interest in and preference for male-dominated occupations. In addition, religious orientation, more than other background variables, had predictive power for interest in and preference for male-dominated occupations.

Does religion deserve a place in secular medicine?

PubMed

Earp, Brian D

2015-11-01

Biggar (2015) argues that "religion" deserves a place in secular medicine. Against this view, I argue that religion (as most people would understand the term) should not play a role in shaping secular health policy, and I provide some illustrations of the potential dangers of the contrary. However, I also suggest that-upon closer inspection-Biggar seems to be using the term "religion" to refer to obliquely to what most people would call "moral philosophy." On this less controversial interpretation, Biggar's proposal is inoffensive-but also unoriginal. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Present-day secular variations in the zonal harmonics of earth's geopotential

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitrovica, J. X.; Peltier, W. R.

1993-01-01

The mathematical formulation required for predicting secular variation in the geopotential is developed for the case of a spherically symmetric, self-gravitating, viscoelastic earth model and an arbitrary surface load which can include a gravitational self-consistent ocean loading component. The theory is specifically applied to predict the present-day secular variation in the zonal harmonics of the geopotenial arising from the surface mass loading associated with the late Pleistocene glacial cycles. A procedure is outlined in which predictions of the present-day geopotential signal due to the late Pleistocene glacial cycles may be used to derive bounds on the net present-day mass flux from the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets to the local oceans.

Religious Diversity and Inclusion: Policy and Accommodation Practices in British Columbia's Secular School System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jacquet, Marianne; D'Amico, Laura

2016-01-01

The religious diversity of students and staff within a secular school system may sometimes create tensions. To better understand the possible issues generated by and practical accommodations made with respect to these tensions, interviews were conducted at the district level with key administrators in metropolitan school districts in British…

Human Values in a Secular World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Apostol, Robert Z.

The lectures of five contemporary philosophers, charged with addressing themselves to important moral issues of contemporary society with an eye to highlighting those values that are at the base of human life today, are presented in this volume. Louis Dupre is concerned with the issue of making religion intelligible in Religion in a Secular World.…

Teaching Morality and Religion in Nineteenth-Century Colonial Algeria: Gender and the Civilising Mission

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rogers, Rebecca

2011-01-01

Historians have long presented France's "civilizing mission" within its colonies in secular terms ignoring women's presence as both actors and subjects. This is particularly true in Algeria where the colonial government's explicitly prohibited proselytism. This article emphasizes women's roles pursuing both secular and religious goals in…

The End of the Flynn Effect?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sundet, Jon Martin; Barlaug, Dag G.; Torjussen, Tore M.

2004-01-01

The present paper reports secular trends in the mean scores of a language, mathematics, and a Raven-like test together with a combined general ability (GA) score among Norwegian (male) conscripts tested from the mid 1950s to 2002 (birth cohorts approximately equal to 1935-1984). Secular gains in standing height (indicating improved nutrition and…

Secularism, Secularization, and John Dewey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hickman, Larry A.

2009-01-01

There seems to be an unwritten agreement among most Americans that there are three topics that are best avoided in polite company: (1) politics; (2) personal finances; and (3) religion. The American reluctance to discuss religion with acquaintances at a dinner party or picnic may be a part of a larger phenomenon: a manifestation of the secularism…

Secular, Singular and Self-Expression? Religious Freedom in Australian and New Zealand Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Varnham, Sally; Evers, Maxine

2009-01-01

Children today live in a multicultural society. Its ethnic, religious and cultural diversity is reflected in school communities. In Australia, education is provided largely within the secular public systems of each state and territory. In addition, there is a significant denominational, primarily Catholic, school sector. In New Zealand, the state…

Teaching about Religion in History Classes: Sacred and Secular History.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abrahamson, Brant; Smith, Fred

In teaching about religion there is the fundamental distinction between secular history, which is restricted to natural cause and effect relationships, and sacred histories, which assume that a spirit world exists and that human/divine interaction has taken place. In the United States, the academically approved way of dealing with these…

Secular Normativity and the "Religification" of Muslims in Swedish Public Schooling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berglund, Jenny

2017-01-01

This article suggests that the secular norms which influence much of the Swedish school system silence the voices and experiences of young Muslims who also attend Islamic supplementary education. It is based on interviews with 20 Muslim students in Sweden who reflected on their experiences of attending supplementary Islamic education in parallel…

The Relations between Islam and Secularism: The Impact on Social Behavior in Turkey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ismail, Nik Ahmad Hisham; Tekke, Mustafa

2016-01-01

Secularism as central to society and human life may bring undesired negative consequences in Muslim societies. Increasing social problems among juveniles in Turkey raised questions regarding the right personality development and education of young people. In extending further analysis, we conducted semi-structured interview with experts to assess…

Serendipity and Stewardship: Teaching with the Spirit in a Secular Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hall, Bradford J.

2009-01-01

Can one appropriately teach with the spirit in a secular classroom? This chapter addresses the question by exploring how the concepts of serendipity and stewardship encourage a form of spirituality that is inclusive and appropriate for the university setting. Serendipity and stewardship work hand in hand. Stewardship resists the temptation of…

Groupies and Loners: The Population of Multi-planet Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Laerhoven, Christa L.; Greenberg, Richard

2014-11-01

Observational surveys with Kepler and other telescopes have shown that multi-planet systems are very numerous. Considering the secular dynamcis of multi-planet systems provides substantial insight into the interactions between planets in those systems. Since the underlying secular structure of a multi-planet system (the secular eigenmodes) can be calculated using only the planets' masses and semi-major axes, one can elucidate the eccentricity and inclination behavior of planets in those systems even without knowing the planets' current eccentricities and inclinations. We have calculated both the eccentricity and inclination secular eigenmodes for the population of known multi-planet systems whose planets have well determined masses and periods. We will discuss the commonality of dynamically grouped planets ('groupies') vs dynamically uncoupled planets ('loners'), and compare to what would be expected from randomly generated systems with the same overall distribution of masses and semi-major axes. We will also discuss the occurrence of planets that strongly influence the behavior of other planets without being influenced by those others ('overlords'). Examples will be given and general trends will be discussed.

Association between labour market trends and trends in young people's mental health in ten European countries 1983-2005.

PubMed

Lager, Anton C J; Bremberg, Sven G

2009-09-08

Mental health problems have become more common among young people over the last twenty years, especially in certain countries. The reasons for this have remained unclear. The hypothesis tested in this study is that national trends in young people's mental health are associated with national trends in young people's labour market. National secular changes in the proportion of young people with mental health problems and national secular labour market changes were studied from 1983 to 2005 in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The correlation between the national secular changes in the proportion of young people not in the labour force and the national secular changes in proportion of young people with mental health symptoms was 0.77 for boys and 0.92 for girls. Labour market trends may have contributed to the deteriorating trend in mental health among young people. A true relationship, should other studies confirm it, would be an important aspect to take into account when forming labour market policies or policies concerning the delivery of higher education.

Secular Change in Morphological Pelvic Traits used for Sex Estimation.

PubMed

Klales, Alexandra R

2016-03-01

This research evaluates secular change in Phenice's (Am J Phys Anthropol, 30, 1969 and 297) three morphological traits of the pubis, as described by Klales et al. (Am J Phys Anthropol, 149, 2012 and 104): medial aspect of the ischio-pubic ramus, subpubic contour, and ventral arc. Ordinal scores were collected for these traits and compared between a sample of innominates from the historical Hamann-Todd Collection (n = 170) and modern Bass Donated Collection (n = 129). Using the Freeman-Halton test, significant differences between temporal sample score frequencies were found for all traits in females and for the subpubic contour and ventral arc in males. Despite these findings, classification accuracy using logistic regression between the temporal periods remained low (68.7%). These results suggest that secular changes in trait expression are occurring; however, sex estimation methods using these traits and created with historical samples are still applicable to modern forensic cases. In fact, the secular changes occurring in these traits contribute to better classification accuracy between sexes in modern populations. © 2015 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Analytical and numerical algorthms for revelation and investigation of secular resonances in the motion of near earth space objects. (Russian Title: Численно-аналитическая методика выявления и исследования вековых резонансов в движении околоземных объектов)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bordovitsyna, T. V.; Tomilova, I. V.; Chuvashov, I. N.

2011-07-01

In this paper complex of analytical and numerical algorithms for revelation and investigation of secular resonances in the motion of near Earth space objects are presented. Analytical numerical algorithm for revelation secular resonances and numerical ones for study of object's long-time orbital evolution are applied. Small denominators are used as indicators of the secular resonances presence. The program complex "The numerical model of the motion of the Earth artificial satellite systems" are used for investigation of the orbital evolution.

A Current Application of the Methods of Secular and Statistical Parallax

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Turner, D. G.

The methods of secular and statistical parallax for homogeneous groups of Galactic stars are applied in a practical (classroom) exercise to establish the luminosity of bright B3 V stars. The solar motion of 20 km s-1 relative to group stars exceeds their random velocities of ±10 km s-1, a condition adopted for preference of secular parallax to statistical parallax. The group parallax of πups = 5.81 ± 0.83 mas and derived luminosity MV = -0.98 ± 0.33 for B3 V stars from upsilon components of proper motion should be close to the true value. The weighted mean Hipparcos parallax of ±Hip = 5.75±0.27 mas for the same sample, and implied luminosity of MV = -1.00 ± 0.15, confirm the secular parallax solution. Both solutions are close to MV = -0.83 for ZAMS stars of the same type, implying that Malmquist bias in the selection of stars mainly accounts for the presence of unresolved binaries, slightly evolved objects, and rapidly rotating stars in the sample.

The commercialization of human body parts: a reappraisal from a Protestant perspective.

PubMed

Torcello, L; Wear, S

2000-08-01

The idea of a market in human organs has traditionally met with widespread and emphatic rejection from both secular and religious fronts alike. However, as numerous human beings continue to suffer an uncertain fate on transplant waiting lists, voices are beginning to emerge that are willing at least to explore the option of human organ sales. Anyone who argues for such a option must contend, however, with what seem to be largely emotional rejections of the idea. Often it seems that rebuffs offered on a secular ground are rooted in nothing more than vague discomforts. We suspect that these discomforts are often based in religious sentiments that have wound their way into the fabric of secular America. Therefore, in order to contribute further to those voices heard in favor of human organ sales, it is worthwhile to show that from a religious perspective, it is just as possible to affirm the appropriateness of human organ sales as it is from a secular basis. Since Protestantism has historically had a powerful influence in American society it is a proper starting point for such an investigation.

Exposure to science, perspectives on science and religion, and religious commitment in young adulthood.

PubMed

Uecker, Jeremy E; Longest, Kyle C

2017-07-01

Social scientists know very little about the consequences of exposure to scientific knowledge and holding different perspectives on science and religion for individuals' religious lives. Drawing on secularization and post-secular theories, we develop and test several hypotheses about the relationships among exposure to scientific knowledge, perspectives on religion and science, and religious commitment using panel data from the National Study of Youth and Religion. Our findings indicate that religious faith is strongest among young adults who: (1) accommodate scientific knowledge into their religious perspective, or (2) reject scientific knowledge that directly contradicts their religious beliefs about the origins of the world. Young adults are also more likely to have lower religious commitment when they view science and religion as independent institutions, lending support to secularization ideas about how social differentiation secularizes individuals. We further find that mere exposure to scientific knowledge, in terms of majoring in biology or acknowledging conflict between the teachings of religion and science, is usually not sufficient to undermine religious commitment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A modified homotopy perturbation method and the axial secular frequencies of a non-linear ion trap.

PubMed

Doroudi, Alireza

2012-01-01

In this paper, a modified version of the homotopy perturbation method, which has been applied to non-linear oscillations by V. Marinca, is used for calculation of axial secular frequencies of a non-linear ion trap with hexapole and octopole superpositions. The axial equation of ion motion in a rapidly oscillating field of an ion trap can be transformed to a Duffing-like equation. With only octopole superposition the resulted non-linear equation is symmetric; however, in the presence of hexapole and octopole superpositions, it is asymmetric. This modified homotopy perturbation method is used for solving the resulting non-linear equations. As a result, the ion secular frequencies as a function of non-linear field parameters are obtained. The calculated secular frequencies are compared with the results of the homotopy perturbation method and the exact results. With only hexapole superposition, the results of this paper and the homotopy perturbation method are the same and with hexapole and octopole superpositions, the results of this paper are much more closer to the exact results compared with the results of the homotopy perturbation method.

Secular trends of height, weight and BMI in young adult Brazilian military students in the 20th century.

PubMed

Avila, J A; Avila, R A; Gonçalves, E M; Barbeta, V J O; Morcillo, A M; Guerra-Junior, G

2013-01-01

Secular trends of increasing weight and height over past centuries are well documented in developed countries. However, these data are still scarce in developing countries such as Brazil. To verify the secular trends of height, weight and body mass index (BMI) of military students from Brazilian Army schools who were born between the 1920s and 1990s. A retrospective study was performed, which included a survey of data from the files of two Army schools. The sample was composed of subjects aged between 18-20 years old. The study analysed 2169 heights and 1741 weights and BMIs. During the evaluation period, height increased 7.3 cm, weight 9.8 kg and BMI 1.8 kg/m(2). The most significant gains were observed in subjects born from the 1920s to the 1940s and the 1960s to the 1970s. Secular trends of growth in military students born in the 20th century were positive in Brazil, although increases were not constant decade-by-decade.

The development of afterlife beliefs in religiously and secularly schooled children.

PubMed

Bering, Jesse M; Blasi, Carlos Hernández; Bjorklund, David F

2005-11-01

Children aged from 4;10 to 12;9 attending either a Catholic school or a public, secular school in an eastern Spanish city observed a puppet show in which a mouse was eaten by an alligator. Children were then asked questions about the dead mouse's biological and psychological functioning. The pattern of results generally replicated that obtained earlier in an American sample, with older children being more apt to state that functions cease after death than younger children (11- to 12-year-olds > 8- to 9-year-olds > 5- to 6-year-olds), and all children being more likely to attribute epistemic, desire, and emotion states to the dead mouse than biological, psychobiological, and perceptual states. Although children attending Catholic school were generally more likely to state that functions continue after death than children attending secular school, the pattern of change with regard to question type did not differ between the Catholic and secular groups. The results were interpreted as reflecting the combined roles of religious instruction/exposure and universal ontogeny of cognitive abilities on the development of children's afterlife beliefs. 2005 The British Psychological Society.

Secular Extragalactic Parallax and Geometric Distances with Gaia Proper Motions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paine, Jennie; Darling, Jeremiah K.

2018-06-01

The motion of the Solar System with respect to the cosmic microwave background (CMB) rest frame creates a well measured dipole in the CMB, which corresponds to a linear solar velocity of about 78 AU/yr. This motion causes relatively nearby extragalactic objects to appear to move compared to more distant objects, an effect that can be measured in the proper motions of nearby galaxies. An object at 1 Mpc and perpendicular to the CMB apex will exhibit a secular parallax, observed as a proper motion, of 78 µas/yr. The relatively large peculiar motions of galaxies make the detection of secular parallax challenging for individual objects. Instead, a statistical parallax measurement can be made for a sample of objects with proper motions, where the global parallax signal is modeled as an E-mode dipole that diminishes linearly with distance. We present preliminary results of applying this model to a sample of nearby galaxies with Gaia proper motions to detect the statistical secular parallax signal. The statistical measurement can be used to calibrate the canonical cosmological “distance ladder.”

On the frequency spectra of the core magnetic field Gauss coefficients

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lesur, Vincent; Wardinski, Ingo; Baerenzung, Julien; Holschneider, Matthias

2018-03-01

From monthly mean observatory data spanning 1957-2014, geomagnetic field secular variation values were calculated by annual differences. Estimates of the spherical harmonic Gauss coefficients of the core field secular variation were then derived by applying a correlation based modelling. Finally, a Fourier transform was applied to the time series of the Gauss coefficients. This process led to reliable temporal spectra of the Gauss coefficients up to spherical harmonic degree 5 or 6, and down to periods as short as 1 or 2 years depending on the coefficient. We observed that a k-2 slope, where k is the frequency, is an acceptable approximation for these spectra, with possibly an exception for the dipole field. The monthly estimates of the core field secular variation at the observatory sites also show that large and rapid variations of the latter happen. This is an indication that geomagnetic jerks are frequent phenomena and that significant secular variation signals at short time scales - i.e. less than 2 years, could still be extracted from data to reveal an unexplored part of the core dynamics.

Antarctic Rebound and the Time-Dependence of the Earth's Shape

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ivins, Erik R.; James, Thomas S.

2000-01-01

Great strides have been made during the past 30 years in refining models of the last global glaciation. The refinements draw upon a vastly expanded relative sea level and sedimentary core record. Furthermore, we now possess a sharpened understanding of the mechanisms that drive climate changes associated with deglaciation. Some 15 years ago, using only 5.5 years of ranging data, analyses of the drift in LAGEOS I node acceleration was used to infer that postglacial rebound was responsible for a secular change in the Earth's ellipsoidal shape (Yoder et al., .1983]. Today there exists a wealth of geodynamics satellite orbit data that constrain the secular time-dependence of the Earth's shape and low order gravity field, which includes mass redistribution from present-day glacier and great ice sheet imbalance and from postglacial rebound. We have shown that an unambiguous determination of the secular variation in the Earth's pear shaped harmonic (l = 3, m = 0) might provide information that bears on the present-day mass balance of Antarctica. This issue is revisited in light of new constraints on glacial loading during the late-Pleistocene and Holocene. An especially critical issue for the interpretation of secular odd degree zonal harmonics, l = 3 to 7, is the timing and magnitude of the deglaciation of Antarctica from Last Glacial Maximum. We explore ways in which the recovery of secular variation in both zonal and non-zonal harmonics for l = 2 through 7 can improve constraints on both rebound and present-day ice sheet balance.

Secular changes in Earth's shape and surface mass loading derived from combinations of reprocessed global GPS networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Booker, David; Clarke, Peter J.; Lavallée, David A.

2014-09-01

The changing distribution of surface mass (oceans, atmospheric pressure, continental water storage, groundwater, lakes, snow and ice) causes detectable changes in the shape of the solid Earth, on time scales ranging from hours to millennia. Transient changes in the Earth's shape can, regardless of cause, be readily separated from steady secular variation in surface mass loading, but other secular changes due to plate tectonics and glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) cannot. We estimate secular station velocities from almost 11 years of high quality combined GPS position solutions (GPS weeks 1,000-1,570) submitted as part of the first international global navigation satellite system service reprocessing campaign. Individual station velocities are estimated as a linear fit, paying careful attention to outliers and offsets. We remove a suite of a priori GIA models, each with an associated set of plate tectonic Euler vectors estimated by us; the latter are shown to be insensitive to the a priori GIA model. From the coordinate time series residuals after removing the GIA models and corresponding plate tectonic velocities, we use mass-conserving continental basis functions to estimate surface mass loading including the secular term. The different GIA models lead to significant differences in the estimates of loading in selected regions. Although our loading estimates are broadly comparable with independent estimates from other satellite missions, their range highlights the need for better, more robust GIA models that incorporate 3D Earth structure and accurately represent 3D surface displacements.

Secular Resonances During Main-Sequence and Post-Main-Sequence Planetary System Dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smallwood, Jeremy L.

We investigate gravitational perturbations of an asteroid belt by secular resonances. We ap- ply analytic and numerical models to main-sequence and post-main-sequence planetary systems. First, we investigate how the asteroid impact rate on the Earth is affected by the architecture of the planetary system. We find that the nu6 resonance plays an important role in the asteroid collision rate with the Earth. Compared to exoplanetary systems, the solar system is somewhat special in its lack of a super-Earth mass planet in the inner solar system. We therefore consider the effects of the presence of a super-Earth in the terrestrial planet region. We find a significant effect for super-Earths with a mass of around 10 M_{Earth} and a separation greater than about 0.7 AU. These results have implications for the habitability of exoplanetary systems. Secondly, we model white dwarf pollution by asteroids from secular resonances. In the past few decades, observations have revealed signatures of metals polluting the atmospheres of white dwarfs that require a continu- ous accretion of asteroids. We show that secular resonances driven by two outer companions can provide a source of pollution if an inner terrestrial planet is engulfed during the red-giant branch phase. Secular resonances may be a viable mechanism for the pollution of white dwarfs in a variety of exoplanetary system architectures including systems with two giant planets and systems with one giant planet and a binary star companion.

RESONANT POST-NEWTONIAN ECCENTRICITY EXCITATION IN HIERARCHICAL THREE-BODY SYSTEMS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Naoz, Smadar; Kocsis, Bence; Loeb, Abraham

2013-08-20

We study the secular, hierarchical three-body problem to first-order in a post-Newtonian expansion of general relativity (GR). We expand the first-order post-Newtonian Hamiltonian to leading-order in the ratio of the semi-major axis of the two orbits. In addition to the well-known terms that correspond to the GR precession of the inner and outer orbits, we find a new secular post-Newtonian interaction term that can affect the long-term evolution of the triple. We explore the parameter space for highly inclined and eccentric systems, where the Kozai-Lidov mechanism can produce large-amplitude oscillations in the eccentricities. The standard lore, i.e., that GR effectsmore » suppress eccentricity, is only consistent with the parts of phase space where the GR timescales are several orders of magnitude shorter than the secular Newtonian one. In other parts of phase space, however, post-Newtonian corrections combined with the three-body ones can excite eccentricities. In particular, for systems where the GR timescale is comparable to the secular Newtonian timescales, the three-body interactions give rise to a resonant-like eccentricity excitation. Furthermore, for triples with a comparable-mass inner binary, where the eccentric Kozai-Lidov mechanism is suppressed, post-Newtonian corrections can further increase the eccentricity and lead to orbital flips even when the timescale of the former is much longer than the timescale of the secular Kozai-Lidov quadrupole perturbations.« less

A candidate secular variation model for IGRF-12 based on Swarm data and inverse geodynamo modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fournier, Alexandre; Aubert, Julien; Thébault, Erwan

2015-05-01

In the context of the 12th release of the international geomagnetic reference field (IGRF), we present the methodology we followed to design a candidate secular variation model for years 2015-2020. An initial geomagnetic field model centered around 2014.3 is first constructed, based on Swarm magnetic measurements, for both the main field and its instantaneous secular variation. This initial model is next fed to an inverse geodynamo modelling framework in order to specify, for epoch 2014.3, the initial condition for the integration of a three-dimensional numerical dynamo model. The initialization phase combines the information contained in the initial model with that coming from the numerical dynamo model, in the form of three-dimensional multivariate statistics built from a numerical dynamo run unconstrained by data. We study the performance of this novel approach over two recent 5-year long intervals, 2005-2010 and 2009-2014. For a forecast horizon of 5 years, shorter than the large-scale secular acceleration time scale (˜10 years), we find that it is safer to neglect the flow acceleration and to assume that the flow determined by the initialization is steady. This steady flow is used to advance the three-dimensional induction equation forward in time, with the benefit of estimating the effects of magnetic diffusion. The result of this deterministic integration between 2015.0 and 2020.0 yields our candidate average secular variation model for that time frame, which is thus centered on 2017.5.

Questioning Engelhardt's assumptions in Bioethics and Secular Humanism.

PubMed

Ahmadi Nasab Emran, Shahram

2016-06-01

In Bioethics and Secular Humanism: The Search for a Common Morality, Tristram Engelhardt examines various possibilities of finding common ground for moral discourse among people from different traditions and concludes their futility. In this paper I will argue that many of the assumptions on which Engelhardt bases his conclusion about the impossibility of a content-full secular bioethics are problematic. By starting with the notion of moral strangers, there is no possibility, by definition, for a content-full moral discourse among moral strangers. It means that there is circularity in starting the inquiry with a definition of moral strangers, which implies that they do not share enough moral background or commitment to an authority to allow for reaching a moral agreement, and concluding that content-full morality is impossible among moral strangers. I argue that assuming traditions as solid and immutable structures that insulate people across their boundaries is problematic. Another questionable assumption in Engelhardt's work is the idea that religious and philosophical traditions provide content-full moralities. As the cardinal assumption in Engelhardt's review of the various alternatives for a content-full moral discourse among moral strangers, I analyze his foundationalist account of moral reasoning and knowledge and indicate the possibility of other ways of moral knowledge, besides the foundationalist one. Then, I examine Engelhardt's view concerning the futility of attempts at justifying a content-full secular bioethics, and indicate how the assumptions have shaped Engelhardt's critique of the alternatives for the possibility of content-full secular bioethics.

Geomagnetic acceleration and rapid hydromagnetic wave dynamics in advanced numerical simulations of the geodynamo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aubert, Julien

2018-04-01

Geomagnetic secular acceleration, the second temporal derivative of Earth's magnetic field, is a unique window on the dynamics taking place in Earth's core. In this study, the behaviours of the secular acceleration and underlying core dynamics are examined in new numerical simulations of the geodynamo that are dynamically closer to Earth's core conditions than earlier models. These new models reside on a theoretical path in parameter space connecting the region where most classical models are found to the natural conditions. The typical time scale for geomagnetic acceleration is found to be invariant along this path, at a value close to 10 years that matches Earth's core estimates. Despite this invariance, the spatio-temporal properties of secular acceleration show significant variability along the path, with an asymptotic regime of rapid rotation reached after 30% of this path (corresponding to a model Ekman number E = 3 - 7). In this regime, the energy of secular acceleration is entirely found at periods longer than that of planetary rotation, and the underlying flow acceleration patterns acquire a two-dimensional columnar structure representative of the rapid rotation limit. The spatial pattern of the secular acceleration at the core-mantle boundary shows significant localisation of energy within an equatorial belt. Rapid hydromagnetic wave dynamics is absent at the start of the path because of insufficient time scale separation with convective processes, weak forcing and excessive damping but can be clearly exhibited in the asymptotic regime. This study reports on ubiquitous axisymmetric geostrophic torsional waves of weak amplitude relatively to convective transport, and also stronger, laterally limited, quasi-geostrophic Alfvén waves propagating in the cylindrical radial direction from the tip of convective plumes towards the core-mantle boundary. In a system similar to Earth's core where the typical Alfvén velocity is significantly larger than the typical convective velocity, quasi-geostrophic Alfvén waves are shown to be an important carrier of flow acceleration to the core surface that links with the generation of strong, short-lived and intermittent equatorial pulses in the secular acceleration energy. The secular acceleration time scale is shown to be insensitive to magnetic signatures from torsional waves because of their weak amplitude, and from quasi-geostrophic Alfvén waves because of their intermittent character, and is therefore only indicative of convective transport phenomena that remain invariant along the parameter space path.

Religious, Secular, and Spiritual Identities Convergence: Introduction to the Special Issue

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Small, Jenny L.; Bowman, Nicholas A.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this special issue is to share the best research, theory, practice, and perspectives from presenters at the 2017 Religious, Secular, and Spiritual Identities Convergence conference, alongside the new writing of scholars and practitioners who were inspired by the themes of the conference. Readers will have access both to the best of…

On Tour with the "Accidental" Expert: Ethical Dilemmas of the Development Consultant.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Basile, Michael L.

This paper explores Max Weber's study of the origins of the secularization of the Puritan work ethic and examines the hybridized category of secular science expert. The hybrid construct provides an opening for the critical analysis of the concrete activity of development from two perspectives, the structural and the individual. The individual…

The Urgent Need for Teacher Preparation in Religious and Secular Worldview Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gardner, Ryan S.; Soules, Kate; Valk, John

2017-01-01

In a world that is becoming increasingly globalized, it is ironic--as well as unfortunate and sometimes tragic--that secular and religious worldview education is decreasing, in the United States, Canada, and elsewhere. This article argues for the immediate need for programs that intentionally prepare teachers for all aspects of the educational…

Parental Expectations of Teachers in a Private School.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kapel, David E.; Kapel, Marilyn B.

A survey was made of parental expectations of secular and religious teachers at a Jewish day school in a large metropolitan area located in the Ohio Valley. The school, with a student population of 108 students, employs 6 secular and 4 religious teachers. A high response rate (61 percent) was received from the parents. Findings indicated that…

Christian Faith and Scholarship: An Exploration of Contemporary Developments. ASHE Higher Education Report, Volume 33, Number 2

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ream, Todd C., Ed.; Glanzer, Perry L., Ed.

2007-01-01

This monograph offers an overview of the various ways conversations about religion and religiously informed scholarship are increasing among scholars in secular and church-related colleges and universities. Specifically, it addresses the history of secularization in American higher education and scholarship, the general models of faith and…

An Analysis of the Strategic Planning Efforts of (Arch)Dioceses with Similar Demographic Conditions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Semmler, Carl A.

2016-01-01

The population of the Catholic elementary schools has been on the downward trend for over half a century. Various Catholic (arch)dioceses have responded by creating strategic plans for their elementary and secondary institutions of education. Shifts in demographics and population migration have been noted in both secular and non-secular data.…

Un/Covering: Female Religious Converts Learning the Problems and Pragmatics of Physical Observance in the Secular World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Galman, Sally Campbell

2013-01-01

This article presents the experiences of three women who have chosen to move from secular, assimilated lives to lives characterized by the distinctive dress and practice associated with observant Islam, Orthodox Judaism, and Orthodox Christianity, respectively. All three relied upon informal, peer, and distance learning strategies for their…

The Phenomenon of Becoming Religious among Secular Pupils at High Schools in Israel

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zamir, Sara

2017-01-01

The phenomenon of adopting a religious lifestyle is growing worldwide in general and in Israel in particular. In the Israeli context, the transition from a secular lifestyle to a religious one is defined as "repentance". Sociologists define the repentant as someone who has changed his or her beliefs, opinions and behaviours in the…

Islamization or Secularization? Educational Reform and the Search for Peace in the Southern Philippines

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milligan, Jeffrey Ayala

2004-01-01

Since 2001 many observers of education in the Muslim world have expressed concerns about the radicalizing influence of madrasahs. These critiques often assume that the ichotomization of sacred and secular common to civic society in the West is a necessary ingredient of any educational reforms designed to prevent the spread of religious extremism…

The Full-Time Workweek in the United States, 1900-1970

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kniesner, Thomas J.

1976-01-01

The average workweek of full-time workers declined by 35 percent between 1900 and 1940, but has not changed significnatly since then, and the secular rigidity of the full-time workweek remains. An expanded model which incorporates the effects of growth in education and in the female wage explains the post-1940 secular trend. (Editor/HD)

Psychological Science and Religious Education in a Devout University: The Case of Pain Overlap Theory and the Talmud

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schnall, Eliezer

2014-01-01

Educators employed in devoutly religious institutions often teach students who view even their secular higher education through a uniquely religious lens. Based on his own experiences teaching psychological science at a Jewish university, the author suggests enhancing student interest and enthusiasm by wedding secular curricula with religious…

Does Individual Secularism Promote Life Satisfaction? The Moderating Role of Societal Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Liman Man Wai; Bond, Michael H.

2010-01-01

This study was designed to examine the link between values and life satisfaction, examining the role of culture in this process. Secularism was found to predict life satisfaction scores at a small but statistically very significant level in persons from all nations participating in all four waves of the World Values Survey. The direction and…

The European Court of Human Rights, Secular Education and Public Schooling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arthur, James; Holdsworth, Michael

2012-01-01

Since 9/11 the European Court of Human Rights (the European Court) has raised anew the question of the relationship between religion and public education. In its reasoning, the European Court has had to consider competing normative accounts of the secular, either to accept or deny claims to religious liberty within Europe's public education…

Science education in a secular age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Long, David E.

2013-03-01

A college science education instructor tells his students he rejects evolution. What should we think? The scene unfolds in one of the largest urban centers in the world. If we are surprised, why? Expanding on Federica Raia's (2012) first-hand experience with this scenario, I broaden her discussion by considering the complexity of science education in a secular age. Enjoining Raia within the framework of Charles Taylor's A Secular Age, I task the science education community to consider the broad strokes of science, religious faith, and the complexity of modernity in its evolving, hybridized forms. Building upon anthropological approaches to science education research, I articulate a framework to more fully account for who, globally, is a Creationist, and what this means for our views of ethically responsive science education.

A Statistical Model of the Fluctuations in the Geomagnetic Field from Paleosecular Variation to Reversal

PubMed

Camps; Prevot

1996-08-09

The statistical characteristics of the local magnetic field of Earth during paleosecular variation, excursions, and reversals are described on the basis of a database that gathers the cleaned mean direction and average remanent intensity of 2741 lava flows that have erupted over the last 20 million years. A model consisting of a normally distributed axial dipole component plus an independent isotropic set of vectors with a Maxwellian distribution that simulates secular variation fits the range of geomagnetic fluctuations, in terms of both direction and intensity. This result suggests that the magnitude of secular variation vectors is independent of the magnitude of Earth's axial dipole moment and that the amplitude of secular variation is unchanged during reversals.

Cancer survivors' understanding of the cause and cure of their illness: Religious and secular appraisals.

PubMed

Carney, Lauren M; Park, Crystal L

2018-02-28

Little is known about survivors' understanding of the cause of their cancer and of their recovery, nor how these ways of understanding relate to their well-being. No study has examined both secular and religious appraisals of the same event. The current study aimed to examine both religious (God) and secular (self) appraisals of both the cause (attributions) and course/cure of cancer in relation to multiple aspects of adjustment. Data were obtained from a sample of cancer survivors at Time 1 (n = 250) and 1 year later (Time 2, n = 167). Cancer survivors endorsed higher appraisals relating to course/cure of their cancer than those relating to cause, and they endorsed both secular and religious appraisals. Appraisals of the cause and course/cure of cancer were differentially related to adjustment, such that self-attributions of cause and God-attributions of cause were related to negative aspects of adjustment (eg, negative affect and pessimism), while appraisals of self and God's control over the course/cure were related to positive aspects of adjustment (eg, perceived positive life and health changes since cancer). Religiosity did not moderate most of relationships between religious appraisals and adjustment outcomes. Secular and religious appraisals of cancer are not mutually exclusive, and religious appraisals are associated with adjustment regardless of survivors' religiosity. Appraisals relating to cause and course/cure have differential relationships with well-being. Addressing cancer survivors' appraisals-religious or nonreligious-in a therapeutic setting may be beneficial regardless of their reported religiosity. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

More on the alleged 1970 geomagnetic jerk

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alldredge, L.R.

1985-01-01

French and United Kingdom workers have published reports describing a sudden change in the secular acceleration, called an impulse or a jerk, which took place around 1970. They claim that this change took place in a period of a year or two and that the sources of the alleged jerk are internal. An earlier paper by this author questioned their method of analysis pointing out that their method of piecemeal fitting of parabolas to the data will always create a discontinuity in the secular acceleration where the parabolas join and that the place where the parabolas join is an a priori assumption and not a result of the analysis. This paper gives a very brief summary of this first paper and then adds additional reasons for questioning the allegation that there was a worldwide sudden jerk in the magnetic field of internal origin around 1970. These new reasons are based largely on new field models which give cubic approximations of the field right through the 1970 timeframe and therefore have no discontinuities in the second derivative (jerk) around 1970. Some recent Japanese work shows several sudden changes in the secular variation pattern which cover limited areas and do not seem to be closely related to each other or to the irregularity noted in the European area near 1970. The secular variation picture which seems to be emerging is one with many local or limited-regional secular variation changes which appear to be almost unrelated to each other in time or space. A worldwide spherical harmonic model including coefficients up to degree 13 could never properly depict such a situation. ?? 1985.

Transforming Faith: Teaching as a Christian Vocation in a Secular, Worldview-Diverse Culture

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cooling, Trevor

2010-01-01

This article advocates the thesis that Christian teachers can and should draw on the resources of their faith in their work of leading teaching and learning. The secular approach where faith is treated as a private matter and the "market share" approach where the dominance of Christian faith is sought, are both rejected. A third way which aspires…

The Mediating Role of Secular Coping Strategies in the Relationship between Religious Appraisals and Adjustment to Chronic Pain: The Middle Road to Damascus

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parenteau, Stacy C.; Hamilton, Nancy A.; Wu, Wei; Latinis, Kevin; Waxenberg, Lori B.; Brinkmeyer, Mary Y.

2011-01-01

Despite an outgrowth in research examining associations between religiosity and health outcomes, there has been a lack of empirical focus on the relationship between religiosity and adjustment to chronic pain. This study investigated specific secular coping strategies that mediate the proposed relationship between religious appraisals and…

Strategic Implications of American Millennialism

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-05-22

religious and secular philosophies.11 Secular considerations notwithstanding, the single most important factor in western apocalypticism are the Bible ...specifically the books of Daniel and Revelation. In the Bible and subsequent philosophical interpretations, we can trace the source of our linear...in large part from extraordinary literalism of even the most figurative passages of the Bible . In America, literalism in biblical interpretation is

The Development of Afterlife Beliefs in Religiously and Secularly Schooled Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bering, Jesse M.; Blasi, Carlos Hernandez; Bjorklund, David F.

2005-01-01

Children aged from 4;10 to 12;9 attending either a Catholic school or a public, secular school in an eastern Spanish city observed a puppet show in which a mouse was eaten by an alligator. Children were then asked questions about the dead mouse's biological and psychological functioning. The pattern of results generally replicated that obtained…

Hizb ut-Tahrir: A Threat Behind a Legal Facade?

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-06-01

as something “man-made,’ humanly derived and “un-Islamic,” and therefore, does not participate in any secular electoral process . However, HT does...derived and “un-Islamic,” and therefore, does not participate in any secular electoral process . However, HT does not reject modern technology and its...2. The Evolutionary Process of Jihad Interpretations ..........................................62 x

On orbital period changes of two low-mass-ratio and deep-contact binaries: FN Cam and KN Per

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Ke; Jiang, Zhen-Hua; Yu, Yun-Xia; Xiang, Fu-Yuan

2018-07-01

The orbital period changes of two low-mass-ratio and deep-contact binaries, FN Cam and KN Per, are investigated by using all available times of light minimum taken from the databases and literature. It is found that the orbital periods of FN Cam and KN Per show secular increase at a rate of P˙ = 4.38 ×10-7 days year-1 and P˙ = 4.18 ×10-7 days year-1 , respectively. The secular period increase suggests that FN Cam and KN Per are undergoing continuous mass transfer from the less massive secondary component to the more massive primary one. A statistical analysis of 53 low-mass-ratio and deep-contact binaries indicates that all of them should contain at least a continuous period change (secular increase/decrease or cyclic oscillation). Moreover, the rates of the secular period variations can be at a common level of P˙ ∼10-7 days year-1. In addition, the cyclic period oscillation has been detected for only 43% of sample stars, which indicates that it should be not popular for all low-mass-ratio and deep-contact binaries.

A Spiritually-based approach to breast cancer awareness: Cognitive response analysis of communication effectiveness

PubMed Central

Holt, Cheryl L.; Lee, Crystal; Wright, Katrina

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the communication effectiveness of a spiritually-based approach to breast cancer early detection education with a secular approach, among African American women, by conducting a cognitive response analysis. A total of 108 women from six Alabama churches were randomly assigned by church to receive a spiritually-based or secular educational booklet discussing breast cancer early detection. Based on the Elaboration Likelihood Model (Petty & Cacioppo, 1981), after reading the booklets participants were asked to complete a thought-listing task writing down any thoughts they experienced and rating them as positive, negative, or neutral. Two independent coders then used five dimensions to code participants thoughts. Compared with the secular booklet, the spiritually-based booklet resulted in significantly more thoughts involving personal connection, self-assessment, and spiritually-based responses. These results suggest that a spiritually-based approach to breast cancer awareness may be more effective than the secular because it caused women to more actively process the message, stimulating central route processing. The incorporation of spiritually-based content into church-based breast cancer education could be a promising health communication approach for African American women. PMID:18443989

When Science Replaces Religion: Science as a Secular Authority Bolsters Moral Sensitivity

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

Scientific and religious thinking compete with each other on several levels. For example, activating one generally weakens the other. Since priming religion is known to increase moral behaviour and moral sensitivity, priming science might be expected to have the opposite effect. However, it was recently demonstrated that, on the contrary, science priming increases moral sensitivity as well. The present set of studies sought to replicate this effect and test two explanations for it. Study 1 used a sentence unscrambling task for implicitly priming the concept of science but failed to replicate its effect on moral sensitivity, presumably due to a ceiling effect. Study 2 replicated the effect with a new measure of moral sensitivity. Study 3 tested whether science-related words create this effect by activating the idea of secular authority or by activating analytic thinking. It was demonstrated that words related to secular authority, but not words related to analytic thinking, produced a similar increase in moral sensitivity. Religiosity level of the participants did not influence this basic finding. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that science as a secular institution has overtaken some of the functions of religion in modern societies. PMID:26360826

When Science Replaces Religion: Science as a Secular Authority Bolsters Moral Sensitivity.

PubMed

Yilmaz, Onurcan; Bahçekapili, Hasan G

2015-01-01

Scientific and religious thinking compete with each other on several levels. For example, activating one generally weakens the other. Since priming religion is known to increase moral behaviour and moral sensitivity, priming science might be expected to have the opposite effect. However, it was recently demonstrated that, on the contrary, science priming increases moral sensitivity as well. The present set of studies sought to replicate this effect and test two explanations for it. Study 1 used a sentence unscrambling task for implicitly priming the concept of science but failed to replicate its effect on moral sensitivity, presumably due to a ceiling effect. Study 2 replicated the effect with a new measure of moral sensitivity. Study 3 tested whether science-related words create this effect by activating the idea of secular authority or by activating analytic thinking. It was demonstrated that words related to secular authority, but not words related to analytic thinking, produced a similar increase in moral sensitivity. Religiosity level of the participants did not influence this basic finding. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that science as a secular institution has overtaken some of the functions of religion in modern societies.

American medicine as religious practice: care of the sick as a sacred obligation and the unholy descent into secularization.

PubMed

Wardlaw, Margaret P

2011-03-01

Modern medicine serves a religious function for modern Americans as a conduit through which science can be applied directly to the human body. The first half of this paper will focus on the theoretical foundations for viewing medicine as a religious practice arguing that just as a hierarchical structured authoritarian church historically mediated access to God, contemporary Western medicine provides a conduit by which the universalizable truths of science can be applied to the human being thereby functioning as a new established religion. I will then illustrate the many parallels between medicine and religion through an analysis of rituals and symbols surrounding and embedded within the modern practice of medicine. This analysis will pay special attention to the primacy placed on secret interior knowledge of the human body. I will end by responding to the hope for a "secularization of American medicine," exploring some of the negative consequences of secularization, and arguing that, rather than seeking to secularize, American medicine should strive to use its religious features to offer hope and healing to the sick, in keeping with its historically religious legacy.

Moderating Effects of Religiousness and Marriage Duration on the Relation Between Sexual and Marital Satisfaction Among Jewish Women.

PubMed

Lazar, Aryeh

2017-02-01

This study examined the moderating effects of religiousness and relationship duration on the association between sexual and marital satisfaction. For this purpose, 240 married Jewish women-religious and secular-responded to an online survey. Hierarchical regression analysis indicated that religiousness moderated the association between sexual and marital satisfaction which was found to be stronger for secular women than for religious women. Relationship duration also moderated the association between sexual and marital satisfaction which was found to be stronger for longer marital duration than for shorter marital duration. In addition, a significant three-way interaction (religiousness × relationship duration × sexual satisfaction) was also found where the association between the two types of satisfaction was stronger for religious women married for a longer time in comparison with those married for a shorter time. For secular women, relationship duration did not moderate the relation between sexual and marital satisfaction. An explanation based on differences in the manner in which religious and secular women perceive and relate to the sexual aspects of their marital relationship at different stages of the marriage is offered.

New methods for deriving cometary secular light curves: C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) revisited

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Womack, Maria; Lastra, Nathan; Harrington, Olga; Curtis, Anthony; Wierzchos, Kacper; Ruffini, Nicholas; Charles, Mentzer; Rabson, David; Cox, Timothy; Rivera, Isabel; Micciche, Anthony

2017-10-01

We present an algorithm for reducing scatter and increasing precision in a comet light curve. As a demonstration, we processed apparent magnitudes of comet Hale-Bopp from 16 highly experienced observers (archived with the International Comet Quarterly), correcting for distance from Earth and phase angle. Different observers tend to agree on the difference in magnitudes of an object at different distances, but the magnitude reported by observer is shifted relative to that of another for an object at a fixed distance. We estimated the shifts using a self-consistent statistical approach, leading to a sharper light curve and improving the precision of the measured slopes. The final secular lightcurve for comet Hale-Bopp ranges from -7 au (pre-perihelion) to +8 au (post-perihelion) and is the best secular light curve produced to date for this “great” comet. We discuss Hale-Bopp’s lightcurve evolution and possibly related physical implications, and potential usefulness of this light curve for comparisons with other future bright comets. We also assess the appropriateness of using secular lightcurves to characterize dust production rates in Hale-Bopp and other dust-rich comets. M.W. acknowledges support from NSF grant AST-1615917.

Religiousness and Religious Coping in a Secular Society: The Gender Perspective

PubMed Central

Hvidtjørn, Dorte; Hjelmborg, Jacob; Skytthe, Axel; Christensen, Kaare; Hvidt, Niels Christian

2014-01-01

Women are found to be more religious than men and more likely to use religious coping. Only few studies have explored religious gender differences in more secular societies. This population-based study comprised 3,000 Danish men and women (response rate 45 %) between 20 and 40 years of age. Information about demographics, religiousness and religious coping was obtained through a web-based questionnaire. We organized religiousness in the three dimensions: Cognition, Practice and Importance, and we assessed religious coping using the brief RCOPE questionnaire. We found substantial gender differences in both religiousness and religious coping. Nearly, 60 % of the women believed in some sort of spirit or in God compared to 40 % of the men. Generally, both men and women scored low on the RCOPE scale. However, for respondents reporting high levels of religiousness, the proportion of men who scored high in the RCOPE exceeded the proportion of women in using positive and especially negative coping strategies. Also, in a secular society, women are found to be more religious than men, but in a subset of the most religious respondents, men were more inclined to use religious coping. Further studies on religious coping in secular societies are required. PMID:23625173

Religiousness and religious coping in a secular society: the gender perspective.

PubMed

Hvidtjørn, Dorte; Hjelmborg, Jacob; Skytthe, Axel; Christensen, Kaare; Hvidt, Niels Christian

2014-10-01

Women are found to be more religious than men and more likely to use religious coping. Only few studies have explored religious gender differences in more secular societies. This population-based study comprised 3,000 Danish men and women (response rate 45 %) between 20 and 40 years of age. Information about demographics, religiousness and religious coping was obtained through a web-based questionnaire. We organized religiousness in the three dimensions: Cognition, Practice and Importance, and we assessed religious coping using the brief RCOPE questionnaire. We found substantial gender differences in both religiousness and religious coping. Nearly, 60 % of the women believed in some sort of spirit or in God compared to 40 % of the men. Generally, both men and women scored low on the RCOPE scale. However, for respondents reporting high levels of religiousness, the proportion of men who scored high in the RCOPE exceeded the proportion of women in using positive and especially negative coping strategies. Also, in a secular society, women are found to be more religious than men, but in a subset of the most religious respondents, men were more inclined to use religious coping. Further studies on religious coping in secular societies are required.

The role of religious faith, spirituality and existential considerations among heart patients in a secular society: relation to depressive symptoms 6 months post acute coronary syndrome.

PubMed

Bekke-Hansen, Sidsel; Pedersen, Christina G; Thygesen, Kristian; Christensen, Søren; Waelde, Lynn C; Zachariae, Robert

2014-06-01

We explored the significance of religious faith/coping and spirituality and existential considerations reported during hospitalisation on depressive symptoms at 6-month follow-up and addressed patients' perceived influence of their faith among 97 consecutive acute coronary syndrome patients (72.2% male patients; mean age, 60.6 years) in a secular society. All faith variables were found unrelated to depressive symptoms. Having unambiguous religious or spiritual faith at follow-up was associated with a perceived positive influence of this faith on quality of life and the disease itself compared to patients with ambiguous faith. These findings underscore the importance of examining degrees of faith in secular settings. © The Author(s) 2013.

Seasonal cycle and secular trend of the total and tropospheric column abundance of ethane above the Jungfraujoch

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ehhalt, D. H.; Schmidt, U.; Zander, R.; Demoulin, P.; Rinsland, C. P.

1991-01-01

The secular trend and the seasonal cycle of the total and the tropospheric column abundances of C2H6 over the Jungfraujoch Station (Switzerland) were deduced from infrared solar spectra recorded in 1951 and from 1984 to 1988. Results show a definite seasonal variation in the total vertical column abundance of C2H6, with a maximum of (1.43 + or - 0.03) x 10 to the 16th molecules/sq cm during March and April and a minimum in the fall; the ratio between the maximum and the minimum column abundances was found to be 1.62 + or - 0.11. The secular trend in the tropospheric burden above the Jungfraujoch was found to be (0.85 + or - 0.3) percent/yr.

Bar-spheroid interaction in galaxies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hernquist, Lars; Weinberg, Martin D.

1992-01-01

N-body simulation and linear analysis is employed to investigate the secular evolution of barred galaxies, with emphasis on the interaction between bars and spheroidal components of galaxies. This interaction is argued to drive secular transfer of angular momentum from bars to spheroids, primarily through resonant coupling. A moderately strong bar, having mass within corotation about 0.3 times the enclosed spheroid mass, is predicted to shed all its angular momentum typically in less than about 10 exp 9 yr. Even shorter depletion time scales are found for relatively more massive bars. It is suggested either that spheroids around barred galaxies are structured so as to inhibit strong coupling with bars, or that bars can form by unknown processes long after disks are established. The present models reinforce the notion that bars can drive secular evolution in galaxies.

Transit Duration Variations due to Secular Interactions in Systems with Tightly-packed Inner Planets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boley, Aaron; Van Laerhoven, Christa; Granados Contreras, A. Paula

2018-04-01

Secular interactions among planets in multi-planet systems will lead to variations in orbital inclinations and to the precession of orbital nodes. Taking known system architectures at face value, we calculate orbital precession rates for planets in tightly-packed systems using classical second-order secular theory, in which the orientation of the orbits can be described as a vector sum of eigenmodes and the eigenstructure is determined only by the masses and semi-major axes of the planets. Using this framework, we identify systems that have fast precession frequencies, and use those systems to explore the range of transit duration variation that could occur using amplitudes that are consistent with tightly-packed planetary systems. We then further assess how transit duration variations could be used in practice.

Geomagnetic temporal change: 1903-1982 - A spline representation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Langel, R. A.; Kerridge, D. J.; Barraclough, D. R.; Malin, S. R. C.

1986-01-01

The secular variation of the earth's magnetic field is itself subject to temporal variations. These are investigated with the aid of the coefficients of a series of spherical harmonic models of secular variation deduced from data for the interval 1903-1982 from the worldwide network of magnetic observatories. For some studies it is convenient to approximate the time variation of the spherical harmonic coefficients with a smooth, continuous, function; for this a spline fitting is used. The phenomena that are investigated include periodicities, discontinuities, and correlation with the length of day. The numerical data presented will be of use for further investigations and for the synthesis of secular variation at any place and at any time within the interval of the data - they are not appropriate for temporal extrapolations.

Composition of 12-18 th century window glass in Belgium: Non-figurative windows in secular buildings and stained-glass windows in religious buildings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schalm, Olivier; Janssens, Koen; Wouters, Hilde; Caluwé, Danielle

2007-07-01

A set of ca. 500 window glass fragments originating from different historical sites in Belgium and covering the period 12 th-18 th century was analyzed by means of electron probe microanalysis. Most samples are archaeological finds deriving from non-figurative windows in secular buildings. However, the analyzed set also contains glass sampled from still existing non-figurative windows in secular buildings and stained-glass windows in religious buildings. A sudden compositional change at the end of the 14 th century can be noticed among the series of glass compositions that were obtained. These changes could be related to the use of different glassmaker recipes and to the introduction of new raw materials for glass making.

Do Secular Trends in Skeletal Maturity Occur Equally in Both Sexes?

PubMed

Duren, Dana L; Nahhas, Ramzi W; Sherwood, Richard J

2015-08-01

Skeletal maturity assessment provides information on a child's physical development and expectations based on chronological age. Given recently recognized trends for earlier maturity in a variety of systems, most notably puberty, examination of sex-specific secular trends in skeletal maturation is important. For the orthopaedist, recent trends and changes in developmental timing can affect clinical management (eg, treatment timing) if they are currently based on outdated sources. (1) Has the male or female pediatric skeleton experienced a secular trend for earlier maturation over the past 80 years? (2) Do all indicators of maturity trend in the same direction (earlier versus later)? In this retrospective study, a total of 1240 children were examined longitudinally through hand-wrist radiographs for skeletal maturity based on the Fels method. All subjects participate in the Fels Longitudinal Study based in Ohio and were born between 1930 and 1964 for the "early" cohort and between 1965 and 2001 for the "recent" cohort. Sex-specific secular trends were estimated for (1) mean relative skeletal maturity through linear mixed models; and (2) median age of maturation for individual maturity indicators through logistic regression and generalized estimating equations. Overall relative skeletal maturity was significantly advanced in the recent cohort (maximum difference of 5 months at age 13 years for girls, 4 months at age 15 years for boys). For individual maturity indicators, the direction and magnitude of secular trends varied by indicator type and sex. The following statistically significant secular trends were found: (1) earlier maturation of indicators of fusion in both sexes (4 months for girls, 3 months for boys); (2) later maturation of indicators of projection in long bones in both sexes (3 months for girls, 2 months for boys); (3) earlier maturation of indicators of density (4 months) and projection (3 months) in carpals and density in long bones (6 months), for girls only; and (4) later maturation of indicators of long bone shape (3 months) for boys only. A secular trend has occurred in the tempo of maturation of individual components of the pediatric skeleton, and it has occurred in a sex-specific manner. The mosaic nature of this trend, with both earlier and later maturation of individual components of the skeletal age phenotype, calls for greater attention to specific aspects of maturation in addition to the overall skeletal age estimate. The Fels method is currently the most robust method for capturing these components, and future work by our group will deliver an updated, user-friendly version of the Fels assessment tool. Appreciation of sex-specific secular changes in maturation is important for clinical management, including treatment timing, of orthopaedic patients, because children today exhibit a different pattern of maturation than children on whom original maturity assessments were based (including Fels and Greulich-Pyle).

The Dominance of Dynamic Barlike Instabilities in the Evolution of a Massive Stellar Core Collapse That ``Fizzles''

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Imamura, James N.; Durisen, Richard H.

2001-03-01

Core collapse in a massive rotating star may halt at subnuclear density if the core contains angular momentum J>~1049 g cm2 s-1. An aborted collapse can lead to the formation of a rapidly rotating equilibrium object, which, because of its high electron fraction, Ye>0.4, and high entropy per baryon, Sb/k~1-2, is secularly and dynamically stable. The further evolution of such a ``fizzler'' is driven by deleptonization and cooling of the hot, dense material. These processes cause the fizzler both to contract toward neutron star densities and to spin up, driving it toward instability points of the barlike modes. Using linear stability analyses to study the latter case, we find that the stability properties of fizzlers are similar to those of Maclaurin spheroids and polytropes despite the nonpolytropic nature and extreme compressibility of the fizzler equation of state. For fizzlers with the specific angular momentum distribution of the Maclaurin spheroids, secular and dynamic barlike instabilities set in at T/|W|~0.14 and 0.27, respectively, where T is the rotational kinetic energy and W is the gravitational energy of the fizzler, the same limits as found for Maclaurin spheroids. For fizzlers in which angular momentum is more concentrated toward the equator, the secular stability limits drop dramatically. For the most extreme angular momentum distribution we consider, the secular stability limit for the barlike modes falls to T/|W|~0.038, compared with T/|W|~0.09-0.10 for the most extreme polytropic cases known previously (Imamura et al.). For fixed equation-of-state parameters, the secular and dynamic stability limits occur at roughly constant mass over the range of typical fizzler central densities. Deleptonization and cooling decrease the limiting masses on timescales shorter than the growth time for secular instability. Consequently, unless an evolving fizzler reaches neutron star densities first, it will always encounter dynamic barlike instabilities before secular instabilities have time to grow. Quasi-linear analysis shows that the angular momentum loss during the early nonlinear evolution of the dynamic barlike instability is dominated by Newtonian self-interaction gravitational torques rather than by the emission of gravitational wave (GW) radiation. GW emission may dominate after the initial dynamic evolutionary phase ends. Nonlinear hydrodynamics simulations with a proper equation of state will be required to determine the ultimate outcome of such evolutions and to refine predictions of GW production by barlike instabilities.

Geomagnetic acceleration and rapid hydromagnetic wave dynamics in advanced numerical simulations of the geodynamo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aubert, Julien

2018-07-01

Geomagnetic secular acceleration, the second temporal derivative of the Earth's magnetic field, is a unique window on the dynamics taking place in the Earth's core. In this study, the behaviours of the secular acceleration and underlying core dynamics are examined in new numerical simulations of the geodynamo that are dynamically closer to the Earth's core conditions than earlier models. These new models reside on a theoretical path in parameter space connecting the region where most classical models are found to the natural conditions. The typical timescale for geomagnetic acceleration is found to be invariant along this path, at a value close to 10 yr that matches the Earth's core estimates. Despite this invariance, the spatio-temporal properties of secular acceleration show significant variability along the path, with an asymptotic regime of rapid rotation reached after 30 per cent of this path (corresponding to a model Ekman number E = 3 × 10-7). In this regime, the energy of secular acceleration is entirely found at periods longer than that of planetary rotation, and the underlying flow acceleration patterns acquire a 2-D columnar structure representative of the rapid rotation limit. The spatial pattern of the secular acceleration at the core-mantle boundary shows significant localization of energy within an equatorial belt. Rapid hydromagnetic wave dynamics is absent at the start of the path because of insufficient timescale separation with convective processes, weak forcing and excessive damping but can be clearly exhibited in the asymptotic regime. This study reports on ubiquitous axisymmetric geostrophic torsional waves of weak amplitude relatively to convective transport, and also stronger, laterally limited, quasi-geostrophic Alfvén waves propagating in the cylindrical radial direction from the tip of convective plumes towards the core-mantle boundary. In a system similar to the Earth's core where the typical Alfvén velocity is significantly larger than the typical convective velocity, quasi-geostrophic Alfvén waves are shown to be an important carrier of flow acceleration to the core surface that links with the generation of strong, short-lived and intermittent equatorial pulses in the secular acceleration energy. The secular acceleration timescale is shown to be insensitive to magnetic signatures from torsional waves because of their weak amplitude, and from quasi-geostrophic Alfvén waves because of their intermittent character, and is therefore only indicative of convective transport phenomena that remain invariant along the parameter space path.

Comments on 'Remarks on the secular change in the energy density spectrum of the geomagnetic field' by Joachim Meyer.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alldredge, L.R.

1986-01-01

Meyer has discussed only the Rn aspect of the Alldredge (1984) paper he is criticising. He has ignored the pictorial demonstration of the need for higher harmonics to properly describe the secular variation field than the main field as demonstrated. This more or less independent demonstration supports the general conclusion of that paper. -from Author

Harry and Sally Revisited: The Influence of Spirituality and Education on Sexual Tension in Cross-Sex Friendships in Secular and Christian Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

George, Darren; Adalikwu-Obisike, Justina; Boyko, Jesse; Johnson, Jay; Boscanin, Alex

2014-01-01

A sample of 406 subjects completed a questionnaire testing the influence of personal spirituality, education and several other factors on sexual tension in cross-sex friendships (CSF Tension). The subjects included 143 students from a Christian university (CU), 137 from a secular junior college (JC), and 127 non-students (NS). The primary…

This Earthly World: Edward Said, the Praxis of Secular Humanisms and Situated Cosmopolitanisms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roman, Leslie G.

2006-01-01

This essay unearths the educational and socio-political implications of Edward W. Said's work for our understanding of what a secular humanism might mean in the highly charged atmosphere of the post-Cold War and September 11 discourses that have pervaded the USA and, to varying degrees, other parts of the world. It asks what it means to move…

Evidence of Secular Changes in Physical Activity and Fitness, but Not Adiposity and Diet, in Welsh 12-13 Year Olds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Non E.; Williams, D. R. R.; Rowe, David A.; Davies, Bruce; Baker, Julien S.

2010-01-01

Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate secular trends in selected cardiovascular disease risk factors (namely adiposity, physical activity, physical fitness and diet) in a sample of Welsh 12-13 year olds between 2002 and 2007. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: A secondary school based in South West Wales. Method: Two studies in…

Pragmatism and the Unlikely Influence of German Idealism on the Academy in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ream, Todd C.

2007-01-01

In this article I argue that the subject-object distinction, operative in Continental Europe during the late-1700s and early-1800s, led to the religion-secular distinction in higher education in the United States. Many scholars believe the origins of the shifting nature of the religion-secular distinction resided with some form of influence that…

Faith and HIV prevention: the conceptual framing of HIV prevention among Pentecostal Batswana teenagers.

PubMed

Mpofu, Elias; Nkomazana, Fidelis; Muchado, Jabulani A; Togarasei, Lovemore; Bingenheimer, Jeffrey Bart

2014-03-05

There is a huge interest by faith-based organizations (FBOs) in sub-Saharan Africa and elsewhere in HIV prevention interventions that build on the religious aspects of being. Successful partnerships between the public health services and FBOs will require a better understanding of the conceptual framing of HIV prevention by FBOS to access for prevention intervention, those concepts the churches of various denominations and their members would support or endorse. This study investigated the conceptual framing of HIV prevention among church youths in Botswana;--a country with one of the highest HIV prevalence in the world. Participants were 213 Pentecostal church members (67% female; age range 12 to 23 years; median age=19 years). We engaged the participants in a mixed-method inductive process to collect data on their implicit framing of HIV prevention concepts, taking into account the centrality of religion concepts to them and the moderating influences of age, gender and sexual experience. After, we analysed the data using multi-dimensional scaling (MDS) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) to map the ways the church youths framed HIV prevention. The findings suggest the church youth to conceptually frame their HIV prevention from both faith-oriented and secular-oriented perspectives, while prioritizing the faith-oriented concepts based on biblical teachings and future focus. In their secular-oriented framing of HIV prevention, the church youths endorsed the importance to learn the facts about HIV and AIDS, understanding of community norms that increased risk for HIV and prevention education. However, components of secular-oriented framing of HIV prevention concepts were comparatively less was well differentiated among the youths than with faith-oriented framing, suggesting latent influences of the church knowledge environment to undervalue secular oriented concepts. Older and sexually experienced church youths in their framing of HIV prevention valued future focus and prevention education less than contrasting peer cohorts, suggesting their greater relative risk for HIV infection. A prospective HIV prevention intervention with the Pentecostal church youths would combine both faith and secular informed concepts. It also would need to take into account the ways in which these youth interpret secular-oriented health concepts in the context of their religious beliefs.

New evidence of a fast secular variation of the geomagnetic field 1000 BCE: archaeomagnetic study of Bavarian potteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hervé, G.; Gilder, S.; Fassbinder, J.; Metzler-Nebelsick, C.; Schnepp, E.; Geisweid, L.; Putz, A.; Reuss, S.; Riedel, G.; Westhausen, I.; Wittenborn, F.

2016-12-01

This study presents new archaeointensity results obtained on 350 pottery sherds from 45 graves and pits from 12 sites around Munich (Germany). The features are dated between 1400 and 400 BCE by ceramic and metallic artifacts, radiocarbon and dendrochronology. We collected only red- or partly red-colored sherds in order to minimize mineralogical alteration during laboratory experiments. Rock magnetism analyses show that the remanent magnetization is mainly carried by titanomagnetite. Archaeointensities were determined using the Thellier-Thellier protocol with corrections of TRM anisotropy and cooling rate on one to three specimens per sherd. The experiments were completed using Triaxe and multispecimen (MSP-DSC) methods. Around 60 per cent of the sherds provide reliable results, allowing the computation of 35 mean archaeointensity values. This quadruples the number of previously published data in Western Europe. The secular variation of the geomagnetic field strength is low from 1400 to 1200 BCE with intensities close to 50 µT then the intensity increased to 70 µT around 1000-900 BCE. After a minimum 50 µT near 750 BCE, the intensity increased again to 90 µT at 650 BCE. This high secular variation rate (0.4 µT/year) is especially apparent in the sherds from a fountain dated between 750 and 650 BCE. Next, the intensity remained high until 400 BCE before rapidly decreasing to 200 BCE. As the sharp change in geomagnetic direction around 800 BCE is not contemporaneous with an intensity high, this period is probably not characterized by an archaeomagnetic jerk. The trend of secular variation with two intensity maxima is similar to the one observed in the Near East. The Virtual Axial Dipole Moments of the two regions are approximately the same after 700 BCE, but before they are systematically 1-2 × 1022 Am2 higher in the Near East. This difference may be a further proof of a geomagnetic field anomaly in this area 1000 BCE, yet there is no evidence for a geomagnetic spike in Western Europe. Finally, the fast rate of secular variation will provide an improved dating tool for archaeologists together with the available directional secular variation curves.

Predicting Precession Rates from Secular Dynamics for Extra-solar Multi-planet Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Laerhoven, Christa

2015-12-01

Considering the secular dynamics of multi-planet systems provides substantial insight into the interactions between planets in those systems. Secular interactions are those that don't involve knowing where a planet is along its orbit, and they dominate when planets are not involved in mean motion resonances. These interactions exchange angular momentum among the planets, evolving their eccentricities and inclinations. To second order in the planets' eccentricities and inclinations, the eccentricity and inclination perturbations are decoupled. Given the right variable choice, the relevant differential equations are linear and thus the eccentricity and inclination behaviors can be described as a sum of eigenmodes. Since the underlying structure of the secular eigenmodes can be calculated using only the planets' masses and semi-major axes, one can elucidate the eccentricity and inclination behavior of planets in exoplanet systems even without knowing the planets' current eccentricities and inclinations. I have calculated both the eccentricity and inclination secular eigenmodes for the population of known multi-planet systems whose planets have well determined masses and periods and have used this to predict what range of pericenter precession (and nodal regression) rates the planets may have. One might have assumed that in any given system the planets with shorter periods would have faster precession rates, but I show that this is not necessarily the case. Planets that are 'loners' have narrow ranges of possible precession rates, while planets that are 'groupies' can have a wider range of possible precession rates. Several planets are expected to undergo significant precession on few-year timescales and many planets (though not the majority of planets) will undergo significant precession on decade timescales.

The JCMT Transient Survey: Stochastic and Secular Variability of Protostars and Disks In the Submillimeter Region Observed over 18 Months

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnstone, Doug; Herczeg, Gregory J.; Mairs, Steve; Hatchell, Jennifer; Bower, Geoffrey C.; Kirk, Helen; Lane, James; Bell, Graham S.; Graves, Sarah; Aikawa, Yuri; Chen, Huei-Ru Vivien; Chen, Wen-Ping; Kang, Miju; Kang, Sung-Ju; Lee, Jeong-Eun; Morata, Oscar; Pon, Andy; Scicluna, Peter; Scholz, Aleks; Takahashi, Satoko; Yoo, Hyunju; The JCMT Transient Team

2018-02-01

We analyze results from the first 18 months of monthly submillimeter monitoring of eight star-forming regions in the JCMT Transient Survey. In our search for stochastic variability in 1643 bright peaks, only the previously identified source, EC 53, shows behavior well above the expected measurement uncertainty. Another four sources—two disks and two protostars—show moderately enhanced standard deviations in brightness, as expected for stochastic variables. For the two protostars, this apparent variability is the result of single epochs that are much brighter than the mean. In our search for secular brightness variations that are linear in time, we measure the fractional brightness change per year for 150 bright peaks, 50 of which are protostellar. The ensemble distribution of slopes is well fit by a normal distribution with σ ∼ 0.023. Most sources are not rapidly brightening or fading at submillimeter wavelengths. Comparison against time-randomized realizations shows that the width of the distribution is dominated by the uncertainty in the individual brightness measurements of the sources. A toy model for secular variability reveals that an underlying Gaussian distribution of linear fractional brightness change σ = 0.005 would be unobservable in the present sample, whereas an underlying distribution with σ = 0.02 is ruled out. Five protostellar sources, 10% of the protostellar sample, are found to have robust secular measures deviating from a constant flux. The sensitivity to secular brightness variations will improve significantly with a sample over a longer time duration, with an improvement by factor of two expected by the conclusion of our 36 month survey.

Weight-Related Teasing from Adolescence to Young Adulthood: Longitudinal and Secular Trends between 1999 and 2010

PubMed Central

Haines, Jess; Hannan, Peter J.; van den Berg, Patricia; Eisenberg, Marla E.; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine longitudinal trends from 1999–2010 in weight-related teasing as adolescents transition to young adulthood and to examine secular trends in teasing among early and middle adolescents over the same time period. To examine longitudinal changes we used data from 2,287 participants in Project EAT-III, an ongoing cohort that followed two age cohorts of adolescents from 1999 to 2010. Over the study period the younger cohort transitioned from early adolescence to early young adulthood and the older cohort transitioned from middle adolescence to middle young adulthood. To examine how levels of teasing among early and middle adolescents changed from 1999–2010 (secular trends), we compared baseline data from EAT-I to cross-sectional data from a new cohort of early and middle adolescents that was established in 2010. In 1999, 29% of early adolescent and 23% of middle adolescent females reported being teased. Approximately 18% of males in both age groups reported being teased in 1999. Longitudinal trends suggest that weight-related teasing remained stable among all subgroups as they transitioned to young adulthood, except among early adolescent males where teasing increased to 27% in early young adulthood. Analyses of age-matched secular trends show that teasing decreased by 10.4% among early adolescent females and by 7.6% among middle adolescent males from 1999–2010. Results suggest that interventions that focus on reducing weight-based discrimination are needed throughout adolescence and young adulthood. The secular decrease in weight-related teasing is promising, but the high prevalence of teasing remains a public health concern. PMID:23585224

[The beginnings of the nursing profession : the complementary relationship between secular caregivers and hospital nuns in France in the 17th and 18th centuries].

PubMed

Diebolt, Evelyne

2013-06-01

The words used for designating the caregivers are ambiguous. Little by little, the word "nurse" becomes widely used, mainly in the feminine form due to the need of specialized staff. Health care structures are developing in the 17th and 18 centuries, the remains of which you can find in today hospitals (Salpêtrière hospital, Hôtel-Dieu hospital in Paris). The government of Louis XIV cares for the poor sick people, the vagabonds and the beggars. It opens new general hospitals as it will be the case later in all Europe. In the 17th century, the staff of the general hospital in Paris is entirely secular. The Paris general hospital is headed by the magistrates of Paris Parliament. The healthcare institutions employ both secular and religious staff for example the Hotel Dieu in Paris and the one in Marseilles. In the 17th century, there are 2000 secular caregivers in France. The order of the "Filles de la Charité" (grey sisters) is not submitted to the rule of enclosure. They renew their vows every year. For their founders Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marcillac, their monastery should be the cells of the sick, their cloister should be the rooms of the hospitals or the streets of the town. The secular or religious caregivers are excellent in the apothecary and they open a network of small dispensaries. It improves the health of the French population and allows fighting against the epidemics. This activity allowed some women to have a rewarding activity and a social status of which they were apparently satisfied.

Accounting for magnetic diffusion in core flow inversions from geomagnetic secular variation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amit, Hagay; Christensen, Ulrich R.

2008-12-01

We use numerical dynamos to investigate the possible role of magnetic diffusion at the top of the core. We find that the contribution of radial magnetic diffusion to the secular variation is correlated with that of tangential magnetic diffusion for a wide range of control parameters. The correlation between the two diffusive terms is interpreted in terms of the variation in the strength of poloidal flow along a columnar flow tube. The amplitude ratio of the two diffusive terms is used to estimate the probable contribution of radial magnetic diffusion to the secular variation at Earth-like conditions. We then apply a model where radial magnetic diffusion is proportional to tangential diffusion to core flow inversions of geomagnetic secular variation data. We find that including magnetic diffusion does not change dramatically the global flow but some significant local variations appear. In the non frozen-flux core flow models (termed `diffusive'), the hemispherical dichotomy between the active Atlantic and quiet Pacific is weaker, a cyclonic vortex below North America emerges and the vortex below Asia is stronger. Our results have several important geophysical implications. First, our diffusive flow models contain some flow activity at low latitudes in the Pacific, suggesting a local balance between magnetic field advection and diffusion in that region. Second, the cyclone below North America in our diffusive flows reconciles the difference between mantle-driven thermal wind predictions and frozen-flux core flow models, and is consistent with the prominent intense magnetic flux patch below North America in geomagnetic field models. Finally, we hypothesize that magnetic diffusion near the core surface plays a larger role in the geomagnetic secular variation than usually assumed.

f-Mode Secular Instabilities in Deleptonizing Fizzlers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Imamura, James N.; Durisen, Richard H.

2004-12-01

Fizzlers are intermediate states that may form between white dwarf and neutron star densities during the collapse of massive rotating stars. This paper studies the gravitational radiation reaction (GRR) driven f-mode secular instabilities of fizzlers with angular momentum distributions h(mc) appropriate to the core collapse of massive rotating stars, where h is the specific angular momentum and mc is the cylindrical mass fraction. For core collapses that maintain axial symmetry, the h(mc) of the remnant reflects the conditions in the precollapse stellar core, and, thus, the h(mc) will resemble that of a uniformly rotating star supported by the pressure of relativistically degenerate electrons. Such an h(mc) concentrates most angular momentum toward the equatorial region of the object. The onset of f-mode secular instabilities in such fizzlers is affected strongly by the h(mc), whereas instability depends only weakly on compressibility. For a broad range of fizzler equations of state and the core h(mc), the f-mode secular instability thresholds drop to T/W~0.034-0.042, 0.019-0.021, and 0.012-0.0135, for m=2, 3, and 4, respectively. These same thresholds with the Maclaurin spheroid h(mc) are T/W=0.13-0.15, 0.10-0.11, and 0.08-0.09, respectively. The growth times τgw for GRR-driven m=2 modes are long. For fizzlers with specific angular momentum J/M~1.5×1016 cm2 s-1 and T/W<~0.24 (ρc<~1014 g cm-3), τgw>400 s. For these fizzlers, τgw>>τde, the deleptonization timescale, and GRR-driven secular instabilities will not grow along a deleptonizing fizzler sequence except, possibly, at T/W near the dynamic bar mode instability threshold, T/W~0.27.

Experimental Characterization of Secular Frequency Scanning in Ion Trap Mass Spectrometers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Snyder, Dalton T.; Pulliam, Christopher J.; Wiley, Joshua S.; Duncan, Jason; Cooks, R. Graham

2016-07-01

Secular frequency scanning is implemented and characterized using both a benchtop linear ion trap and a miniature rectilinear ion trap mass spectrometer. Separation of tetraalkylammonium ions and those from a mass calibration mixture and from a pesticide mixture is demonstrated with peak widths approaching unit resolution for optimized conditions using the benchtop ion trap. The effects on the spectra of ion trap operating parameters, including waveform amplitude, scan direction, scan rate, and pressure are explored, and peaks at black holes corresponding to nonlinear (higher-order field) resonance points are investigated. Reverse frequency sweeps (increasing mass) on the Mini 12 are shown to result in significantly higher ion ejection efficiency and superior resolution than forward frequency sweeps that decrement mass. This result is accounted for by the asymmetry in ion energy absorption profiles as a function of AC frequency and the shift in ion secular frequency at higher amplitudes in the trap due to higher order fields. We also found that use of higher AC amplitudes in forward frequency sweeps biases ions toward ejection at points of higher order parametric resonance, despite using only dipolar excitation. Higher AC amplitudes also increase peak width and decrease sensitivity in both forward and reverse frequency sweeps. Higher sensitivity and resolution were obtained at higher trap pressures in the secular frequency scan, in contrast to conventional resonance ejection scans, which showed the opposite trend in resolution on the Mini 12. Mass range is shown to be naturally extended in secular frequency scanning when ejecting ions by sweeping the AC waveform through low frequencies, a method which is similar, but arguably superior, to the more usual method of mass range extension using low q resonance ejection.

Experimental Characterization of Secular Frequency Scanning in Ion Trap Mass Spectrometers.

PubMed

Snyder, Dalton T; Pulliam, Christopher J; Wiley, Joshua S; Duncan, Jason; Cooks, R Graham

2016-07-01

Secular frequency scanning is implemented and characterized using both a benchtop linear ion trap and a miniature rectilinear ion trap mass spectrometer. Separation of tetraalkylammonium ions and those from a mass calibration mixture and from a pesticide mixture is demonstrated with peak widths approaching unit resolution for optimized conditions using the benchtop ion trap. The effects on the spectra of ion trap operating parameters, including waveform amplitude, scan direction, scan rate, and pressure are explored, and peaks at black holes corresponding to nonlinear (higher-order field) resonance points are investigated. Reverse frequency sweeps (increasing mass) on the Mini 12 are shown to result in significantly higher ion ejection efficiency and superior resolution than forward frequency sweeps that decrement mass. This result is accounted for by the asymmetry in ion energy absorption profiles as a function of AC frequency and the shift in ion secular frequency at higher amplitudes in the trap due to higher order fields. We also found that use of higher AC amplitudes in forward frequency sweeps biases ions toward ejection at points of higher order parametric resonance, despite using only dipolar excitation. Higher AC amplitudes also increase peak width and decrease sensitivity in both forward and reverse frequency sweeps. Higher sensitivity and resolution were obtained at higher trap pressures in the secular frequency scan, in contrast to conventional resonance ejection scans, which showed the opposite trend in resolution on the Mini 12. Mass range is shown to be naturally extended in secular frequency scanning when ejecting ions by sweeping the AC waveform through low frequencies, a method which is similar, but arguably superior, to the more usual method of mass range extension using low q resonance ejection. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

Determining The Plane of The Kuiper Belt with OSSOS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Laerhoven, Christa; Kavelaars, J. J.; Volk, Kathryn; Gladman, Brett; Petit, Jean-Marc

2018-04-01

We present the OSSOS-based measurement of the semi-major axes dependent orientation of the Kuiper Belt plane. A Kuiper Belt object's (KBO's) inclination can be broken down into a forced component and a free component. The inclination and longitude of ascending node of the forced inclination define the 'forced plane,' the plane about which the KBO's inclination will precess. Secular theory predicts that this forced plane should depend on semi-major axis. For example, the nu18 secular resonance should create a significant warp in the forced planet near 40.5 au (Chiang and Choi 2008). Not predicted by secular theory is a warp in the distant Kuiper Belt (semi-major axes greater than 50 au) seen by Volk and Malhotra 2016 using KBOs from the Minor Planet Catalog. We investigate what the inclination distribution is for objects beyond Neptune as a function of semi-major axis using the OSSOS characterized sample. Through use of the OSSOS survey simulator we test various underlying orbital distributions and compare how the survey would have observed those populations to the actual observed sample. In particular, we test various widths for the inclination distribution about various local forcing planes for the kernel, stirred, and hot classical Kuiper Belt. We find that the forced plane in matches well with the expected forced plane from secular theory. Through most of the main Kuiper Belt (between the 3:2 and 2:1 resonances), we can reject both the ecliptic plane and the invariable plane as the true forced plane. Only as the expected secularly forced plane approaches the invariable plane does the invariable plane become non-rejectable. In the outer Kuiper Belt we reject the nominal mean-plane measured by Volk and Malhotra, but smaller warps are still allowed by the data.

Orbital period studies of the two contact binaries TZ Bootis and Y Sextantis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qian, S.; Liu, Q.

2000-03-01

The physical properties of the two A-type contact binaries TZ Boo and Y Sex are nearly the same. In the present paper, many of their published times of light minima are collected and the changes in their orbital periods are analyzed. It is indicated that the orbital period of TZ Boo shows several alternating jumps while it undergoes a secular decrease of -11.8x10-8 days/year. Several random jumps superposed on a secular decrease (-5.5x10-8 days/year) are also found in the period of Y Sex. The secular decrease is usually interpreted as mass transfer from the more to the less massive components, or mass and angular momentum loss (AML) from the systems. According to the AML theory, on the contact stage, the orbital AML is mainly caused by the mass transfer from the less to the more massive component and the mass ratio decreasing and orbital period gradually increasing are the corresponding results. The extremely low mass ratio and orbital angular momentum of the two systems show that they are evolved via AML and the present secular decrease in the periods may suggest that the magnetic activity in the two systems are very strong. The relation between the changes of the orbital periods and the magnetic activity in the two systems are discussed. We think that the interplay between the variable AML and variable magnetic coupling can explain both the jumps and secular decrease in the orbital periods of the two systems. Table~2 and Table~4 are only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strabg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html

Tidal Disruption Events from Eccentric Nuclear Disks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wernke, Heather N.; Madigan, Ann-Marie

2018-04-01

Stars that get too close to a supermassive black hole are in danger of being tidally disrupted. Stellar two-body relaxation is commonly assumed to be the main driver of these events. Recent work has shown, however, that secular gravitational torques from eccentric nuclear disks can push stars to extreme eccentricities at much higher rates than predicted by two-body relaxation. This work did not include the effects of general relativity, however, which could quench secular torques via rapid apsidal precession. Here we show that, for a star in danger of disruption, general relativity acts on a timescale of less than an orbital period. This short timescale means that general relativity does not have enough time to have a major effect on the orbit. When driven by secular torques from eccentric nuclear disks, tidal disruption event rates are not affected by general relativity.

The equations of motion of a secularly precessing elliptical orbit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Casotto, S.; Bardella, M.

2013-01-01

The equations of motion of a secularly precessing ellipse are developed using time as the independent variable. The equations are useful when integrating numerically the perturbations about a reference trajectory which is subject to secular perturbations in the node, the argument of pericentre and the mean motion. Usually this is done in connection with Encke's method to ensure minimal rectification frequency. Similar equations are already available in the literature, but they are either given based on the true anomaly as the independent variable or in mixed mode with respect to time through the use of a supporting equation to track the anomaly. The equations developed here form a complete and independent set of six equations in time. Reformulations both of Escobal's and Kyner and Bennett's equations are also provided which lead to a more concise form.

Secular Effect of Sun Oblateness on the Orbital Parameters of Mars and Jupiter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vaishwar, Avaneesh; Kushvah, Badam Singh; Mishra, Devi Prasad

2018-01-01

In this paper we considered the Mars-Jupiter system to study the behaviour of Near Earth Asteroids (NEAs) as most of the NEAs originate in the main asteroid belt located between Mars and Jupiter. The materials obtained from NEAs are very useful for space industrialisation. The variations in orbital parameters, such as eccentricity, inclination, longitude of pericenter and longitude of ascending node of Mars and Jupiter were investigated for a time span of 200,000 years centered on J2000 (January 2000) using secular perturbation theory. We considered the Sun oblateness and studied the effect of Sun oblateness on orbital parameters of Mars and Jupiter. Moreover, we determined the orbital parameters for asteroids moving under the perturbation effect of Mars and Jupiter by using a secular solution of Mars-Jupiter system.

Secular trends in growth.

PubMed

Fudvoye, Julie; Parent, Anne-Simone

2017-06-01

Human adult height has been increasing world-wide for a century and a half. The rate of increase depends on time and place of measurement. Final height appears to have reached a plateau in Northern European countries but it is still increasing in southern European countries as well as Japan. While mean birth length has not changed recently in industrialized countries, the secular trend finally observed in adult height mostly originates during the first 2 years of life. Secular trend in growth is a marker of public health and provides insights into the interaction between growth and environment. It has been shown to be affected by income, social status, infections and nutrition. While genetic factors cannot explain such rapid changes in average population height, epigenetic factors could be the link between growth and environment. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.

Secular changes of the M2 tide in the Gulf of Maine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ray, Richard D.

2005-01-01

Analyses of long time series of hourly tide-gauge data at four stations in the Gulf of Maine reveal that the amplitude of the M2 tide underwent a nearly linear secular increase throughout most of the twentieth century. In the early 1980s, however, the amplitude of M2 abruptly dropped. Sea level changes alone appear inadequate to explain either the long-term trend or the recent trend discontinuity. Tidal models that account for Holocene sea level rise do predict an amplification of M2, but much smaller than the currently observed trends. Nor do recent annual mean sea levels correlate with the recent trend discontinuity. Some unknown fraction of the open Atlantic may be similarly affected, since the M2 discontinuity, but not the long-term secular increase in the tide, is evident also at Halifax.

[Civic religion, civil religion, secular religion. a historiographical investigation].

PubMed

Boucheron, Patrick

2013-01-01

Because of its conceptual plasiticity, the term civic religion is now widely used by historians, particularly historians of the Middle Ages. Yet, as this article suggests, historians would do well to interrogate the relationships (which can be hidden) that this term bears to similar concepts such as Greek Roman civic religion, Enlightenment civil religion or even the secular religion that emerged in the work of 20(th) century thinkers.

Historical Improvements in Well-Being Do Not Hold in Late Life: Birth- and Death-Year Cohorts in the United States and Germany

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hülür, Gizem; Ram, Nilam; Gerstorf, Denis

2015-01-01

One key objective of life span research is to examine how individual development is shaped by the historical time people live in. Secular trends favoring later-born cohorts on fluid cognitive abilities have been widely documented, but findings are mixed for well-being. It remains an open question whether secular increases in well-being seen in…

The long-term evolution of known resonant trans-Neptunian objects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saillenfest, M.; Lari, G.

2017-07-01

Aims: Numerous trans-Neptunian objects are known to be in mean-motion resonance with Neptune. We aim to describe their long-term orbital evolution (both past and future) by means of a one-degree-of-freedom secular model. In this paper, we focus only on objects with a semi-major axis larger than 50 astronomical units (au). Methods: For each resonant object considered, a 500 000-year numerical integration is performed. The output is digitally filtered to get the parameters of the resonant secular model. Their long-term (Giga-year) orbital evolution is then represented by the level curves of the secular Hamiltonian. Results: For the majority of objects considered, the mean-motion resonance has little impact on the long-term trajectories (the secular dynamics is similar to a non-resonant one). However, a subset of objects is strongly affected by the resonance, producing moderately-high-amplitude oscillations of the perihelion distance and/or libration of the argument of perihelion around a fixed centre. Moreover, the high perihelion distance of the object 2015 FJ345 is plainly explained by long-term resonant dynamics, allowing us to also deduce its orbital elements at the time of capture in resonance (at least 15 million years ago). The same type of past evolution is expected for 2014 FZ71.

Borehole Tilt Measurements at the Charlevoix Observatory, Quebec.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-01-31

1q. KEY WORDS (Continue on reverse side it necessary end identify by block number) Borehole tiltmeter Earthquakes Tidal, secular and transient tilts 20...ABSTRACT (Continue on reverse side If necessary and Identify by block number) An array of three Bodenseewerk Gbp borehole tiltmeters has been...established to measure tidal, transient and secular tilting of the Earth’s surface in the Charlevoix region of Quebec. Two of the tiltmeters operate at a

To Our Great Detriment: Ignoring What Extremists Say About Jihad

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-07-01

scripture of Islam itself, Western analysts tried to explain it in political and economic terms in keeping with their own secular- humanistic orientation...virtue of the fact that it is said or written, is meant to indicate that the Orientalist is outside the Orient, both as an existential and moral fact...with their own secular- humanistic orientation.606 (Emphasis added) In the same article, hardly religious and written by a Hindu, Rajaram argues

Spatial Distribution and Secular Variation of Geomagnetic Filed in China Described by the CHAOS-6 Model and its Error Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Z.; Gu, Z.; Chen, B.; Yuan, J.; Wang, C.

2016-12-01

The CHAOS-6 geomagnetic field model, presented in 2016 by the Denmark's national space institute (DTU Space), is a model of the near-Earth magnetic field. According the CHAOS-6 model, seven component data of geomagnetic filed at 30 observatories in China in 2015 and at 3 observatories in China spanning the time interval 2008.0-2016.5 were calculated. Also seven component data of geomagnetic filed from the geomagnetic data of practical observations in China was obtained. Based on the model calculated data and the practical data, we have compared and analyzed the spatial distribution and the secular variation of the geomagnetic field in China. There is obvious difference between the two type data. The CHAOS-6 model cannot describe the spatial distribution and the secular variation of the geomagnetic field in China with comparative precision because of the regional and local magnetic anomalies in China.

A paired apatite and calcite clumped isotope thermometry approach to estimating Cambro-Ordovician seawater temperatures and isotopic composition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bergmann, Kristin D.; Finnegan, Seth; Creel, Roger; Eiler, John M.; Hughes, Nigel C.; Popov, Leonid E.; Fischer, Woodward W.

2018-03-01

The secular increase in δ18O values of both calcitic and phosphatic marine fossils through early Phanerozoic time suggests either that (1) early Paleozoic surface temperatures were high, in excess of 40 °C (tropical MAT), (2) the δ18O value of seawater has increased by 7-8‰ VSMOW through Paleozoic time, or (3) diagenesis has altered secular trends in early Paleozoic samples. Carbonate clumped isotope analysis, in combination with petrographic and elemental analysis, can deconvolve fluid composition from temperature effects and therefore determine which of these hypotheses best explain the secular δ18O increase. Clumped isotope measurements of a suite of calcitic and phosphatic marine fossils from late Cambrian- to Middle-late Ordovician-aged strata-the first paired fossil study of its kind-document tropical sea surface temperatures near modern temperatures (26-38 °C) and seawater oxygen isotope ratios similar to today's ratios.

Perturbations of non-resonant satellite orbits due to a rotating earth. [tesseral harmonics and the Von Ziepel method

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mueller, A.

1978-01-01

The dominant perturbations of the motion of a satellite near the earth are due to atmospheric drag and the non-symmetrical gravitational field. Atmospheric drag perturbation continually pulls the satellite in and out of the different long period resonant frequencies. The result is that the resonances never become apparent and may be neglected. The tesseral harmonics have no true secular perturbation but the periodicities in the mean motion induce a secular perturbation in the mean anomaly. This secular perturbation may be determined by simply using the average mean motion instead of the osculating mean motion. The Von Ziepel method is used to determine tesseral perturbations. The solution is found first in the singular DS phi elements and then rewritten in the PS phi elements to remove singularities. The notation used in the development is described in the appendix.

Some ideas on the rock cycle: 1788-1988

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gregor, Bryan

1992-08-01

Hutton's procrastination on the subject of unconformities left his cyclic vision of geology in the shadows, while his success in demonstrating the igneous origin of granite led on to Classical Magmatism, a paradigm of secular evolution that reigned practically unchallenged for almost a century. When radiometric dating revealed the true extent of geologic time, a neo-Huttonian, cyclic view gained strength in Europe because of its ability to explain the salt content of the ocean and the sodium fixed in metamorphism of sediments to paragneiss, both of which had become embarrassing to the magmatists. Meantime, in North America, a quite independent movement was afoot to claim for sediments and cyclic processes their rightful place in geologic theory. It led to the acknowledgment that the cyclic and secular views of the Earth are complementary and not contradictory, and that geologic materials are recycled on varying time scales against a background of slow, secular evolution of the Earth.

Intergenerational Transmission of Religious Beliefs and Practices and the Reduction of Adolescent Delinquency in Urban Thailand

PubMed Central

Chamratrithirong, Aphichat; Miller, Brenda A.; Byrnes, Hilary F.; Rhucharoenpornpanich, Orratai; Cupp, Pamela K.; Rosati, Michael J.; Fongkaew, Warunee; Atwood, Katharine A.; Todd, Michael

2012-01-01

This study examines the intergenerational transmission of family religion as measured by parent’s and adolescent’s beliefs and practices in Buddhism, and its relation to delinquent behaviors among early adolescents in Thailand. The data set is from the Thai Family Matters Project 2007, a representative sample of 420 pairs of parents and teens in Bangkok. A structural equation model is employed for the analysis. The intergenerational transmission and the direct and indirect association between parents’ and adolescents’ beliefs and practices in Buddhism and adolescents’ minor and serious delinquent behaviors are revealed to be significant, controlling for secular parental monitoring. Spirituality within the family can play an important role in preventing delinquency among early adolescents. Policies in the areas related to family empowerment and delinquency prevention may need to consider integrating both secular and non-secular program inputs in their implementation design. PMID:23218782

On the secular decrease in the semimajor axis of Lageos orbit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rubincam, D. P.

1980-01-01

The semimajor axis of the Lageos orbit is decreasing secularly at the rate of -1.1 mm/day due to an unknown force. Nine possible mechanisms are investigated. Five of the mechanisms, resonance with the Earth's gravitational field, gravitational radiation, the Poynting-Robertson effect, transfer of spin angular momentum to the orbital angular momentum, and drag from near Earth dust are ruled out because they are too small to require unacceptable assumptions to account for the observed rate. Three other mechanisms, the Yarkovsky effect, the Schach effect, and terrestrial radiation pressure could possibly give the proper order of magnitude for the decay rate, but the characteristic signatures of these perturbations do not agree with the observed secular decrease. Atmospheric drag from a combination of charged and neutral particles is the most likely cause for the orbital decay. This mechanism explains at least 71 percent of the observed rate of decrease of the semimajor axis.

Extracurricular activities and teens' alcohol use: The role of religious and secular sponsorship.

PubMed

Adamczyk, Amy

2012-03-01

Much research has found that more religious youth are less likely to engage in riskier health-related behaviors. However, very little research has examined the role that religion may play in shaping the health-related behaviors of secular youth. There is reason to think that more and less religious youth may gain some health-related benefits from involvement with religious organizations through activities such as basketball and volunteering. Using two waves of data from the National Study of Youth and Religion, this study finds that involvement in religion-supported secular activities is associated with less alcohol use for all involved teens. The number of friends who belong to a religious youth group, in part, explains the relationship. Conversely, network overlap between parents and teens, the number of friends who drink or use drugs, and having an adult confidant from a religious group are not mechanisms that mediate the relationship. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Radiogenic ingrowth in systems with multiple reservoirs: applications to the differentiation of the mantle-crust system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Albarède, Francis

2001-06-01

Mantle isochrons such as those observed for oceanic basalts in the 207Pb/ 204Pb vs. 206Pb/ 204Pb diagram do not date discrete differentiation events but are often suggested to reflect a mean age of differentiation within the mantle-crust system. The present work deals with the isotopic aspects of radioactive decay of long-lived isotopes ( 87Rb, 147Sm, 176Lu) in systems with multiple reservoirs. For these isotopes, the probability of decay is small compared to the frequency of reservoir jumping. Consequently, a state of secular equilibrium exists for which changes in the nuclide abundances in each reservoir balance radioactive decay and ingrowth. Here a theory is presented that predicts the characteristic time to reach secular equilibrium (relaxation time) and the secular equilibrium properties of stable, radioactive, and daughter nuclides in a pair of reservoirs of constant mass. Expressions are derived for parent/daughter ratios, such as 87Rb/ 86Sr, and for isotopic ratios involving a daughter isotope, such as 87Sr/ 86Sr. It is shown that, at secular equilibrium, the reservoirs form linear arrays in isochron diagrams. The isochron slope and intercept reflect the relaxation time and have no significance of a mean age. The derived relationships are extended to an arbitrary number of reservoirs with constant mass. In the case of 87Rb, 147Sm, and 176Lu, the relaxation times of the mantle-crust system agree with each other (1.2±0.1 Gy). It is therefore likely that the Earth is at secular equilibrium for these nuclides and their daughter isotopes and that no memory of the initial differentiation of the Earth is preserved in the isotope composition of Sr, Nd, and Hf of modern basalts. The kappa conundrum is a straightforward consequence of Th and U having different relaxation times in the mantle-crust system. The 207Pb/ 204Pb and 4He/ 3He ratios are not at secular equilibrium, in contrast with 206Pb/ 204Pb and 208Pb/ 204Pb. The properties of oceanic basalts in terms of the last two ratios and the Nd and Hf secular evolution curves of mantle-derived material require the presence of deep hidden reservoirs that interacts with the depleted upper mantle. It is suggested that the most fertile lithospheric oceanic plates, in particular those loaded with plume heads, preferentially sink to the bottom of the mantle. The terrestrial mantle is therefore most likely chemically heterogeneous and models of Earth compositions based on a primitive lower mantle should be abandoned. In contrast, the transient-dominated 207Pb/ 204Pb and 4He/ 3He ratios can be used to model the early differentiation of the planet.

Has Earth's Plate Tectonics Led to Rapid Core Cooling?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Montserrat Navarro, A.; Morgan, J. P.; Vannucchi, P.; Connolly, J. A.

2016-12-01

Earth's mantle and core are convecting planetary heat engines. The mantle convects to lose heat from secular cooling, internal radioactivity, and core heatflow across its base. Its convection generates plate tectonics, volcanism, and the loss of 35 TW of mantle heat through Earth's surface. The core convects to lose heat from secular cooling, small amounts of internal radioactivity, and the freezing-induced growth of a compositionally denser inner core. Until recently, the geodynamo was thought to be powered by 4 TW of heatloss across the core-mantle boundary. More recent determinations of the outer core's thermal conductivity (Pozzo et al., 2012; Gomi et al., 2013) would imply that >15 TW of power should conduct down its adiabat. Secular core cooling has been previously thought to be too slow for this, based on estimates for the Clapeyron Slope for high-pressure freezing of an idealized pure-iron core (cf. Nimmo, 2007). The 500-1000 kg m-3 seismically-inferred jump in density between the liquid outer core and solid inner core allows a direct estimate of the Clapeyron Slope for the outer core's actual composition which contains 0.08±0.02 lighter elements (S,Si,O,Al, H,…) mixed into a Fe-Ni alloy. A PREM-like 600 kg m-3 density jump yields a Clapeyron Slope for which there has been 774K of core cooling during the freezing and growth of the inner core, cooling that has been releasing an average of 21 TW of power during the past 3 Ga. If so, core cooling could easily have powered Earth's long-lived geodynamo. Another implication is that the present-day mantle is strongly `bottom-heated', and diapiric mantle plumes should dominate deep mantle upwelling. This mode of core and mantle convection is consistent with slow, 37.5K/Ga secular cooling of Earth's mantle linked to more rapid secular cooling of the core (cf. Morgan, Rüpke, and White, 2016). Efficient plate subduction, hence plate tectonics, is a key ingredient for such rapid secular core cooling.We also show how a more complete thermodynamic version of Birch's accretional energy calculation predicts that accretion with FeNi-sinking-linked differentiation between an Earth-like mantle and core would naturally generate a core that, post-accretion, was both hotter than overlying mantle and 1000K hotter than today.

Variaciones seculares de período en las RR Lyrae de ω~Centauri

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marraco, H. G.; Milesi, G. E.

Utilizando 689 observaciones de 35 estrellas RR Lyrae del cúmulo globular ω Centauri hemos obtenido nuevas determinaciones de sus períodos y sus correspondientes variaciones seculares. Las observaciones fueron obtenidas de la literatura con la excepción de un grupo 66 determinaciones que se presentan por vez primera aquí. Utilizando el parámetro testigo σ descripto en Marraco & Muzzio (Publ. Astron. Soc. Pacific 92, 700, 1980), hemos realizado un ajuste bidimensional en P y β (donde β es la variación secular del período). Con este fin la totalidad de las 689 observaciones fueron llevadas a un sistema fotométrico común. Para esto se realizó un cuidadoso análisis de los numerosos errores en la identificación de las estrellas de las series de comparación. Los resultados de los ajustes bidimensionales fueron analizados utilizando técnicas de procesamiento de imágenes. Con este fin el parámetro de ajuste σ fue representado como función de P y β. En las imágenes resultantes se buscaron los mínimos y al menor de ellos se lo aceptó como período instantáneo verdadero y su variación secular β. La determinación precisa de cada parámetro se realizó mediante ajuste de gaussianas y se determinaron sus errores. A modo de ejemplo la variable #8 fue analizada en una matriz de 501 × 501 elementos representando el parámetro σ para valores comprendidos entre 0,521034 < P < 0,521534 dias y -150×10-10 < β < +150×10-10 dias/dia. El mejor período instantáneo (correspondiente a la época DJ=2.426.908) y su variación secular son P = 0,5212859±0,0000001 días y β 14,012±,010×10-10 días/día respectivamente. Con estos valores el parámetro testigo resulta σ= 0,127 . Si no se tiene en cuenta la variación secular del período y se busca aquél de mejor ajuste para β = 0, se obtiene P = 0,5212960 días, pero entonces el parámetro de ajuste resulta tan alto como σ = 0,23 .

Faith and HIV prevention: the conceptual framing of HIV prevention among Pentecostal Batswana teenagers

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background There is a huge interest by faith-based organizations (FBOs) in sub-Saharan Africa and elsewhere in HIV prevention interventions that build on the religious aspects of being. Successful partnerships between the public health services and FBOs will require a better understanding of the conceptual framing of HIV prevention by FBOS to access for prevention intervention, those concepts the churches of various denominations and their members would support or endorse. This study investigated the conceptual framing of HIV prevention among church youths in Botswana; - a country with one of the highest HIV prevalence in the world. Method Participants were 213 Pentecostal church members (67% female; age range 12 to 23 years; median age = 19 years). We engaged the participants in a mixed-method inductive process to collect data on their implicit framing of HIV prevention concepts, taking into account the centrality of religion concepts to them and the moderating influences of age, gender and sexual experience. After, we analysed the data using multi-dimensional scaling (MDS) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) to map the ways the church youths framed HIV prevention. Results The findings suggest the church youth to conceptually frame their HIV prevention from both faith-oriented and secular-oriented perspectives, while prioritizing the faith-oriented concepts based on biblical teachings and future focus. In their secular-oriented framing of HIV prevention, the church youths endorsed the importance to learn the facts about HIV and AIDS, understanding of community norms that increased risk for HIV and prevention education. However, components of secular-oriented framing of HIV prevention concepts were comparatively less was well differentiated among the youths than with faith-oriented framing, suggesting latent influences of the church knowledge environment to undervalue secular oriented concepts. Older and sexually experienced church youths in their framing of HIV prevention valued future focus and prevention education less than contrasting peer cohorts, suggesting their greater relative risk for HIV infection. Conclusion A prospective HIV prevention intervention with the Pentecostal church youths would combine both faith and secular informed concepts. It also would need to take into account the ways in which these youth interpret secular-oriented health concepts in the context of their religious beliefs. PMID:24593140

"He Needs to Talk!": A Chaplain's Case Study of Nonreligious Spiritual Care.

PubMed

Nolan, Steve

2016-01-01

Chaplains have always worked with nonreligious people, but it is not always clear what is distinctive about their contribution. This case describes an episode of nonreligious spiritual care in order to explore the value of chaplaincy work with people who regard themselves as nonreligious. This case reports on work with a dying man and his family-wife, daughter, sister, and son-in-law-whose religion is secularized, but whose secularism is touched by the sacred.

Decadal-to-centennial-scale climate variability: Insights into the rise and fall of the Great Salt Lake

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mann, Michael E.; Lall, Upmanu; Saltzman, Barry

1995-01-01

We demonstrate connections between decadal and secular global climatic variations, and historical variations in the volume of the Great Salt Lake. The decadal variations correspond to a low-frequency shifting of storm tracks which influence winter precipitation and explain nearly 18% of the interannual and longer-term variance in the record of monthly volume change. The secular trend accounts for a more modest approximately 1.5% of the variance.

Understanding the Influence of the Pakistani Government in South Asia

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-11-01

that, “Jinnah, virtually alone, became the exponent of constitution making along secular lines. His vision involved the blending of multiple traditions...Hindu nor Sikh, but citizens of an all-embracing secular state, had little meaning for the vast majority who were now expected to adapt the Pakistani...to maintain ties to the United States Ayub Kahn began to move towards friendlier relations with China, a move that the United States would view as

[Secular trend of growth in Blumenau, Santa Catarina State].

PubMed

Soncini, Ana Silveira; Vargas, Deisi Maria; Arena, Mariana Garcia Lopes; Arena, Luiz Fernando Garcia Lopes

2011-01-01

Secular trend of growth refers to any change of the corporal size in determined population group in long periods of time. The objective of this work is to study the secular tendency of growth in natural height among recruits in Blumenau, Santa Catarina State, between the years of 1963 and 2007. This is a transversal, retrospective and analytical study. Young recruits, aged 18 to 20 were chosen as the population. A standardized database was used on individual records with the first 40 records of each year being selected. Data from 1963 to 2007 were collected and separated per decades. A margin of error not higher than 3.5% was used as a demonstration, which resulted in a sample of 600 individuals. The t-test was used to compare the averages of different decades. The results showed an increase of 7 cm in the height of the population in Blumenau in the last 50 years. The positive trend that is occurring in our country in the most recent evaluations can be attributed to better sanitary, economic and social conditions. The secular tendency of growth in height was positive in the municipality of Blumenau. It was found that the population increased 7 cm in the final height in the last 50 years with a growth rate of 0.14 cm/year or 1.4 cm/decade.

Secular Trends in Anthropometrics and Physical Fitness of Young Portuguese School-Aged Children.

PubMed

Costa, Aldo Matos; Costa, Mário Jorge; Reis, António Antunes; Ferreira, Sandra; Martins, Júlio; Pereira, Ana

2017-02-27

The purpose of this study was to analyze secular trends in anthropometrics and physical fitness of Portuguese children. A group of 1819 students (881 boys and 938 girls) between 10 and 11 years old was assessed in their 5th and 6th scholar grade throughout a 20 years' time-frame. ANCOVA models were used to analyze variations in anthropometrics (height, weight and body mass index) and physical fitness (sit and reach, curl-up, horizontal jump and sprint time) across four quinquennials (1993 - 1998; 1998 - 2003; 2003 - 2008; 2008 - 2013). Secular trends showed the presence of heavier boys and girls with higher body mass index in the 5th and 6th grade throughout the last 20 years. There was also a presence of taller girls but just until the 3rd quinquennial. Both boys and girls were able to perform better on the core strength test and sprint time but become less flexible over the years. Mean jumping performance remained unchanged for both genders. The present study provides novel data on anthropometrics and physical fitness trends over the last two decades in young Portuguese children, consistent with the results reported in other developed countries. Evidence for the start of a positive secular trend in body mass index and in some physical fitness components over the last two decades among the Portuguese youth.

Ten-Year Secular Trends in Youth Violence: Results From the Philadelphia Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2003-2013.

PubMed

Pool, Andrew C; Patterson, Freda; Luna, Ingrid Y; Hohl, Bernadette; Bauer, Katherine W

2017-04-01

Youth violence reduction is a public health priority, yet few studies have examined secular trends in violence among urban youth, who may be particularly vulnerable to numerous forms of violence. This study examines 10-year secular trends in the prevalence of violence-related behaviors among Philadelphia high school students. Repeated cross-sectional data were analyzed from 5 waves of the Philadelphia Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) from 2003 to 2013. Sex-specific multivariate regression models were used to examine secular trends in multiple types of violence, accounting for age, race/ethnicity, and sampling strategy. In 2013, the most prevalent violent behavior was physical fighting among boys (38.4%) and girls (32.7%). Among girls, the prevalence of sexual assault and suicide attempts declined between 2003 and 2013 (β = -0.13, p = .04 and β = -0.14, p = .007, respectively). Among boys, significant declines in carrying a weapon (β = -0.31, p < .001), carrying a gun (β = -0.16, p = .01), and physical fighting (β = -0.35, p = .001) were observed. Whereas the prevalence of some forms of violence stabilized or declined among Philadelphia youth during 2003-2013 time span, involvement in violence-related behaviors remains common among this population. Continued surveillance and evidence-based violence reduction strategies are needed to address violence among urban youth. © 2017, American School Health Association.

Secular resonances between bodies on close orbits II: prograde and retrograde orbits for irregular satellites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Daohai; Christou, Apostolos A.

2017-09-01

In extending the analysis of the four secular resonances between close orbits in Li and Christou (Celest Mech Dyn Astron 125:133-160, 2016) (Paper I), we generalise the semianalytical model so that it applies to both prograde and retrograde orbits with a one-to-one map between the resonances in the two regimes. We propose the general form of the critical angle to be a linear combination of apsidal and nodal differences between the two orbits b_1 Δ π + b_2 Δ Ω, forming a collection of secular resonances in which the ones studied in Paper I are among the strongest. Test of the model in the orbital vicinity of massive satellites with physical and orbital parameters similar to those of the irregular satellites Himalia at Jupiter and Phoebe at Saturn shows that {>}20 and {>}40% of phase space is affected by these resonances, respectively. The survivability of the resonances is confirmed using numerical integration of the full Newtonian equations of motion. We observe that the lowest order resonances with b_1+|b_2|≤ 3 persist, while even higher-order resonances, up to b_1+|b_2|≥ 7, survive. Depending on the mass, between 10 and 60% of the integrated test particles are captured in these secular resonances, in agreement with the phase space analysis in the semianalytical model.

Arranged marriages, unlikely partners. How will their offspring look?

PubMed

Connors, E J

1995-05-01

In the new era of managed care, many religious healthcare providers are making "arranged marriages"--permanent partnerships with secular organizations. As they do so, the religious partners naturally ponder how best to ensure that their values permeate the new entity and thus prevail in later organizational "offspring." The organizations most likely to perpetuate their values are those with ethical corporate cultures and climates. These include religiously based healthcare providers, but such providers seem to lack confidence today in their ability to maintain culture and climate in newly formed partnerships. That may be fortunate because it prevents them from trying to impose their values on secular partners. Nevertheless, such values are often attractive to a prospective partner. A religious healthcare provider will need market leverage, as well as attractive values, to make a good "marriage." Even so, religious providers and secular investor-owned organizations are unlikely partners, because their motives and incentives differ radically. But religious providers can form solid relationships with secular, not-for-profit healthcare organizations if they take care to negotiate a binding commitment to maintain an ethical culture and climate. However, Catholic providers are at a disadvantage in such negotiations because Catholic religious congregations are unlikely to continue as owner-sponsors much beyond another decade. It is crucial that a stable source of influence develop to ensure a religious presence in the offspring of new partnerships.

Atlas of Secular Light Curves of Comets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferrin, Ignacio

2007-12-01

We have completed work on the secular light curves of 30 periodic and non-periodic comets. The objectives and approach of this project has been explained in Ferrin (Icarus, 178, 493-516, 2005). Each comet requires 2 plots. The time plot shows the reduced (to Δ = 1 AU) magnitude of the comet as a function of time, thus displaying the brightness history of the object. The log plot is a reflected double log plot. The reflection takes place at R=1 AU, to allow the determination of the absolute magnitude by extrapolation. 22 photometric parameters are measured from the plots, most of them new. The plots have been collected in a document that constitutes "The Atlas". We have defined a photometric age, P-AGE, that attempts to measure the age of a comet based on its activity. P-AGE has been scaled to human ages to help in its interpretation. We find that comets Hale-Bopp and 29P/SW 1, are baby comets (P-AGE < 3 comet years), while 107P, 162P and 169P are methuselah comets (P-AGE > 100 cy). The secular light curve of 9P/Tempel 1 exhibits sublimation due to H2O and due to CO. Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimento to be visited by the Rossetta spacecraft in 2014 exhibits a photometric anomaly. Comet 65P/Gunn exhibits a lag in maximum brightness of LAG = + 254 days after perihelion. We suggest that the pole is pointing to the sun at that time. The secular light curves will be presented and a preliminary interpretation will be advanced. The secular light curves present complexity beyond current understanding. The observations described in this work were carried out at the National Observatory of Venezuela (ONV), managed by the Center for Research in Astronomy (CIDA), for the Ministry of Science and Technology (MinCyT).

Clearing Residual Planetesimals by Sweeping Secular Resonances in Transitional Disks: A Lone-planet Scenario for the Wide Gaps in Debris Disks around Vega and Fomalhaut

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Xiaochen; Lin, Douglas N. C.; Kouwenhoven, M. B. N.; Mao, Shude; Zhang, Xiaojia

2017-11-01

Extended gaps in the debris disks of both Vega and Fomalhaut have been observed. These structures have been attributed to tidal perturbations by multiple super-Jupiter gas giant planets. Within the current observational limits, however, no such massive planets have been detected. Here we propose a less stringent “lone-planet” scenario to account for the observed structure with a single eccentric gas giant and suggest that clearing of these wide gaps is induced by its sweeping secular resonance. With a series of numerical simulations, we show that the gravitational potential of the natal disk induces the planet to precess. At the locations where its precession frequency matches the precession frequency the planet imposes on the residual planetesimals, their eccentricity is excited by its resonant perturbation. Due to the hydrodynamic drag by the residual disk gas, the planetesimals undergo orbital decay as their excited eccentricities are effectively damped. During the depletion of the disk gas, the planet’s secular resonance propagates inward and clears a wide gap over an extended region of the disk. Although some residual intermediate-size planetesimals may remain in the gap, their surface density is too low to either produce super-Earths or lead to sufficiently frequent disruptive collisions to generate any observable dusty signatures. The main advantage of this lone-planet sweeping-secular-resonance model over the previous multiple gas giant tidal truncation scenario is the relaxed requirement on the number of gas giants. The observationally inferred upper mass limit can also be satisfied provided the hypothetical planet has a significant eccentricity. A significant fraction of solar or more massive stars bear gas giant planets with significant eccentricities. If these planets acquired their present-day kinematic properties prior to the depletion of their natal disks, their sweeping secular resonance would effectively impede the retention of neighboring planets and planetesimals over a wide range of orbital semimajor axes.

Response of trapped particles to a collapsing dipole moment.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heckman, H. H.; Lindstrom, P. J.

1972-01-01

Particle motion in the secularly varying geomagnetic field is investigated in terms of a dipolar magnetic field with decreasing magnetic moment M. For dM/dt equal to the rate of decay of the earth's dipole component, we find there is drift in B-L space, resulting in an inward drift of particles accompanied with increased energy and unidirectional intensity. Secular variation of the geomagnetic field appears to be a dominant mechanism for radial drift in the inner radiation belt.

A Numerical Method for Predicting Rayleigh Surface Wave Velocity in Anisotropic Crystals (Postprint)

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-09-05

generalized version of the equations are very difficult to derive, even in symbolic math languages such as Mathematica. As a result, the equations are...formalism, Math . Mech. Solids 9 (1) (2004) 5–15. [8] M. Destrade, The explicit secular equation for surface acoustic waves in monoclinic elastic crystals...Q. J. Mech. Appl. Math . 55 (2) (2002) 297–311. [10] D. Taylor, Surface waves in anisotropic media: the secular equation and its numerical solution

The joint US/UK 1990 epoch world magnetic model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Quinn, John M.; Coleman, Rachel J.; Peck, Michael R.; Lauber, Stephen E.

1991-01-01

A detailed summary of the data used, analyses performed, modeling techniques employed, and results obtained in the course of the 1990 Epoch World Magnetic Modeling effort are given. Also, use and limitations of the GEOMAG algorithm are presented. Charts and tables related to the 1990 World Magnetic Model (WMM-90) for the Earth's main field and secular variation in Mercator and polar stereographic projections are presented along with useful tables of several magnetic field components and their secular variation on a 5-degree worldwide grid.

Relative Orbit Elements for Satellites in Elliptical Orbits

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-03-01

studied subject; many important contributions to the study were made before and during the dawn of the Space Age . In fact, the most celebrated...accomplishments of the Space Age would not have been possible without a good understanding of relative satellite motion. The Apollo astronauts could not... secular terms (containing t and 2t ) in the y-direction and mixed- secular terms (of the form  1 2 3sint t   ) in all three directions. In 1999

Prediction of secular acceleration of axial rotation of Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barkin, Yu. V.

2009-04-01

Secular motion of the Earth pole and non-tidal acceleration of its diurnal rotation have obtained rather precise explanation with the help of simple one-point model of the directed transport of fluid masses from a southern hemisphere in northern hemisphere with the general direction, given by geocentric axis OP directed to pole P with coordinates 700N, 10403 E[1]. The another generalized model represents a system of two material points with masses m2 and m1, located on surface of the Earth at poles of geocentric axis OP. Masses are linearly changed in the time with velocities [2]: ṁ2 = 0.179 × 1015kg/yrand ṁ1 = 0.043 × 1015kg/yr. A reduction of fluid masses of the appropriate thin spherical layer of the Earth correspond to secular increasing of masses of model points. The specified model has allowed to explain values of fundamental geodynamic parameters observably and determined during decades: a direction and velocity of drift of a pole of the Earth; value of non-tidal acceleration of axial rotation; to explain a secular variations of coefficients of the second, third, fourth, sixth and eighth zonal harmonics of a geopotential; coefficients of secular changes of a surface of ocean for the last approximately 150 years; a direction of secular drift of a geocenter and other planetary phenomena [3]. The role of the angular momentum of redistributed masses of the Earth in rotation of the Earth appeared not essential at the given stage of researches. On the essence the offered model has semi-empirical character as it bases on values of velocities of change of masses of points and the given position of axis OP. For their determination and estimations the part of the observant data was used, and other parameters were designed under analytical formulas. The obtained results have precisely confirmed competency and affectivity of geodynamic model [4] about existence of secular drift of a liquid core along radial direction OP with velocity about 2.6 cm/yr in the northern direction to Taimyr peninsula. Thus the gravitational attraction of superfluous mass of the core (19 % from the Earth mass) causes secular asymmetric inversion tide [2] of fluids which effectively manages to be modeled by two points with variable masses. In the given work the attempt to construct a similar model of the directed secular redistribution of fluid masses of Mars from a southern hemisphere in northern is undertaken with the purpose of an explanation of observably tendencies in redistribution of masses between hemispheres and with the purpose of a prediction of the new phenomena in its rotary motion. The hypothetical assumption is made, that secular redistribution of fluid masses from a southern hemisphere in northern hemisphere of Mars mainly is determined by areocentric axis OP directed to the pole P with coordinates 570N, 820 E (as is known in this direction the centre of mass of Mars relatively the centre of a figure on 2.8 km is displaced). Material points with masses m2 and m1 settle down at poles of geocentric axis OP on a surface of Mars, and their masses change linearly in the time with velocities [5]: ṁ2 = 0.402 × 1015kg/yr and ṁ1 = 0.257 × 1015kg/yr. The given modeling characteristics correspond to prospective secular variations of coefficients of the second and third zonal harmonics of gravitational potential of Mars: J˙2= - 57.0 × 10-11 1/yr and ˙J3 = -4.94 × 10-11 1/yr, more less agreed for today with the data of observations (Dehant, private communication, 2008) [6]. Let's emphasize, that the discussed phenomena of asymmetry of hemispheres, intensity of inversion processes, and bipolarity and inversion of all structures of Mars much more expressive, than at the Earth. Therefore we in the right to expect the greater efficiency in application of geodynamic model and more significant secular effects in rotation of Mars in comparison with the Earth. The constructed model has allowed to estimate non-tidal acceleration of axial rotation which as it would be possible to expect, essentially surpasses the similar characteristic of rotation of the Earth. The obtained result means, that angular velocity of Mars in present period increases on the law r = (0.708821808000+ 0.000000001038×t) × 10-4 1/s, here t - in years. It is possible assume that the estimation of acceleration can be obtained directly on the basis of the data of observations in the nearest years. Velocity of secular change of duration of day for Mars (LOD) thus can make significant value about -0.0903 ms/yr, that considerably surpasses similar value for non-tidal acceleration of the Earth (-0.006 ms/yr). The ratio of positive acceleration of the Earth rotation ṙ to its angular velocity ? makes ṙ•? = (6.9± 1.7) × 10-11 1/yr[7]. In case of Mars the estimation of acceleration was carried out under the formula [8]: ṙ/ ? = -Ċ• C -á¹ °• G ?-Ċ• C = 103.8 × 10-11 1/yr. We here have neglected by an influence of secular change of the axial angular momentum of fluid masses (atmospheric and underground) of Marsá¹ °. As shown in other my report on EGU GA 2009 in case of the Earth the total angular momentum of fluids really is small and within the limits of mistakes can be accepted equal to zero. In the case of Mars we the same as and in case of the Earth, expect of secular change of the angular momentum of Mars and change of global superrotation of its atmosphere which, at least, in part, will be compensated by the angular momentum of fluids. Thus, expected non-tidal acceleration of axial rotation of Mars can be at 10-15 times more those, but observably by astronomical methods, for the Earth. Certainly, the estimations obtained here are preliminary and the phenomena discussed here require more detailed studying with using of new data of precision observations. First of all it is important to obtain the specified values of secular variations ˙ J2 and ˙ J3. In case of the Earth the tidal deceleration of daily rotation of the Earth essentially surpasses non-tidal acceleration (35 %) which as shown the author is caused by the directed redistribution of fluid masses of the Earth, in turn caused by polar drift of the centre of mass of the liquid core of the Earth to the north [1]. In case of Mars the opposite picture is expected. It is quite possible, as show the executed estimations, that tidal deceleration of axial rotation of Mars much less than its positive acceleration caused by global dynamics of shells (the core and mantle). And it means, that as against the Earth in axial rotation of Mars in the present epoch an acceleration, instead of deceleration of rotation should be observed. References [1] Barkin Yu.V. (2001) Explanation and prediction of the secular variations of the Earth rotation, geopotential, force of gravity and geocenter drift. Proceedings of International Conference «AstroKazan-2001». Astronomy and geodesy in new millennium (24-29 September 2001), Kazan State University: Publisher «DAS», pp. 73-79. [2] Barkin Yu.V. (2007) To an explanation of non-tidal acceleration of the Earth diurnal rotation and secular trend of its pole. Proceedings of IUGG XXIV General Assembly, Perugia, Italy 2007: Earth: Our Changing Planet (Perugia, Italy, July 2-13, 2007), (G) - IAG, GS003, p. 3799. www. iugg2007perugia.it. [3] Barkin Yu.V. (2007) Celestial geodynamics and solution of the fundamental problems of geodesy, gravimetry and geophysics. Proceedings of IUGG XXIV General Assembly, Perugia, Italy 2007: Earth: Our Changing Planet (Perugia, Italy, July 2-13, 2007), (S) - IASPEI, JSS011, p. 2149. www. iugg2007perugia.it. [4] Barkin Yu.V. (2002) Explanation of endogenous activity of planets and satellites and its cyclicity. Izvestia cekzii nauk o Zemle. Rus. Acad. of Nat. Sciences, Issue 9, December 2002, M.: VINITI, pp. 45-97. In Russian.

Spatial patterns and secular trends in human leishmaniasis incidence in Morocco between 2003 and 2013.

PubMed

Sadeq, Mina

2016-05-11

Few studies on spatial patterns or secular trends in human leishmanias have been conducted in Morocco. This study aimed to examine spatial patterns and trends associated with the human leishmaniasis incidence rate (HLIR) at the province/prefecture level between 2003 and 2013 in Morocco. Only the available published country data on the HLIR between 2003 and 2013, from the open access files of the Ministry of Health, were used. Secular trends were examined using Kendall's rank correlation. An exploratory spatial data analysis was also conducted to examine the spatial autocorrelation (Global Moran's I and local indicator of spatial association [LISA]), and spatial diffusion at the province/prefecture level. The influence of various covariates (poverty rate, vulnerability rate, population density, and urbanization) on the HLIR was tested via spatial regression (ordinary least squares regression). At the country level, no secular variation was observed. Poisson annual incidence rate estimates were 13 per 100 000 population (95 % CI = 12.9-13.1) for cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) and 0.4 per 100 000 population (95 % CI = 0.4-0.5) for visceral leishmaniasis (VL). The available data on HLIR were based on combined CL and VL cases, however, as the CL cases totally outnumbered the VL ones, HLIR may be considered as CL incidence rate. At the provincial level, a secular increase in the incidence rate was observed in Al Hoceima (P = 0.008), Taounate (P = 0.04), Larache (P = 0.002), Tétouan (P = 0.0003), Khenifra (P = 0.008), Meknes (P = 0.03), and El Kelaa (P = 0.0007), whereas a secular decrease was observed only in the Chichaoua province (P = 0.006). Even though increased or decreased rate was evident in these provinces, none of them showed clustering of leishmaniasis incidence. Significant spatial clusters of high leishmaniasis incidence were located in the northeastern part of Morocco, while spatial clusters of low leishmaniasis incidence were seen in some northwestern and southern parts of Morocco; there was spatial randomness in the remaining parts of the country. Significant clustering was seen from 2005 to 2013, during which time the Errachidia province was a permanent 'hot spot'. Global Moran's I increased from 0.2844 (P = 0.006) in 2005 to 0.5886 (P = 0.001) in 2011, and decreased to 0.2491 (P = 0.004) in 2013. It was found that only poverty had an effect on the HLIR (P = 0.0003), contributing only 23 % to this (Adjusted R-squared = 0.226). Localities showing either secular increase in human leishmaniasis or significant clustering have been identified, which may guide decision-making as to where to appropriately allocate funding and implement control measures. Researchers are also urged to undertake further studies focusing on these localities.

Secularization versus religious revival in Eastern Europe: Church institutional resilience, state repression and divergent paths.

PubMed

Northmore-Ball, Ksenia; Evans, Geoffrey

2016-05-01

Despite continuing for over two decades, the debate about the nature of the trends in religiosity in post-Communist Eastern Europe remains unresolved: some arguing that these countries are undergoing the same process of secularization as the West, while others insist that the entire region is experiencing a religious revival. Using national sample surveys from the early 1990s to 2007 to examine the change in demographic predictors of religiosity, we show that Catholic and Orthodox countries are experiencing different trends, the first group displaying evidence of secularization and the second of revival, and that these two different trends are likely to derive from the legacies of state repression and the differing abilities of the churches to resist such repression. We argue that the current literature has thus taken a mistakenly general approach, and that the post-Communist region consists of at least two distinct groups of societies with different trends in religiosity. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

The women preachers of the secular state: the politics of preaching at the intersection of gender, ethnicity and sovereignty in Turkey.

PubMed

Tütüncü, Fatma

2010-01-01

This article analyzes the politics of preaching in Turkey in the last decade by focusing on the appointment of women as preachers and vice-muftis by the Turkish Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), a state institution established for the protection of secular foundations through religious service. It asks what happens when women wearing headscarves become civil servants and give religious guidance in a secular state, which prohibits headscarves in public offices and schools. It shows that the context, the use and the interlocutors of preaching make ordinary religious activity a complicated political practice that interacts with gender, ethnicity and state sovereignty. It argues that exceptional integration of headscarved women into public offices would seem to be an achievement given the long lasting political activism of women over the headscarf, but in the final analysis it serves the sovereign power of the state, which aims to absorb both Islamist and Kurdish challenges by mobilizing women preachers.

Secular perihelion advances of the inner planets and asteroid Icarus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilhelm, Klaus; Dwivedi, Bhola N.

2014-08-01

A small effect expected from a recently proposed gravitational impact model (Wilhelm et al., 2013) is used to explain the remaining secular perihelion advance rates of the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, and the asteroid (1566) Icarus-after taking into account the disturbances related to Newton’s Theory of Gravity. Such a rate was discovered by Le Verrier (1859) for Mercury and calculated by Einstein (1915, 1916) in the framework of his General Theory of Relativity (GTR). Accurate observations are now available for the inner Solar System objects with different orbital parameters. This is important, because it allowed us to demonstrate that the quantitative amount of the deviation from an 1/r potential is-under certain conditions-only dependent on the specific mass distribution of the Sun and not on the characteristics of the orbiting objects and their orbits. A displacement of the effective gravitational from the geometric centre of the Sun by about 4400 m towards each object is consistent with the observations and explains the secular perihelion advance rates.

Orbital period study of the Algol-type eclipsing binary system TW Draconis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qian, S. B.; Boonrucksar, S.

2002-10-01

The century-long times of light minimum of the Algol-type eclipsing binary star, TW Dra (BD +64°1077, Sp A5V+K2III), are investigated by considering a new pattern of period change. Two sudden period increases and two successive period decreases are discovered to superimpose on a rapid secular increase (d P/d t=+4.43×10 -6 days/year). The secular increase may be caused by a dynamical mass transfer from the secondary to the primary component (d m/d t=6.81×10 -7 M ⊙/year) that is in agreement with the semi-detached configuration of the system and with the existence of a hot spot and a gaseous stream in the binary system. The irregular period jumps superimposed on the secular increase can be explained by the structure variation of the K2-type giant via instabilities of the outer convective layer or via magnetic activity cycles.

The Effect of CO2 Ice Cap Sublimation on Mars Atmosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Batterson, Courtney

2016-01-01

Sublimation of the polar CO2 ice caps on Mars is an ongoing phenomenon that may be contributing to secular climate change on Mars. The transfer of CO2 between the surface and atmosphere via sublimation and deposition may alter atmospheric mass such that net atmospheric mass is increasing despite seasonal variations in CO2 transfer. My study builds on previous studies by Kahre and Haberle that analyze and compare data from the Phoenix and Viking Landers 1 and 2 to determine whether secular climate change is happening on Mars. In this project, I use two years worth of temperature, pressure, and elevation data from the MSL Curiosity rover to create a program that allows for successful comparison of Curiosity pressure data to Viking Lander pressure data so a conclusion can be drawn regarding whether CO2 ice cap sublimation is causing a net increase in atmospheric mass and is thus contributing to secular climate change on Mars.

Evaluation of the 1985-1990 IGRF secular variation candidates

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cain, J.C.; Kluth, C.

1987-01-01

The IGRF secular variation model for 1985-1990 was adopted by the International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy at its Prague meeting in August 1985 as an average of the three candidate models submitted to the committee. We compared the three models at epoch 1985.0 against each other and against a new model based on observatory data available as of July 1, 1985. These comparisons showed that one of the three candidate models disagreed more with the other two and our model, especially in the eastern Pacific. None of the candidate models was seen to respond to a change in the secular variation of the vertical component that appears to have taken place most strongly in the western Pacific area since 1982. The lack of satellite data was seen to be a significant handicap towards prediction of the field change over most of the Earth's surface, especially the southern oceans. Maximum errors of any model are estimated to be of the order of 80 nT a-1. ?? 1987.

Statistical nature of infrared dynamics on de Sitter background

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tokuda, Junsei; Tanaka, Takahiro

2018-02-01

In this study, we formulate a systematic way of deriving an effective equation of motion(EoM) for long wavelength modes of a massless scalar field with a general potential V(phi) on de Sitter background, and investigate whether or not the effective EoM can be described as a classical stochastic process. Our formulation gives an extension of the usual stochastic formalism to including sub-leading secular growth coming from the nonlinearity of short wavelength modes. Applying our formalism to λ phi4 theory, we explicitly derive an effective EoM which correctly recovers the next-to-leading secularly growing part at a late time, and show that this effective EoM can be seen as a classical stochastic process. Our extended stochastic formalism can describe all secularly growing terms which appear in all correlation functions with a specific operator ordering. The restriction of the operator ordering will not be a big drawback because the commutator of a light scalar field becomes negligible at large scales owing to the squeezing.

Intergenerational transmission of religious beliefs and practices and the reduction of adolescent delinquency in urban Thailand.

PubMed

Chamratrithirong, Aphichat; Miller, Brenda A; Byrnes, Hilary F; Rhucharoenpornpanich, Orratai; Cupp, Pamela K; Rosati, Michael J; Fongkaew, Warunee; Atwood, Katharine A; Todd, Michael

2013-02-01

This study examines the intergenerational transmission of family religion as measured by parent's and adolescent's beliefs and practices in Buddhism, and its relation to delinquent behaviors among early adolescents in Thailand. The data set is from the Thai Family Matters Project 2007, a representative sample of 420 pairs of parents and teens in Bangkok. A structural equation model is employed for the analysis. The intergenerational transmission and the direct and indirect association between parents' and adolescents' beliefs and practices in Buddhism and adolescents' minor and serious delinquent behaviors are revealed to be significant, controlling for secular parental monitoring. Spirituality within the family can play an important role in preventing delinquency among early adolescents. Policies in the areas related to family empowerment and delinquency prevention may need to consider integrating both secular and non-secular program inputs in their implementation design. Copyright © 2012 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mental Health Treatment Involvement and Religious Coping among African American, Hispanic, and White Veterans of the Wars of Iraq and Afghanistan

PubMed Central

Greenawalt, David S.; Tsan, Jack Y.; Kimbrel, Nathan A.; Meyer, Eric C.; Kruse, Marc I.; Tharp, David F.; Gulliver, Suzy Bird; Morissette, Sandra B.

2011-01-01

Although racial/ethnic differences have been found in the use of mental health services for depression in the general population, research among Veterans has produced mixed results. This study examined racial/ethnic differences in the use of mental health services among 148 Operation Enduring/Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) Veterans with high levels of depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and evaluated whether religious coping affected service use. No differences between African American, Hispanic, and Non-Hispanic white Veterans were found in use of secular mental health services or religious counseling. Women Veterans were more likely than men to seek secular treatment. After controlling for PTSD symptoms, depression symptom level was a significant predictor of psychotherapy attendance but not medication treatment. African American Veterans reported higher levels of religious coping than whites. Religious coping was associated with participation in religious counseling, but not secular mental health services. PMID:21785719

The steady part of the secular variation of the Earth's magnetic field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bloxham, Jeremy

1992-01-01

The secular variation of the Earth's magnetic field results from the effects of magnetic induction in the fluid outer core and from the effects of magnetic diffusion in the core and the mantle. Adequate observations to map the magnetic field at the core-mantle boundary extend back over three centuries, providing a model of the secular variation at the core-mantle boundary. Here we consider how best to analyze this time-dependent part of the field. To calculate steady core flow over long time periods, we introduce an adaptation of our earlier method of calculating the flow in order to achieve greater numerical stability. We perform this procedure for the periods 1840-1990 and 1690-1840 and find that well over 90 percent of the variance of the time-dependent field can be explained by simple steady core flow. The core flows obtained for the two intervals are broadly similar to each other and to flows determined over much shorter recent intervals.

When was secularization? Dating the decline of the British churches and locating its cause.

PubMed

Bruce, Steve; Glendinning, Tony

2010-03-01

Dating the decline of Christianity in Britain has a vital bearing on its explanation. Recent work by social historians has challenged the sociological view that secularization is due to long-term diffuse social processes by asserting that the churches remained stable and popular until the late 1950s and that the causes of decline lie in the social and cultural changes associated with the 1960s. We challenge this interpretation of the evidence. We also note that much of the decline of the churches is explained not by adult defection but by a failure to keep children in the faith. Given the importance of parental homogamy for the successful transmission of religious identity, the causes of decline in one generation may well lie in the experiences of the previous generation. We focus on the disruptive effects of the 1939-45 war on family formation and use survey data to argue for a staged model of decline that is compatible with the conventional gradual view of secularization.

The use of MAGSAT data to determine secular variation.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cain, J.C.; Frayser, J.; Muth, L.; Schmitz, D.

1983-01-01

A combined spatial and secular variation model of the geomagnetic field, labeled M061581, is derived from a selection of MAGSAT data. Secular variation (SV) data computed from linear fits to midnight hourly values from 19 magnetic observatories were also included in the analysis but were seen to have little effect on the model. The SV patterns from this new model are compared with those from the 1980 IGRF and with those for 1970 computed by the DGRF and with the 1960 patterns computed using the GSFC(12/66) model. Most of the features of the M061581 are identical in location and level with those of the 1980 IGRF. Together they confirm that the reversals in sign of field change seen over Asia and North America between 1965 and 1975 are reverting to the pre-1965 states. The M061581 model gives -32 nT/yr for the dipole decay rate, larger than the 70% increase already reported since 1965. -Authors

Parental age and offspring mortality: Negative effects of reproductive ageing may be counterbalanced by secular increases in longevity.

PubMed

Barclay, Kieron; Myrskylä, Mikko

2018-07-01

As parental ages at birth continue to rise, concerns about the effects of fertility postponement on offspring are increasing. Due to reproductive ageing, advanced parental ages have been associated with negative health outcomes for offspring, including decreased longevity. The literature, however, has neglected to examine the potential benefits of being born at a later date. Secular declines in mortality mean that later birth cohorts are living longer. We analyse mortality over ages 30-74 among 1.9 million Swedish men and women born 1938-60, and use a sibling comparison design that accounts for all time-invariant factors shared by the siblings. When incorporating cohort improvements in mortality, we find that those born to older mothers do not suffer any significant mortality disadvantage, and that those born to older fathers have lower mortality. These findings are likely to be explained by secular declines in mortality counterbalancing the negative effects of reproductive ageing.

Antarctic Analog for Dilational Bands on Europa

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hurford, T. A.; Brunt, K. M.

2014-01-01

Europa's surface shows signs of extension, which is revealed as lithospheric dilation expressed along ridges, dilational bands and ridged bands. Ridges, the most common tectonic feature on Europa, comprise a central crack flanked by two raised banks a few hundred meters high on each side. Together these three classes may represent a continuum of formation. In Tufts' Dilational Model ridge formation is dominated by daily tidal cycling of a crack, which can be superimposed with regional secular dilation. The two sources of dilation can combine to form the various band morphologies observed. New GPS data along a rift on the Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica is a suitable Earth analog to test the framework of Tufts' Dilational Model. As predicted by Tufts' Dilational Model, tensile failures in the Ross Ice Shelf exhibit secular dilation, upon which a tidal signal can be seen. From this analog we conclude that Tufts' Dilational Model for Europan ridges and bands may be credible and that the secular dilation is most likely from a regional source and not tidally driven.

The relation between sexual behavior and religiosity subtypes: a test of the secularization hypothesis.

PubMed

Farmer, Melissa A; Trapnell, Paul D; Meston, Cindy M

2009-10-01

Previous literature on religion and sexual behavior has focused on narrow definitions of religiosity, including religious affiliation, religious participation, or forms of religiousness (e.g., intrinsic religiosity). Trends toward more permissive premarital sexual activity in the North American Christian-Judeo religion support the secularization hypothesis of religion, which posits an increasing gap between religious doctrine and behavior. However, the recent rise of fundamentalist and new age religious movements calls for a reexamination of the current link between religion and sexual behavior. The use of dual definitions of religiosity, including religious affiliation and dimensional subtypes, may further characterize this link. The present cross-sectional study evaluated patterns of sexual behavior in a young adult sample (N = 1302, M age = 18.77 years) in the context of the secularization hypothesis using religious affiliation and a liberal-conservative continuum of religious subtypes: paranormal belief, spirituality, intrinsic religiosity, and fundamentalism. Results indicated few affiliation differences in sexual behavior in men or women. Sexual behaviors were statistically predicted by spirituality, fundamentalism, and paranormal belief, and the endorsement of fundamentalism in particular was correlated with lower levels of female sexual behavior. The secularization hypothesis was supported by consistent levels of sexual activity across affiliations and is contradicted by the differential impact of religiosity subtypes on sexual behavior. Findings suggested that the use of religious subtypes to evaluate religious differences, rather than solely affiliation, may yield useful insights into the link between religion and sexual behavior.

Post-Newtonian templates for binary black-hole inspirals: the effect of the horizon fluxes and the secular change in the black-hole masses and spins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Isoyama, Soichiro; Nakano, Hiroyuki

2018-01-01

Black holes (BHs) in an inspiraling compact binary system absorb the gravitational-wave (GW) energy and angular-momentum fluxes across their event horizons and this leads to the secular change in their masses and spins during the inspiral phase. The goal of this paper is to present ready-to-use, 3.5 post-Newtonian (PN) template families for spinning, non-precessing, binary BH inspirals in quasicircular orbits, including the 2.5 PN and 3.5 PN horizon-flux contributions as well as the correction due to the secular change in the BH masses and spins through 3.5 PN order, respectively, in phase. We show that, for binary BHs observable by Advanced LIGO with high mass ratios (larger than  ∼10) and large aligned-spins (larger than  ∼ 0.7 ), the mismatch between the frequency-domain template with and without the horizon-flux contribution is typically above the 3% mark. For (supermassive) binary BHs observed by LISA, even a moderate mass-ratios and spins can produce a similar level of the mismatch. Meanwhile, the mismatch due to the secular time variations of the BH masses and spins is well below the 1% mark in both cases, hence this is truly negligible. We also point out that neglecting the cubic-in-spin, point-particle phase term at 3.5 PN order would deteriorate the effect of BH absorption in the template.

Secular change of LOD caused by core evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Denis, C.; Rybicki, K. R.; Varga, P.

2003-04-01

Fossils and tidal deposits suggest that, on the average, the Earth's despinning rate had been five times less in the Proterozoic than in the Phanerozoic. This difference is probably due, for the major part, to the existence of a Proterozoic supercontinent. Nevertheless, core formation and core evolution should have compensated to some extent the effect of tidal friction, by diminishing the Earth's inertia moment. We have investigated quantitatively this contribution of the evolving core to the change of LOD. For the present epoch, we find that the solidification of the inner core causes a relative secular decrease of LOD of approximately 3 μs per century, whereas the macrodiffusion of iron oxides and sulfides from the D" into the outer core across the CMB (inasfar as Majewski's theory holds) leads to a relative secular decrease of LOD by about 15 μs per century. On the other hand, the theory of slow core formation developped by Runcorn in the early 1960s as a by-product of his theory of mantle-wide convection, leads to a relative secular decrease of LOD during most of the Proterozoic of about 0.25 ms per century. Although core formation is now widely assumed to have been a thermal run-away process that occurred shortly after the Earth itself had formed, Runcorn's theory of the growing core would nicely explain the observed palaeo-LOD curve. In any case, formation of the core implies, all in all, a relative decrease of LOD of typically 3 hours.

Pupil size in Jewish theological seminary students.

PubMed

Shemesh, G; Kesler, A; Lazar, M; Rothkoff, L

2004-01-01

To investigate the authors' clinical impression that pupil size among myopic Jewish theological seminary students is different from pupil size of similar secular subjects. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 28 male Jewish theological seminary students and 28 secular students or workers who were matched for age and refraction. All participants were consecutively enrolled. Scotopic and photopic pupil size was measured by means of a Colvard pupillometer. Comparisons of various parameters between the groups were performed using the two-sample t-test, Fisher exact test, a paired-sample t-test, a two-way analysis of variance, and Pearson correlation coefficients as appropriate. The two groups were statistically matched for age, refraction, and visual acuity. The seminary students were undercorrected by an average of 2.35 diopters (D), while the secular subjects were undercorrected by only 0.65 D (p<0.01). The average pupil size was larger in the religious group under both scotopic and photopic luminance. This difference was maintained when the two groups were compared according to iris color under both conditions, reaching a level of statistical significance (p<0.0001). There was a significant difference in photopic pupil size between dark and light irises (p=0.049), but this difference was not maintained under scotopic conditions. The average pupil size of young ultraorthodox seminary students was significantly larger than that of matched secular subjects. Whether this is the result of intensive close-up work or of apparently characteristic undercorrection of the myopia is undetermined.

On the univocity of rationality: a response to Nigel Biggar's 'Why religion deserves a place in secular medicine'.

PubMed

Symons, Xavier

2015-11-01

Nigel Biggar (2015) argues that religion deserves a place in secular medicine. Biggar suggests we abandon the standard rationalistic conception of the secular realm and see it rather as "a forum for the negotiation of rival reasonings". Religious reasoning is one among a number of ways of thinking that must vie for acceptance. Medical ethics, says Biggar, is characterised by "spiritual and moral mixture and ambiguity". We acknowledge this uncertainty by recognising rival viewpoints and agreeing to provisional compromises.In this response, I object to Biggar's characterisation of medical ethics as "morally ambiguous" and "provisional". I argue that Biggar has failed to provide adequate support for his conception of ethics as a "forum for negotiation and compromise". I criticise Biggar's attempt to 'pluralise' rationality, and assert that if religion is to play a role in secular medicine, it must be ready to defend itself against a universal standard of reason. In the second section of my response, I argue that 'theistic natural law' gives us the resources to defend using reason alone ostensibly faith-based positions in healthcare ethics. In doing so, we retain a univocal conception of rationality, while at the same time leaving space for 'theism' in healthcare ethics. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Religion and survival in a secular region. A twenty year follow-up of 734 Danish adults born in 1914.

PubMed

la Cour, Peter; Avlund, Kirsten; Schultz-Larsen, Kirsten

2006-01-01

The aim of the study was to analyse associations of religiosity and mortality in a secular region. The sample consisted of 734 Danish, community dwelling elderly persons, living in a secular culture, and all aged 70 when primary data were collected. Secondary data consisted of a 20 year follow-up on vital status or exact age of death. The study was designed to be highly comparable to studies conducted in more religious environments in order to compare results. Three variables of religion were investigated in relation to survival: importance of affiliation, church attendance and listening to religious media. Relative hazards (RH) of dying were controlled in models including gender, education, medical and mental health, social relations, help given and received, and health behaviour. The results showed significant and positive associations between claiming religious affiliation important and survival (relative hazard of dying=RH .70; 95% CI .58-.85) and church attendance and survival (RH .73; 95% CI .64-.87). Results decreased and only stayed significant regarding church attendance when controlled for covariates. Nearly all significant effects were seen in women, but not in men. The effect size of the full sample is less than in more religious environments in United States samples. Although the positive overall RHs are comparable to those of other studies, the mediating variables and pathways of effects seem dissimilar in this sample from a secular environment. Receiving and especially giving help to others are suggested as variables of explanatory value.

Annual, Seasonal, and Secular Changes in Time-Variable Gravity from GRACE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lemoine, F. G.; Luthcke, S. B.; Klosko, S. M.; Rowlands, D. D.; Chinn, D. S.; McCarthy, J. J.; Ray, R. D.; Boy, J.

2007-12-01

The NASA/DLR GRACE mission, launched in 2002, has now operated for more than five years, producing monthly and ten-day snapshots of the variations of the gravity field of the Earth. The available solutions, either from spherical harmonics or from mascons, allow us new insights into the variations of surface gravity on the Earth at annual, inter-annual, and secular time scales. Our baseline time series, based on GGM02C, NCEP Atmospheric Gravity with IB, and GOT00 tides now is extended to July 2007, spanning four+ years, and we analyze both mascon and spherical harmonic solutions from this time series with respect to global hydrology variations. Our 4degx4deg mascon solutions are extended to cover all continental regions of the globe. Comparisons with hydrology (land-surface) models can offer insights into how these models might be improved. We compare our baseline time series, with new time series that include an updated Goddard Ocean Tide (GOT) model, ECMWF- 3hr atmosphere de-aliasing data, and the MOG-2D ocean dealiasing product. Finally, we intercompare the spherical harmonic solutions at low degree from GRACE from the various product centers (e.g., GFZ, CSR, GRGS), and look for secular signals in both the GSFC mascon and spherical harmonic solutions, taking care to compare the results for secular gravity field change with independent solutions developed over 25 years of independent tracking to geodetic satellites by Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) and DORIS.

Geomagnetic Secular Variation Prediction with Thermal Heterogeneous Boundary Conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuang, W.; Tangborn, A.; Jiang, W.

2011-12-01

It has long been conjectured that thermal heterogeneity at the core-mantle boundary (CMB) affects the geodynamo substantially. The observed two pairs of steady and strong magnetic flux lobes near the Polar Regions and the low secular variation in the Pacific over the past 400 years (and perhaps longer) are likely the consequences of this CMB thermal heterogeneity. There are several studies on the impact of the thermal heterogeneity with numerical geodynamo simulations. However, direct correlation between the numerical results and the observations is found very difficult, except qualitative comparisons of certain features in the radial component of the magnetic field at the CMB. This makes it difficult to assess accurately the impact of thermal heterogeneity on the geodynamo and the geomagnetic secular variation. We revisit this problem with our MoSST_DAS system in which geomagnetic data are assimilated with our geodynamo model to predict geomagnetic secular variations. In this study, we implement a heterogeneous heat flux across the CMB that is chosen based on the seismic tomography of the lowermost mantle. The amplitude of the heat flux (relative to the mean heat flux across the CMB) varies in the simulation. With these assimilation studies, we will examine the influences of the heterogeneity on the forecast accuracies, e.g. the accuracies as functions of the heterogeneity amplitude. With these, we could be able to assess the model errors to the true core state, and thus the thermal heterogeneity in geodynamo modeling.

Physical fitness of children and adolescents in the United States: status and secular change.

PubMed

Malina, Robert M

2007-01-01

The physical fitness of school-age children in the United States is considered from two perspectives--status and secular change. This chapter principally examines health-related fitness, including the BMI, though performance-related fitness is briefly considered. Concepts of reference data and standards and factors that may influence secular change are initially discussed. National data on the physical fitness status of school children in the continental United States are limited to the 1980s. Ethnic variation in physical fitness is not considered except for the prevalence of overweight and obesity. More recent physical fitness data, including examination of ethnic variation, are based on several statewide and more local surveys. Although results vary by test, the majority of American school children meet or exceed criterion-referenced standards, although sex differences are not consistent. Poor morphological fitness manifest in obesity is an exception. The prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased since the early 1980s. Secular data for specific fitness items are less extensive. Regression analyses suggest a recent decline in maximal aerobic power in girls, but fairly stable levels between the 1930s and today in boys. However, the highest values for boys occur in the 1960s and 1970s and more recent values are somewhat lower. The general trend may be consistent with the decline since the 1980s in aerobic performance assessed with the 20 m shuttle run. These trends highlight the need for updated national physical fitness data for American youth.

Understanding religious behavior.

PubMed

Levin, S

1979-01-01

The attached (to mother) fetus-infant finds his religious expression in Buddhism. The attached (to group) juvenile finds his religious expression in Judaism and other tribalisms. The attached (to spouse) adult finds his religious expression in agnosticism and secularism. Attached phases are placid and of progressively decreasing emotional intensity. The three detaching phases are hurtful and hence soteriological, and are also of progressively decreasing emotional intensity. The toddler-young child finds his religious expression in Christianity, the adolescent in atheism and/or Marxism, and the aged, sick or dying plucks at any religious or secular aid.

PUMPING THE ECCENTRICITY OF EXOPLANETS BY TIDAL EFFECT

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Correia, Alexandre C. M.; Boue, Gwenaeel; Laskar, Jacques, E-mail: correia@ua.pt

2012-01-10

Planets close to their host stars are believed to undergo significant tidal interactions, leading to a progressive damping of the orbital eccentricity. Here we show that when the orbit of the planet is excited by an outer companion, tidal effects combined with gravitational interactions may give rise to a secular increasing drift on the eccentricity. As long as this secular drift counterbalances the damping effect, the eccentricity can increase to high values. This mechanism may explain why some of the moderate close-in exoplanets are observed with substantial eccentricity values.

Secular cooling of Earth as a source of intraplate stress

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Solomon, Sean C.

1987-01-01

The once popular idea that changes in planetary volume play an important role in terrestrial orogeny and tectonics was generally discarded with the acceptance of plate tectonics. It is nonetheless likely that the Earth has been steadily cooling over the past 3-4 billion years, and the global contraction that accompanied such cooling would have led to a secular decrease in the radius of curvature of the plates. The implications of this global cooling and contraction are explored here for the intraplate stress field and the evolution of continental plates.

Secular Variation and Physical Characteristics Determination of the HADS Star EH Lib

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pena, J. H.; Villarreal, C.; Pina, D. S.; Renteria, A.; Soni, A., Guillen, J. Calderon, J.

2017-12-01

Physical parameters of EH Lib have been determined based on observations carried out in 2015 with photometry. They have also served, along with samples from the years 1969 and 1986, to analyse the frequency content of EH Lib with Fourier Transforms. Recent CCD observations increased the times of maximum with twelve new times which helped us study the secular variation of the period with a method based on the minimization of the standard deviation of the O-C residuals. It is concluded that there may be a long-term period change.

Geocenter Motion Derived from the JTRF2014 Combination

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abbondanza, C.; Chin, T. M.; Gross, R. S.; Heflin, M. B.; Parker, J. W.; van Dam, T. M.; Wu, X.

2016-12-01

JTRF2014 represents the JPL Terrestrial Reference Frame (TRF) recently obtained as a result of the combination of the space-geodetic reprocessed inputs to the ITRF2014. Based upon a Kalman filter and smoother approach, JTRF2014 assimilates station positions and Earth-Orientation Parameters (EOPs) from GNSS, VLBI, SLR and DORIS and combine them through local tie measurements. JTRF is in its essence a time-series based TRF. In the JTRF2014 the dynamical evolution of the station positions is formulated by introducing linear and seasonal terms (annual and semi-annual periodic modes). Non-secular and non-seasonal motions of the geodetic sites are included in the smoothed time series by properly defining the station position process noise whose variance is characterized by analyzing station displacements induced by temporal changes of planetary fluid masses (atmosphere, oceans and continental surface water). With its station position time series output at a weekly resolution, JTRF2014 materializes a sub-secular frame whose origin is at the quasi-instantaneous Center of Mass (CM) as sensed by SLR. Both SLR and VLBI contribute to the scale of the combined frame. The sub-secular nature of the frame allows the users to directly access the quasi-instantaneous geocenter and scale information. Unlike standard combined TRF products which only give access to the secular component of the CM-CN motions, JTRF2014 is able to preserve -in addition to the long-term- the seasonal, non-seasonal and non-secular components of the geocenter motion. In the JTRF2014 assimilation scheme, local tie measurements are used to transfer the geocenter information from SLR to the space-geodetic techniques which are either insensitive to CM (VLBI) or whose geocenter motion is poorly determined (GNSS and DORIS). Properly tied to the CM frame through local ties and co-motion constraints, GNSS, VLBI and DORIS contribute to improve the SLR network geometry. In this paper, the determination of the weekly (CM-CN) time series as inferred from the JTRF2014 combination will be presented. Comparisons with geocenter time series derived from global inversions of GPS, GRACE and ocean bottom pressure models show the JTRF2014-derived geocenter favourably compares to the results of the inversion.

Secular Change and Inter-annual Variability of the Gulf Stream Position, 1993-2013, 70°-55°W

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bisagni, J. J.; Gangopadhyay, A.

2016-12-01

The Gulf Stream (GS) is the northeastward-flowing surface limb of the Atlantic Ocean meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) "conveyer belt" that flows towards Europe and the Nordic Seas. Changes in the GS position after its separation from the coast at Cape Hatteras, i.e., from 75°W to 50°W, may be key to understanding the AMOC, sea level variability and ecosystem behavior along the east coast of North America. In this study we compare secular change and inter-annual variability (IAV) of annual mean Gulf Stream North Wall (GSNW) position with equator-ward Labrador Current (LC) transport along the southwestern Grand Banks near 52° W using 21 years (1993-2013) of satellite altimeter data. Results at 70°, 65°, 60° and 55° W show a southward secular trend for the GSNW, decreasing to the west. IAV of de-trended GSNW position residuals also decreases to the west. The long-term secular trend of annual mean upper layer LC transport increases near 52° W. Furthermore, IAV of LC transport residuals near 52° W is significantly correlated with GSNW position residuals at 55° W at a lag of +1-year. Spectral analysis reveals inter-annual peaks at 5-7 years and 2-3 years for the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), GSNW (65°-55°W) and LC transport for 1993-2013. A volume calculation using the LC rms residual of +1.04 Sv near 52° W results in an estimated GSNW residual of 79 km, or 63% of the observed 125.6 km (1.13°) rms value at 55° W. A similar volume calculation using the positive long-term, upper-layer LC transport trend accounts for 68% of the observed southward shift of the GSNW over the 1993-2013 period. Our work provides observational evidence of direct interaction between the upper layers of the sub-polar and sub-tropical gyres within the North Atlantic over secular and inter-annual time scales as suggested by previous workers.

The Remarkable Change in Euro-American Cranial Shape and Size.

PubMed

Jantz, Richard L; Jantz, Lee Meadows

2016-01-01

Secular changes in stature, weight, or other components of the body that can be obtained from historical records have been extensively studied. Cranial change has been central to anthropology for more than a century, but the focus has normally been on change measured in centuries or millennia. Cranial change measured in decades, normally considered to result from plastic response to the environment, has been less studied. This article reports on change in cranial vault dimensions in white Americans. Variables were glabello-occipital length (GOL), basion-bregma height (BBH), basion-nasion length (BNL), maximum cranial breadth (XCB), and biauricular breadth (AUB). Cranial size was calculated as the geometric mean of these variables, and shape dimensions were calculated as described by Darroch and Mosimann ( 1985 ). Cranial module and cranial capacity were also calculated. Samples consisted of 1,112 males and 668 females complete for those variables. Samples were organized into 10-year birth cohorts, with birth years ranging from 1820 to 1990. One-way ANOVA was used to test for variation among cohorts. The pattern of secular change was examined graphically and was compared with quality-of-life and environmental indicators, including stature, infant mortality, calories per person, and relative number of immigrants. All variables showed significant secular change, but BBH, XCB, and BNL responded most strongly. Over the past 170 years, crania became relatively higher, narrower, and larger with longer cranial bases. Both sexes changed, but female change was less pronounced than male change. The cranial variables tracked secular changes in stature, most prominently BNL. The highest correlation between a cranial variable and quality-of-life indicator was BBH and infant mortality. We are not able to identify specific causes of secular changes in cranial morphology. However, given that modern Americans have introduced themselves into a novel environment never before experienced by human populations, we consider it unlikely that it is pure plasticity. In addition to possible plastic responses, it is likely that selection, acting through the dramatic changes in infant mortality, is also involved.

Secular trends of salted fish consumption and nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a multi-jurisdiction ecological study in 8 regions from 3 continents

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Despite salted fish being a classical risk factor of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC), whether secular trends in salted fish consumption worldwide accounted for changes in NPC rates were unknown. The relationship between vegetable and cigarette consumption to NPC risk worldwide were also largely uncertain. We investigated the longitudinal trends in standardised NPC incidence/mortality rates across 8 regions and their associations with secular trends in salted fish, vegetable and tobacco consumptions. Methods Age standardised mortality rate (ASMR) and age standardised incidence rate (ASIR) of NPC were obtained from the WHO cancer mortality database and Hong Kong Cancer Registry. Per capita consumption of salted fish, tobacco and vegetables in Hong Kong and 7 countries (China, Finland, Japan, Portugal, Singapore, United Kingdom and United States) were obtained from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nation (FAO) and Hong Kong Trade and Census Statistics. Pearson correlation and multivariate analysis were performed to examine both crude and adjusted associations. Results There were markedly decreasing trends of NPC ASIR and ASMR in Hong Kong over the past three decades, which were correlated with corresponding secular changes in salted fish consumption per capita (Pearson r for 10 cumulative years : ASIR = 0.729 (male), 0.674 (female); ASMR = 0.943 (male), 0.622 (female), all p < 0.05 except for female ASMR). However such associations no longer correlated with adjustments for decreasing tobacco and increasing vegetable consumption per capita (Pearson r for 10 cumulative years: ASIR = 2.007 (male), 0.339 (female), ASMR = 0.289 (male), 1.992 (female), all p > 0.05). However, there were no clear or consistent patterns in relations between NPC ASIR and ASMR with salted fish consumption across 7 regions in 3 continents. Conclusions Our results do not support the notion that changes in salted fish consumption had played an important role in explaining secular trends of NPC rates in Hong Kong and worldwide. Further studies should explore other lifestyle and genetic factors. However, our findings do support the potentially protective effects of vegetable consumption against NPC. PMID:23782497

Secular trends of salted fish consumption and nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a multi-jurisdiction ecological study in 8 regions from 3 continents.

PubMed

Lau, Hiu-Ying; Leung, Chit-Ming; Chan, Yap-Hang; Lee, Anne Wing-Mui; Kwong, Dora Lai-Wan; Lung, Maria Li; Lam, Tai-Hing

2013-06-19

Despite salted fish being a classical risk factor of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC), whether secular trends in salted fish consumption worldwide accounted for changes in NPC rates were unknown. The relationship between vegetable and cigarette consumption to NPC risk worldwide were also largely uncertain. We investigated the longitudinal trends in standardised NPC incidence/mortality rates across 8 regions and their associations with secular trends in salted fish, vegetable and tobacco consumptions. Age standardised mortality rate (ASMR) and age standardised incidence rate (ASIR) of NPC were obtained from the WHO cancer mortality database and Hong Kong Cancer Registry. Per capita consumption of salted fish, tobacco and vegetables in Hong Kong and 7 countries (China, Finland, Japan, Portugal, Singapore, United Kingdom and United States) were obtained from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nation (FAO) and Hong Kong Trade and Census Statistics. Pearson correlation and multivariate analysis were performed to examine both crude and adjusted associations. There were markedly decreasing trends of NPC ASIR and ASMR in Hong Kong over the past three decades, which were correlated with corresponding secular changes in salted fish consumption per capita (Pearson r for 10 cumulative years : ASIR = 0.729 (male), 0.674 (female); ASMR = 0.943 (male), 0.622 (female), all p < 0.05 except for female ASMR). However such associations no longer correlated with adjustments for decreasing tobacco and increasing vegetable consumption per capita (Pearson r for 10 cumulative years: ASIR = 2.007 (male), 0.339 (female), ASMR = 0.289 (male), 1.992 (female), all p > 0.05). However, there were no clear or consistent patterns in relations between NPC ASIR and ASMR with salted fish consumption across 7 regions in 3 continents. Our results do not support the notion that changes in salted fish consumption had played an important role in explaining secular trends of NPC rates in Hong Kong and worldwide. Further studies should explore other lifestyle and genetic factors. However, our findings do support the potentially protective effects of vegetable consumption against NPC.

Why did children grow so well at hard times? The ultimate importance of pathogen control during puberty

PubMed Central

Hõrak, Peeter; Valge, Markus

2015-01-01

Background and objectives: Secular increase in human height and performance occurred in Europe throughout the 20th century despite the temporally worsening access to nutrients during and after World War II. This pattern is paradoxical under the assumption of the major impact of pre- and postnatal growth conditions for determination of adult size and human capital. Methodology: We examined the anthropometric parameters of Estonian girls born between 1938 and 1953, and measured around the age of 17 (n = 1475). This period involved two opposite trends in the economic and epidemiological situation: increasing birth-time economic hardships during the war and particularly in the post-war period, and decreasing infant mortality (a proxy of disease burden) after 1947. Results: Height of girls was negatively affected by the number of siblings and positively by parental socioeconomic position, but these effects were weaker than the secular trend. Leg length (an indicator of pre-pubertal growth conditions) was independent of age and birth date while all other traits, including measures of performance (cranial volume, lung capacity and handgrip strength) showed acceleration. The best predictor of size at age 17 was, in most cases, infant mortality in the year when the girls were aged 11. Conclusions and implications: Reduction of disease burden during pubertal growth can override effects of resource shortage at birth. Our results also support the idea that increasing efficiency of pathogen control can contribute to the secular increase in cognitive abilities, i.e. the Flynn effect, and that epidemiological transition is the main driver of secular increase in human capital. PMID:26198188

A Comparison of Paleomagnetic Secular Variation during MIS 7-10 between the Bering Sea (IODP Ex. 323) and North Atlantic Ocean (ODP Leg 172): Implications for the space/time pattern of field and environmental variability (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lund, S.; Okada, M.; Acton, G.; Clement, B. M.; Stoner, J. S.; Platzman, E. S.

2013-12-01

Detailed records of Brunhes paleomagnetic secular variation (PSV) during Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 7-10 have been recovered from four IODP Ex. 323 sites in the Bering Sea (U1339, U1343-U1345) and four ODP Leg 172 sites from the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean (1060-1063). Reproducible records of PSV (both directions and paleointensity) have been recovered from three or more holes at each site and correlated among the four independent sites in each region. These PSV records provide an unprecedented database for considering patterns of long-term secular variation and evidence for excursional field behavior on a larger than individual regional scale. We will present reproducible evidence for sustained long-term secular variation in each region and assess the extent to which they may be interrelated. We have identified the times of magnetic field excursions 7α, 7β, 8α, 9α, and 9β in the Atlantic records and correlated those times to the Bering Sea records. There are no true excursions in the Bering Sea at those times, but several of these intervals mark the most anomalous field behavior in the Bering Sea during MIS 7-10. In both regions, the PSV also serves as a high-resolution chronostratigraphic tool for regional correlation of environmental variability. Both regions show clear, reproducible evidence among the sites for synchronous millennial-scale environmental variability that has not been diagnosed previously.

Main field and secular variation candidate models for the 12th IGRF generation after 10 months of Swarm measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saturnino, Diana; Langlais, Benoit; Civet, François; Thébault, Erwan; Mandea, Mioara

2015-06-01

We describe the main field and secular variation candidate models for the 12th generation of the International Geomagnetic Reference Field model. These two models are derived from the same parent model, in which the main field is extrapolated to epoch 2015.0 using its associated secular variation. The parent model is exclusively based on measurements acquired by the European Space Agency Swarm mission between its launch on 11/22/2013 and 09/18/2014. It is computed up to spherical harmonic degree and order 25 for the main field, 13 for the secular variation, and 2 for the external field. A selection on local time rather than on true illumination of the spacecraft was chosen in order to keep more measurements. Data selection based on geomagnetic indices was used to minimize the external field contributions. Measurements were screened and outliers were carefully removed. The model uses magnetic field intensity measurements at all latitudes and magnetic field vector measurements equatorward of 50° absolute quasi-dipole magnetic latitude. A second model using only the vertical component of the measured magnetic field and the total intensity was computed. This companion model offers a slightly better fit to the measurements. These two models are compared and discussed.We discuss in particular the quality of the model which does not use the full vector measurements and underline that this approach may be used when only partial directional information is known. The candidate models and their associated companion models are retrospectively compared to the adopted IGRF which allows us to criticize our own choices.

Diffusive Tidal Evolution for Migrating Hot Jupiters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Yanqin

2018-03-01

I consider a Jovian planet on a highly eccentric orbit around its host star, a situation produced by secular interactions with its planetary or stellar companions. The tidal interactions at every periastron passage exchange energy between the orbit and the planet’s degree-2 fundamental-mode. Starting from zero energy, the f-mode can diffusively grow to large amplitudes if its one-kick energy gain is ≥10‑5 of the orbital energy. This requires a pericenter distance of ≤4 tidal radii (or 1.6 Roche radii). If the f-mode has a non-negligible initial energy, diffusive evolution can occur at a lower threshold. The first effect can stall the secular migration as the f-mode can absorb orbital energy and decouple the planet from its secular perturbers, parking all migrating jupiters safely outside the zone of tidal disruption. The second effect leads to rapid orbit circularization as it allows an excited f-mode to continuously absorb orbital energy as the orbit eccentricity decreases. So without any explicit dissipation, other than the fact that the f-mode will damp nonlinearly when its amplitude reaches unity, the planet can be transported from a few au to ∼0.2 au in ∼104 years. Such a rapid circularization is equivalent to a dissipation factor Q ∼ 1, and it explains the observed deficit of super-eccentric Jovian planets. Lastly, the repeated f-mode breaking likely deposits energy and angular momentum in the outer envelope and avoids thermally ablating the planet. Overall, this work boosts the case for hot Jupiter formation through high-eccentricity secular migration.

Secular Trends in the Incidence of Dementia in a Multi-Ethnic Community.

PubMed

Noble, James M; Schupf, Nicole; Manly, Jennifer J; Andrews, Howard; Tang, Ming-Xin; Mayeux, Richard

2017-10-03

Determination of secular trends in cognitive aging is important for prioritization of resources, services, and research in aging populations. Prior studies have identified declining dementia incidence associated with changes in cardiovascular risk factors and increased educational attainment. However, few studies have examined these factors in multi-ethnic cohorts. To identify secular trends in the incidence rate of dementia in an elderly population. Participants in this study were drawn from the Washington Heights-Inwood Columbia Aging Project, a multi-ethnic cohort study of northern Manhattan residents aged 65 years and older. Cox proportional hazards models were used to examine differences in the incidence of dementia in cohorts recruited in 1992 and 1999, with age at dementia or age at last follow-up visit as the "time-to-event" variable. Overall, there was a 41% reduction in the hazard ratio for dementia among participants in the 1999 cohort compared with those in the 1992 cohort, adjusting for age, sex, race, and baseline memory complaints (HR = 0.59). The reduction in incidence was greatest among non-Hispanic Whites and African-Americans and lowest among Hispanic participants (HRs = 0.60, 0.52 and 0.64, respectively), and was associated with increases in level of educational attainment, especially among African-Americans. Reduction in incidence of dementia was also greater among persons 75 years or older than among younger participants (HR = 0.52 versus HR = 0.69). Our results support previous findings that secular trends in dementia incidence are changing, including in aging minority populations.

On the highly inclined vW leptokurtic asteroid families

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carruba, V.; Domingos, R. C.; Aljbaae, S.; Huaman, M.

2016-11-01

vW leptokurtic asteroid families are families for which the distribution of the normal component of the terminal ejection velocity field vW is characterized by a positive value of the γ2 Pearson kurtosis, I.e. they have a distribution with a more concentrated peak and larger tails than the Gaussian one. Currently, eight families are known to have γ2(vW) > 0.25. Among these, three are highly inclined asteroid families, the Hansa, Barcelona, and Gallia families. As observed for the case of the Astrid family, the leptokurtic inclination distribution seems to be caused by the interaction of these families with node secular resonances. In particular, the Hansa and Gallia family are crossed by the s - sV resonance with Vesta, that significantly alters the inclination of some of their members. In this work we use the time evolution of γ2(vW) for simulated families under the gravitational influence of all planets and the three most massive bodies in the main belt to assess the dynamical importance (or lack of) node secular resonances with Ceres, Vesta, and Pallas for the considered families, and to obtain independent constraints on the family ages. While secular resonances with massive bodies in the main belt do not significantly affect the dynamical evolution of the Barcelona family, they significantly increase the γ2(vW) values of the simulated Hansa and Gallia families. Current values of the γ2(vW) for the Gallia family are reached over the estimated family age only if secular resonances with Vesta are accounted for.

The new genetic technologies: why a theological perspective is necessary.

PubMed

Engelhardt, H Tristram

2003-01-01

Secular bioethics poses questions that can be recognized as important, though it lacks the resources to answer them. Secular bioethics may retain the sense that there should be moral limits to the use of germline genetic engineering, but it lacks the basis to justify limits in principle. The contemporary practice of bioethics arose in the United States to fill a moral vacuum created by (1) the marginalization of medical ethics through the deprofessionalization of medicine, (2) the secularization of American society, and (3) an increased reliance on individual decision-making. The result is an ethics at the core of secular bioethics severed from a sense of ultimate purpose or direction for humans or the cosmos. This ethics and its bioethics are marked by (1) moral fragmentation and pluralism and (2) a loss of ultimate orientation. This bioethics can at best require (1) the prudent maximization of benefits over harms, (2) the condemnation of malevolent acts, and (3) the use of persons only with their consent. However, there fails to be a basis for a common view of benefit or of harm. Within this impoverished moral context, human biological nature can only appear to be a contingent outcome of spontaneous mutations, selective pressure, the constraints of physical laws, and random catastrophes. Such a bioethics, deprived of ultimate orientation, can provide no ground in principle for forbidding cloning, germline genetic engineering, or the fundamental recasting of human nature. Absent a theological point of orientation, medicine and the genetic technology are left with more power than ever but no clear moral sense of how to use that power.

Secular change in muscular strength of indigenous rural youth 6-17 years in Oaxaca, southern Mexico: 1968-2000.

PubMed

Malina, Robert M; Reyes, Maria Eugenia Peña; Tan, Swee Kheng; Little, Bertis B

2010-04-01

The study compared the grip strength of indigenous school youth 6-17 years of age in Oaxaca, southern Mexico, who were surveyed in 1968, 1978 and 2000. Grip strength (Smedley/Stoelting) was measured to 0.5 kg in 1280 children and adolescent, 621 males and 659 females, in the three surveys. Height and weight were also measured. Strength of the right and left hands was summed to provide a general estimate of muscular strength. Summed grip strength was also expressed per unit body mass (kg/kg) and height (kg/m). Subjects were classified into four age groups: 6-8 years (childhood), 9-11 years (transition in adolescence), 12-14 years (early adolescence) and 15-17 years (later adolescence). Children 6-14 years were surveyed in 1968, 1978 and 2000 while adolescents 15-17 years were surveyed in 1978 and 2000. Sex-specific MANCOVAs were used for comparisons among years within age groups. Changes in grip strength between 1968 and 1978 among children 6-14 years were small and significant only in girls. Grip strength increased, on average, between 1978 and 2000 in boys 6-17 years but only in girls 6-14 years; adolescent girls 15-17 years in 1978 were stronger than those in 2000. Secular gains in muscular strength were generally proportional to secular gains in body weight and height. The data demonstrate secular changes in muscular strength in indigenous rural youth in a community in the process of transition from subsistence level agriculture to an economy less dependent upon agriculture.

Secular versus religious norms against smoking: Which is more important as a driver of quitting behaviour among Muslim Malaysian and Buddhist Thai smokers?

PubMed Central

Yong, Hua-Hie; Savvas, Steven; Borland, Ron; Thrasher, James; Sirirassamee, Buppha; Omar, Maizurah

2012-01-01

Purpose This paper prospectively examined two kinds of social normative beliefs about smoking, secular versus religious norms, to determine their relative importance in influencing quitting behaviour among Muslim Malaysian and Buddhist Thai smokers. Methods Data come from 2166 Muslim Malaysian and 2463 Buddhist Thai adult smokers who participated in the first three waves of the International Tobacco Control Southeast Asia project. Respondents were followed up about 18 months later with replenishment. Respondents were asked at baseline about whether their society disapproved of smoking and whether their religion discouraged smoking and those recontacted at follow-up were asked about their quitting activity. Results Majority of both religious groups perceived that their religion discouraged smoking (78% Muslim Malaysians and 86% Buddhist Thais) but considerably more Buddhist Thais than Muslim Malaysians perceived that their society disapproved of smoking (80% versus 25%). Among Muslim Malaysians, religious, but not societal, norms had an independent effect on quit attempts. By contrast, among the Buddhist Thais, while both normative beliefs had an independent positive effect on quit attempts, the effect was greater for societal norms. The two kinds of normative beliefs, however, were unrelated to quit success among those who tried. Conclusions The findings suggest that religious norms about smoking may play a greater role than secular norms in driving behaviour change in an environment like Malaysia where tobacco control has been relatively weak until more recently but in the context of a strong tobacco control environment like Thailand, secular norms about smoking becomes the dominant force. PMID:22302214

On the Existence of Regular and Irregular Outer Moons Orbiting the Pluto-Charon System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michaely, Erez; Perets, Hagai B.; Grishin, Evgeni

2017-02-01

The dwarf planet Pluto is known to host an extended system of five co-planar satellites. Previous studies have explored the formation and evolution of the system in isolation, neglecting perturbative effects by the Sun. Here we show that secular evolution due to the Sun can strongly affect the evolution of outer satellites and rings in the system, if such exist. Although precession due to extended gravitational potential from the inner Pluto-Charon binary quench such secular evolution up to a crit ˜ 0.0035 au (˜0.09 R Hill the Hill radius; including all of the currently known satellites), outer orbits can be significantly altered. In particular, we find that co-planar rings and satellites should not exist beyond a crit; rather, satellites and dust particles in these regions secularly evolve on timescales ranging between 104 and 106 years, and quasi-periodically change their inclinations and eccentricities through secular evolution (Lidov-Kozai oscillations). Such oscillations can lead to high inclinations and eccentricities, constraining the range where such satellites (and dust particles) can exist without crossing the orbits of the inner satellites or crossing the outer Hill stability range. Outer satellites, if such exist are therefore likely to be irregular satellites, with orbits limited to be non-circular and/or highly inclined. Current observations, including the recent data from the New-Horizons mission explored only inner regions (<0.0012 au) and excluded the existence of additional satellites; however, the irregular satellites discussed here should reside farther, in the yet uncharted regions around Pluto.

Timing and secular trend of pubertal development in Beijing girls.

PubMed

Chen, Fang-Fang; Wang, You-Fa; Mi, Jie

2014-02-01

Historical research is limited in changes in pubertal development in Chinese girls. We aimed to identify the timing of pubertal characteristics and the secular trend of menarche age among Beijing girls from the 1980s through the 2000s. Six data sets were analyzed, including the Beijing Child and Adolescent Metabolic Syndrome study in 2004, where 9778 Bejing girls aged 6-18 years were studied. The Fetal Origins of Adult Disease study provided retrospective menarche age from 1940 through 1960. Other four studies were conducted in Beijing to obtain supplementary information to assess secular trend in menarche age. Linear regression method was used to analyze the data. Among Beijing girls in 2004, the median age at menarche was 12.1 years, which was 0.6 years earlier in urban than in rural areas. The median age at Breast Tanner Stage 2 was 9.5 ± 1.2 years, representing 9.4 ± 1.1 years and 9.6 ± 1.2 years for urban and rural girls, respectively. In contrast, the median age at Pubic Hair Tanner Stage 2 was 11.1 ± 1.1 years, representing 10.8 ± 1.1 and 11.4 ± 1.1 years for urban and rural girls, respectively. The menarche age of urban girls decreased by 4.2 months per decade, and that of rural girls by 9.6 months per decade from 1980 to 2004. Urban girls mature earlier than rural girls in Beijing. A secular trend towards earlier menarche was observed between the 1980s and the 2000s.

Secular trends in Cherokee cranial morphology: Eastern vs Western bands.

PubMed

Sutphin, Rebecca; Ross, Ann H; Jantz, Richard L

2014-01-01

The research objective was to examine if secular trends can be identified for cranial data commissioned by Boas in 1892, specifically for cranial breadth and cranial length of the Eastern and Western band Cherokee who experienced environmental hardships. Multiple regression analysis was used to test the degree of relationship between each of the cranial measures: cranial length, cranial breadth and cephalic index, along with predictor variables (year-of-birth, location, sex, admixture); the model revealed a significant difference for all craniometric variables. Additional regression analysis was performed with smoothing Loess plots to observe cranial length and cranial breadth change over time (year-of-birth) separately for Eastern and Western Cherokee band females and males born between 1783-1874. This revealed the Western and Eastern bands show a decrease in cranial length over time. Eastern band individuals maintain a relatively constant head breadth, while Western Band individuals show a sharp decline beginning around 1860. These findings support negative secular trend occurring for both Cherokee bands where the environment made a detrimental impact; this is especially marked with the Western Cherokee band.

Theoretical comparison and experimental test of the secular and nonperturbative approaches on the ESR lineshapes of randomly oriented, anisotropic systems undergoing internal motion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benetis, N. P.; Sjöqvist, L.; Lund, A.; Maruani, J.

The nuclear Zeeman and the electronic nonsecular parts of the spin Hamiltonian complicate the ESR lineshape of exchanging anisotropic spin systems by introducing, at high field, "forbidden" transitions and, at low field, additional shift and splitting. We compare the nonperturbative with the secular approach for such systems. The exchange is treated within the Kaplan-Alexander limit and both A and g tensors are included, resulting in spectrum asymmetry, in contrast to previous separate treatments. The two approaches are then used to simulate the powder spectrum of OCH 2COO - and compare the results to experimental spectra of an irradiated powder of ZnAc. The powder X-band spectra simulations using the secular approach appear to be accurate. For both the low-field (20 to 200 G) and the high-field (Q-band) regions, however, the nonsecular part of the electronic term and the nuclear Zeeman term, respectively, cannot be neglected. On the other hand, the approximate approach is much faster and consequently more appropriate for treating large, multisite exchanging systems.

Why religion deserves a place in secular medicine.

PubMed

Biggar, Nigel

2015-03-01

As a science and practice transcending metaphysical and ethical disagreements, 'secular' medicine should not exist. 'Secularity' should be understood in an Augustinian sense, not a secularist one: not as a space that is universally rational because it is religion-free, but as a forum for the negotiation of rival reasonings. Religion deserves a place here, because it is not simply or uniquely irrational. However, in assuming his rightful place, the religious believer commits himself to eschewing sheer appeals to religious authorities, and to adopting reasonable means of persuasion. This can come quite naturally. For example, Christianity (theo)logically obliges liberal manners in negotiating ethical controversies in medicine. It also offers reasoned views of human being and ethics that bear upon medicine and are not universally held-for example, a humanist view of human dignity, the bounding of individual autonomy by social obligation, and a special concern for the weak. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

A secular technetium-molybdenum generator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Araujo, Wagner L.; Campos, Tarcisio P. R.

2015-05-01

A compact secular molybdenium generator is subject of this paper. This generator represents a nuclear system that comprises a hydrogen-isotopes fusor, moderator, reflector and shield. Deuterium fusion reactions in a tritiated or deuterated target provide the neutron source. A moderation fluid slowdown the neutron energy which increases 98Mo(n,γ)99Mo capture reaction rates. Neutron reflection minimizes the neutron escape and the radiation shield encloses the device. The neutron yield calculation along with electromagnetic and nuclear simulations were addressed. Results revealed the accelerator equipotential surfaces ranging from -30 to 150 kV, the ion trajectories and the energy beam profile define a deuteron current of 1 A with energy of 180 keV at the target, the spatial distribution of the neutron flux, and the 99Mo and 99mTc activities in function of transmuter operation time. The kinetics of the 99mTc correlated to its precursor activity demonstrates a secular equilibrium providing 2 Ci in a operational time of 150 h. As conclusion, the investigated nuclear and electromagnetic features have demonstrated that such generator shall have a notable potential for feeding the 99mTc clinical application.

The impact of German-speaking academicians on higher education in Turkey.

PubMed

Özduman, Koray; Güdük, Mustafa; Elmacı, Ilhan; Pamir, M Necmettin

2013-01-01

The transition from the medieval universities to the secular, second generation universities in Turkey occurred in the period from 1773 to 1945. The Ottoman Empire's efforts to establish a higher education system in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries only aimed at modernization of the armed forces, and the civil effects on the general society were only secondary. After the Turkish Republic was founded in 1923, complete modernization of all institutions of society, including political, social, educational, economic, and law reforms, were initiated by the President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. His establishment of the modern Istanbul University in Turkey was an experiment unforeseen in the history of education. Step by step, he created a new language, a new alphabet, achieved unified and secular education under government supervision, formed primary and secondary education to support higher education, took expert opinion on forming the new university, and finally established the modern university. German-speaking academicians have played a very important role during the creation of the modern secular university in Turkey. This is a short analysis of this period. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Gravitational dynamos and the low-frequency geomagnetic secular variation.

PubMed

Olson, P

2007-12-18

Self-sustaining numerical dynamos are used to infer the sources of low-frequency secular variation of the geomagnetic field. Gravitational dynamo models powered by compositional convection in an electrically conducting, rotating fluid shell exhibit several regimes of magnetic field behavior with an increasing Rayleigh number of the convection, including nearly steady dipoles, chaotic nonreversing dipoles, and chaotic reversing dipoles. The time average dipole strength and dipolarity of the magnetic field decrease, whereas the dipole variability, average dipole tilt angle, and frequency of polarity reversals increase with Rayleigh number. Chaotic gravitational dynamos have large-amplitude dipole secular variation with maximum power at frequencies corresponding to a few cycles per million years on Earth. Their external magnetic field structure, dipole statistics, low-frequency power spectra, and polarity reversal frequency are comparable to the geomagnetic field. The magnetic variability is driven by the Lorentz force and is characterized by an inverse correlation between dynamo magnetic and kinetic energy fluctuations. A constant energy dissipation theory accounts for this inverse energy correlation, which is shown to produce conditions favorable for dipole drift, polarity reversals, and excursions.

Gravitational radiation from rapidly rotating nascent neutron stars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lai, Dong; Shapiro, Stuart L.

1995-01-01

We study the secular evolution and gravitational wave signature of a newly formed, rapidly rotating neutron star. The neutron star may arise from core collapse in a massive star or from the accretion-induced collapse of a white dwarf. After a brief dynamical phase, the nascent neutron star settles into an axisymmetric, secularly unstable state. Gravitational radiation drives the star to a nonaxisymmetric, stationary equilibrium configuration via the bar-mode instability. The emitted quasi-periodic gravitational waves have a unique signature: the wave frequency sweeps downward from a few hundred Hertz to zero, while the wave amplitude increase from zero to a maximum and then decays back to zero. Such a wave signal could detected by broadband gravitational wave interferometers currently being constructed. We also characterize two other types of gravitational wave signals that could arise in principle from a rapidly rotating, secularly unstable neutron star: a high-frequency (f greater than or approximately = 1000 Hz) wave which increases the pattern-speed of the star, and a wave that actually increases the angular momentum of the star.

Gravitational dynamos and the low-frequency geomagnetic secular variation

PubMed Central

Olson, P.

2007-01-01

Self-sustaining numerical dynamos are used to infer the sources of low-frequency secular variation of the geomagnetic field. Gravitational dynamo models powered by compositional convection in an electrically conducting, rotating fluid shell exhibit several regimes of magnetic field behavior with an increasing Rayleigh number of the convection, including nearly steady dipoles, chaotic nonreversing dipoles, and chaotic reversing dipoles. The time average dipole strength and dipolarity of the magnetic field decrease, whereas the dipole variability, average dipole tilt angle, and frequency of polarity reversals increase with Rayleigh number. Chaotic gravitational dynamos have large-amplitude dipole secular variation with maximum power at frequencies corresponding to a few cycles per million years on Earth. Their external magnetic field structure, dipole statistics, low-frequency power spectra, and polarity reversal frequency are comparable to the geomagnetic field. The magnetic variability is driven by the Lorentz force and is characterized by an inverse correlation between dynamo magnetic and kinetic energy fluctuations. A constant energy dissipation theory accounts for this inverse energy correlation, which is shown to produce conditions favorable for dipole drift, polarity reversals, and excursions. PMID:18048345

Explanation of the anomalous secular increase of the moon orbit eccentricity by the new theory of gravitation (NTG)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ziefle, Reiner Georg

2013-03-01

Present day gravitational physics experiences a huge success in obtaining better and better experimental results. In some cases, the observations do not fit with the present knowledge of established physics. Phenomena, like the increase of the Astronomical Unit by 7 m per century or the so-called anomalous secular increase of the eccentricity of the lunar orbit by about 9 × 10^-12 per year, which can neither be explained by Einstein's Theory of General Relativity, nor by the Newtonian Theory of Gravitation, can be explained by the New Theory of Gravitation

Stochastic Growth of Ion Cyclotron And Mirror Waves In Earth's Magnetosheath

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cairns, Iver H.; Grubits, K. A.

2001-01-01

Electromagnetic ion cyclotron and mirror waves in Earth's magnetosheath are bursty, have widely variable fields, and are unexpectedly persistent, properties difficult to reconcile with uniform secular growth. Here it is shown for specific periods that stochastic growth theory (SGT) quantitatively accounts for the functional form of the wave statistics and qualitatively explains the wave properties. The wave statistics are inconsistent with uniform secular growth or self-organized criticality, but nonlinear processes sometimes play a role at high fields. The results show SGT's relevance near marginal stability and suggest that it is widely relevant to space and astrophysical plasmas.

Can Satellite Geodesy Disentangle Holocene Rebound and Present-Day Glacier Balance Signatures?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Irvins, E.; James, T.; Yoder, C.

1995-01-01

The secular drift of the precession of the ascending node of the LAGOES -1 satellite is apparently linked to the Earth s paleoclimate through the slow viscous response of the mantle to ice sheet/ocean mass transfer during the last great continental deglaciation . The secular node acceleration is particularly sensitive to the longest wavelengths of the paleo -surface loading that have been memorized by the mantle glacio -isostatic flow. Tide gauge records for the last 130 years show a post-glacial rebound-corrected sea-level rise of 2.4 n 0.9 mm yr-1.

Mechanism of secular increasing of mean gravity in Northern hemisphere and secular decreasing of mean gravity in Southern hemisphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barkin, Yu. V.; Ferrandiz, J. M.

2009-04-01

Mechanism. To present time the observant data in various geosciences more and more confidently testify for the benefit of existence of secular drift of the Earth core in the direction of North Pole. 1). So the superfluous mass of a displaced core relatively to elastic mantle, obviously, results in displacement of the centre of mass of the Earth with respect to basic system of coordinates on a surface of the Earth also in northern direction. Methods of a space geodesy let us confidently to determine drift of the centre of mass to the north with velocity about 0.5 - 1.0 cm/yr. The fundamental phenomenon of drift of the centre of mass and the core of the Earth has been predicted in 1995 (Barkin, 1995) at the analysis of secular change of the pear-shaped form of the Earth in present epoch (velocity of drift of the centre of mass of the Earth was appreciated in 1.8 +/-1.0 cm/yr in the direction of North Pole of the Earth). For an explanation of observably drift of the centre of mass at once the model of drift of the core was offered and the geodynamic model of forced relative displacements and wanderings of interacting shells of the Earth under action of a gravitational attraction of external celestial bodies (Barkin, 1996, 2002) has been developed. 2). The core makes slow secular drift and cyclic displacements. Predicted spectrum of oscillations of the centre of mass of the Earth and its core (Barkin, 2001) has received precise confirmation as a result of the Fourier analysis of temporal series for coordinates of a geocenter (Kaftan, Tatevian, 2003; Barkin, Vilke, 2004; Barkin, Lyubushin, Zotov, 2007). 3). The displaced core makes active all bouquet of natural processes in all shells of the Earth (including an atmosphere, ocean and internal shells), varying in the certain rhythms and styles the tension conditions of shells, their thermodynamic conditions etc. The core as though "conducts" by all planetary processes at once. From here take the origin such fundamental phenomena as cyclicity and synchronism of planetary natural processes, inversion of activity of natural processes in opposite hemispheres. Numerous confirmations give the extensive data of every possible geophysical observations. The phenomenon of synchronism in annual variations of activity of various natural processes is rather brightly expressed - their phases are precisely synchronized, and the periods of extreme activity (or passivity) fall to February - March or August - September. In daily variations of natural processes similar laws are observed. Here we speak about modern processes, but similar laws take place in various time scales, including geological. In the given report we shall concentrate on the analysis of possible secular variations of a gravity at displacement of an external core (of its centre of mass) relatively to the elastic mantle. The analysis has shown, that gravitational influence of displaced superfluous mass of the core are a major factor of secular variations of a gravity. However the displaced core causes directed redistribution of atmospheric masses from a southern hemisphere in northern, and also complex slow redistribution of oceanic masses. Increase of loading of atmospheric and oceanic masses on an elastic crust of northern hemisphere results in its slow lowering. Return processes should observed in a southern hemisphere. All listed factors, certainly, directly influence variations of a gravity. In a more comprehensive sense redistribution of all fluid masses, including climatic character also result in changes of a gravity. Hemispheres mean secular trends of gravity. For an estimation of a role of factors of redistribution of air and fluid masses in variations of a gravity the point model of redistribution of masses of the Earth (Barkin, 2001), obtained very effective applications at studying of fundamental problems of geodynamics, has been used. Let's emphasize, that the Earth is active dynamic object at which activity in the certain regions (for example, in subduction zones, a hilly terrain, a zone of volcanism etc.) at times is more brightly shown. Therefore the steadfast attention should be paid to local factors of changes of a gravity. In result the phenomenon of inversion changes of a gravity in northern and southern hemispheres has been predicted: mean value of a gravity in northern hemisphere accrues with velocity 1.36 micro gals in year (mGal), and in southern decreases with the same velocity. Secular variations of a gravity depend from latitude and on equator (within the framework of considered model) change a sign: dg=2.72tsinф micro gals in year (mGal), where ф is a latitude of a place of observations, t is the time in years (Barkin, 2005). The data of gravimetric measurements at the European stations: Metsahovi, Potsdam, Moha, Vienna, Wettzell, Strastburg, Medicina etc., in Asia and Australia: Eshashi, Canberra etc., in Northern and South America: Bolder (Colorado), Patagonia (Argentina) etc., and also in Antarctic Region (station Syowa), will well be coordinated to the theoretical values of secular variations of a gravity predicted earlier at the specified stations. Gravity trends are studied and evaluated after removal effects of tides, local pressure and polar motion. The secular gravity variation at Potsdam is evaluated in 2.1 mGal/yr. During 1976-1986 the similar tendency - gravity trend with velocity 2.6 mGal/yr (absolute measurements) here have been observed. The similar tendency has been determined on measurements on superconducting gravimeters during 1993-1997: 2.3-2.5 mGal/yr (Neumeyer and Dittfeled, 1997). For more extensive period of observation (Neumayer, 2002) the similar result for gravity trend has been obtained. Observable annual variations of a gravity are characterized by amplitude about 3 mGal (on our model it is 3.5 mGal). Observations at Syowa station have been confirmed the developed model. Here it was expected negative gravity trend - decreasing of gravity with velocity -2.54 mGal/yr, that have actually confirmed SG observations during 1995-1998: -2.4 mGal/yr (Sato et al., 2001). Amplitudes of an annual and semi-annual variations approximately make 4.8 mGal/yr and 0.8 mGal/yr (theoretical values: 4.2 mGal/yr and 0.95 mGal/yr). References Barkin Yu.V. (2002) Explanation of endogenous activity of planets and satellites and its cyclicity. Izvestia cekzii nauk o Zemle. Rus. Acad. of Nat. Sciences, Issue 9, December 2002, M.: VINITI, pp. 45-97. In Russian. Barkin Yu.V., Ferrandiz J.M. (2008) Phenomenon of secular increasing of mean gravity in Northern hemisphere and secular decreasing of gravity in Southern hemisphere; predictions and new confirmations. EGU General Assembly (Vienna, Austria, 13-18 April 2008). Geophysical Research Abstracts, EGU General Assembly 2008. Vol. 10, EGU2008-A-10506.

SECULAR EVOLUTION OF BINARIES NEAR MASSIVE BLACK HOLES: FORMATION OF COMPACT BINARIES, MERGER/COLLISION PRODUCTS AND G2-LIKE OBJECTS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Prodan, Snezana; Antonini, Fabio; Perets, Hagai B., E-mail: sprodan@cita.utoronto.ca, E-mail: antonini@cita.utoronto.ca

2015-02-01

Here we discuss the evolution of binaries around massive black holes (MBHs) in nuclear stellar clusters. We focus on their secular evolution due to the perturbation by the MBHs, while simplistically accounting for their collisional evolution. Binaries with highly inclined orbits with respect to their orbits around MBHs are strongly affected by secular processes, which periodically change their eccentricities and inclinations (e.g., Kozai-Lidov cycles). During periapsis approach, dissipative processes such as tidal friction may become highly efficient, and may lead to shrinkage of a binary orbit and even to its merger. Binaries in this environment can therefore significantly change theirmore » orbital evolution due to the MBH third-body perturbative effects. Such orbital evolution may impinge on their later stellar evolution. Here we follow the secular dynamics of such binaries and its coupling to tidal evolution, as well as the stellar evolution of such binaries on longer timescales. We find that stellar binaries in the central parts of nuclear stellar clusters (NSCs) are highly likely to evolve into eccentric and/or short-period binaries, and become strongly interacting binaries either on the main sequence (at which point they may even merge), or through their later binary stellar evolution. The central parts of NSCs therefore catalyze the formation and evolution of strongly interacting binaries, and lead to the enhanced formation of blue stragglers, X-ray binaries, gravitational wave sources, and possible supernova progenitors. Induced mergers/collisions may also lead to the formation of G2-like cloud-like objects such as the one recently observed in the Galactic center.« less

Steady induction effects in geomagnetism. Part 1C: Geomagnetic estimation of steady surficial core motions: Application to the definitive geomagnetic reference field models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Voorhies, Coerte V.

1993-01-01

In the source-free mantle/frozen-flux core magnetic earth model, the non-linear inverse steady motional induction problem was solved using the method presented in Part 1B. How that method was applied to estimate steady, broad-scale fluid velocity fields near the top of Earth's core that induce the secular change indicated by the Definitive Geomagnetic Reference Field (DGRF) models from 1945 to 1980 are described. Special attention is given to the derivation of weight matrices for the DGRF models because the weights determine the apparent significance of the residual secular change. The derived weight matrices also enable estimation of the secular change signal-to-noise ratio characterizing the DGRF models. Two types of weights were derived in 1987-88: radial field weights for fitting the evolution of the broad-scale portion of the radial geomagnetic field component at Earth's surface implied by the DGRF's, and general weights for fitting the evolution of the broad-scale portion of the scalar potential specified by these models. The difference is non-trivial because not all the geomagnetic data represented by the DGRF's constrain the radial field component. For radial field weights (or general weights), a quantitatively acceptable explication of broad-scale secular change relative to the 1980 Magsat epoch must account for 99.94271 percent (or 99.98784 percent) of the total weighted variance accumulated therein. Tolerable normalized root-mean-square weighted residuals of 2.394 percent (or 1.103 percent) are less than the 7 percent errors expected in the source-free mantle/frozen-flux core approximation.

Secular obliquity variations for Ceres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bills, Bruce; Scott, Bryan R.; Nimmo, Francis

2016-10-01

We have constructed secular variation models for the orbit and spin poles of the asteroid (1) Ceres, and used them to examine how the obliquity, or angular separation between spin and orbit poles, varies over a time span of several million years. The current obliquity is 4.3 degrees, which means that there are some regions near the poles which do not receive any direct Sunlight. The Dawn mission has provided an improved estimate of the spin pole orientation, and of the low degree gravity field. That allows us to estimate the rate at which the spin pole precesses about the instantaneous orbit pole.The orbit of Ceres is secularly perturbed by the planets, with Jupiter's influence dominating. The current inclination of the orbit plane, relative to the ecliptic, is 10.6 degrees. However, it varies between 7.27 and 11.78 degrees, with dominant periods of 22.1 and 39.6 kyr. The spin pole precession rate parameter has a period of 205 kyr, with current uncertainty of 3%, dominated by uncertainty in the mean moment of inertia of Ceres.The obliquity varies, with a dominant period of 24.5 kyr, with maximum values near 26 degrees, and minimum values somewhat less than the present value. Ceres is currently near to a minimum of its secular obliquity variations.The near-surface thermal environment thus has at least 3 important time scales: diurnal (9.07 hours), annual (4.60 years), and obliquity cycle (24.5 kyr). The annual thermal wave likely only penetrates a few meters, but the much long thermal wave associated with the obliquity cycle has a skin depth larger by a factor of 70 or so, depending upon thermal properties in the subsurface.

On the Existence of Regular and Irregular Outer Moons Orbiting the Pluto–Charon System

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Michaely, Erez; Perets, Hagai B.; Grishin, Evgeni

The dwarf planet Pluto is known to host an extended system of five co-planar satellites. Previous studies have explored the formation and evolution of the system in isolation, neglecting perturbative effects by the Sun. Here we show that secular evolution due to the Sun can strongly affect the evolution of outer satellites and rings in the system, if such exist. Although precession due to extended gravitational potential from the inner Pluto–Charon binary quench such secular evolution up to a {sub crit} ∼ 0.0035 au (∼0.09 R {sub Hill} the Hill radius; including all of the currently known satellites), outer orbitsmore » can be significantly altered. In particular, we find that co-planar rings and satellites should not exist beyond a {sub crit}; rather, satellites and dust particles in these regions secularly evolve on timescales ranging between 10{sup 4} and 10{sup 6} years, and quasi-periodically change their inclinations and eccentricities through secular evolution (Lidov–Kozai oscillations). Such oscillations can lead to high inclinations and eccentricities, constraining the range where such satellites (and dust particles) can exist without crossing the orbits of the inner satellites or crossing the outer Hill stability range. Outer satellites, if such exist are therefore likely to be irregular satellites, with orbits limited to be non-circular and/or highly inclined. Current observations, including the recent data from the New-Horizons mission explored only inner regions (<0.0012 au) and excluded the existence of additional satellites; however, the irregular satellites discussed here should reside farther, in the yet uncharted regions around Pluto.« less

Paleomagnetic directions and thermoluminescence dating from a bread oven-floor sequence in Lübeck (Germany): A record of 450 years of geomagnetic secular variation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schnepp, Elisabeth; Pucher, Rudolf; Goedicke, Christian; Manzano, Ana; Müller, Uwe; Lanos, Philippe

2003-02-01

A record of about 450 years of geomagnetic secular variation is presented from a single archaeological site in Lübeck (Germany) where a sequence of 25 bread oven floors has been preserved in a bakery from medieval times until today. The age dating of the oven-floor sequence is based on historical documents, 14C-dating and thermoluminescence dating. It confines the time interval from about 1300 to 1800 A.D. Paleomagnetic directions have been determined from each oven floor by means of 198 oriented hand samples. After alternating field as well as thermal demagnetization experiments, the characteristic remanent magnetization direction was obtained using principal component analysis. The mean directions of 24 oven floors are characterized by high Fisherian precision parameters (>146) and small α95 confidence limits (1.2°-4.6°). For obtaining a smooth curve of geomagnetic secular variation for Lübeck, a spherical spline function was fitted to the data using a Bayesian approach, which considers not only the obtained ages, but also stratigraphic order. Correlation with historical magnetic records suggests that the age estimation for the upper 10 layers was too young and must date from the end of the sixteenth to the mid of the eighteenth century. For the lowermost 14 layers, dating is reliable and provides a secular variation curve for Germany. The inclination shows a minimum in the fourteenth century and then increases by more than 10°. Declination shows a local minimum around 1400 A.D. followed by a maximum in the seventeenth century. This is followed by the movement of declination about 30° to western directions.

Trends and determinants of the Flynn effect in cognitive functioning among older individuals in 10 European countries.

PubMed

Hessel, Philipp; Kinge, Jonas M; Skirbekk, Vegard; Staudinger, Ursula M

2018-05-01

Although cognitive performance levels in old age have increased in most countries, recent evidence documents a slowing down or even decline in cohort gains in highly developed countries. The aim of this study was to assess trends and determinants in secular cohort gains in cognitive functioning among older individuals and whether cohort gains are levelling off in most advanced countries. Data for individuals aged between 50 and 84 years from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe in 10 European countries between 2004 and 2013 (n=92 739) were used to assess country and age-specific changes in immediate word recall. Multivariate random intercept models were used to assess associations between secular cohort changes in immediate word recall, initial performance levels and changes in country-level socio-demographic characteristics. Performance in immediate word recall improved in all countries between 2004 and 2013 (from 4.40 to 5.08 words, P<0.05). However, secular cohort gains were significantly smaller in countries with initially higher performance levels (coeff.=-0.554, 95% CI -0.682 to -0.426). Changes in socio-demographic and health conditions, including decreases in cardiovascular disease, physical activity and educational achievement, were associated with larger secular cohort gains. Results may either reflect that some countries are approaching the limits of cognitive plasticity, are slowing in their progress or that societal structures have not yet been optimised to improve cognitive abilities in midlife and beyond, or a combination of these interpretations. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Historical Improvements in Well-Being Do Not Hold in Late Life: Birth- and Death-Year Cohorts in the US and Germany

PubMed Central

Hülür, Gizem; Ram, Nilam; Gerstorf, Denis

2015-01-01

One key objective of lifespan research is to examine how individual development is shaped by the historical time people live in. Secular trends favoring later-born cohorts on fluid cognitive abilities have been widely documented, but findings are mixed for well-being. It remains an open question whether secular increases in well-being seen in earlier phases of life also manifest in the last years of life. To examine this possibility, we made use of longitudinal data obtained from the mid 1980s until the late 2000s in two large national samples in the US (Health and Retirement Study, HRS) and Germany (German Socio-Economic Panel, SOEP). We operationally defined historical time from two complementary perspectives: birth-year cohorts based on the years people were born (earlier: 1930s vs. later: 1940s); and death-year cohorts based on the years people died (earlier: 1990s vs. later: 2000s). To control for relevant covariates, we used case-matched groups based on age (at death) and education and covaried for gender, health, and number of observations. Results from both countries revealed that well-being in old age was indeed developing at higher levels among later-born cohorts. However, for later-deceased cohorts, no evidence for secular increases in well-being was found. To the contrary, later-dying SOEP participants reported lower levels of well-being at age 75 years and 2 years prior to death and experienced steeper late-life declines. Our results suggest that secular increases in well-being observed in old age do not manifest in late-life where “manufactured” survival may be exacerbating age- and mortality-related declines. PMID:26098582

Explanation of observable secular variations of gravity and alternative methods of determination of drift of the center of mass of the Earth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barkin, Yury

2010-05-01

The summary. On the basis of geodynamic model of the forced relative displacement of the centers of mass of the core and the mantle of the Earth the secular variations of a gravity and heights of some gravimetry stations on a surface of the Earth have ben studied. At the account of secular drift of the center of mass of the Earth which on our geodynamic model is caused by the unidirectional drift of the core of the Earth relatively to the mantle, the full explanation is given to observable secular variations of a gravity at stations Ny-Alesund (Norway), Churchill (Canada), Medicine (Italy), Sayowa (Antarctica), Strastburg (France), Membach (Belgium), Wuhan (China) and Metsahovi (Finland). Two new methods of determination of secular drift of the center of mass of the Earth, alternative to classical method of a space geodesy are offered: 1) on the basis of gravimetry data about secular trends of a gravity at the stations located on all basic regions of the Earth; 2) on the basis of the comparative analysis of altimetry and coastal data about secular changes of sea level also in basic regions of ocean. 1. Secular drift of the center of mass of the core and the center of mass of the Earth. A secular drift of the center of mass of the Earth to the North relatively to special center O on an axis of rotation of the Earth for which the coefficient of third zonal harmonic J3' = 0, has been predicted in the author work [1]. A drift in a direction to a geographical point (pole P) 70°0 N and 104°3 E has been established for the first time theoretically - as a result of the analysis of the global directed redistribution of masses of the Earth, explaining the observed secular drift of the pole of an axis of rotation of the Earth and not tidal acceleration of its axial rotation [2]. In [1] velocity of drift it has been estimated in 1-2 cm/yr. For specified center O the figure of a planet is as though deprived of pure-shaped form (J3' = 0). And in this sense the point O can be conditionally corresponded to the geocenter of the Earth approximately determined by position of stations of satellite observations, as the center of certain mantle systems of coordinates Oxyz. For an explanation of such significant drift of the center of mass of the Earth the mechanism of the unidirectional displacement of the core of the Earth (and its center of mass) relatively to a viscoelastic mantle [1, 2] has been offered. The next years attempts of determination of velocity of secular drift of the center of mass in the mantle reference frame by methods of a space geodesy on the basis of precision satellite observations were repeatedly undertaken. In our work [3] for determination of a trend of the center of mass the data of the International Service of Rotation of the Earth (IERS) for satellite observations of system DORIS have been used. For components of velocity of drift in geocentric Greenwich system of coordinates for period 1999-2007 estimations have been obtained: on coordinate x) -1.46 mm/yr, y) 0.79 mm/yr and z) 5.29 mm/yr (errors of the specified estimations make 5-10 %). The velocity of trend of the center of mass of the Earth and its direction are characterized by values: 5.54 mm/yr; latitude 72°6 N and a longitude 118°4 E. The direction of displacement of the center of mass will well be coordinated with a direction predicted earlier theoretically [2]: latitude 70° N and a longitude 104° E. We shall emphasize, that observable redistributions of superficial masses of the Earth explain only small part of observable displacement of the center of mass. It testifies in favour of a reality of secular relative displacement of the core and the mantle of the Earth. 2 Secular drift of the core to the North and variations of a gravity on the Earth surface. The displaced core of the Earth is characterized by the large superfluous mass approximately in 16.7 masses of the Moon. The superfluous mass is ditermined by contrast values of average densities of the core and the mantle and makes 19.32 % of mass of full the Earth. At displacement of the core relatively to the viscous-elastic mantle its superfluous mass causes observable drift of the center of mass, and also leads to changes of a gravity on the surface of the planet. Except for it the gravitational attraction of a displaced core causes deformations of all layers of the mantle, including a superficial layer. The deformed mantle produses some additional gravitational potential which gives the additional contribution to value of a gravity. Thus, noted factors lead to a secular variation of a gravity which is described by the simple formula [2]: dot g = 2gμmc-(1- h-2- 0.5k-2)ρdot-sin?, μmc = 0.1932m ⊙, g = 9.82022 m -s2 m ⊙ r⊙ (1) Here μmc = 0.1932m⊙ is a superflous mass of the Earth core in the masses of the Earth m⊙. g is an acceleration of free falling. k-2 and h-2 are Love numbers of the order (-2). ρdot is a velocity of the secular drift of the center of mass of the core relatively to the center of mass of the mantle. ?is an angle between dirtection to the pole P (in a direction to which the core of the Earth or its center of mass drifts), and direction to gravimetric station. For rough estimates of gravimetric effects as pole P the North Pole of the Earth has been accepted. Thus ? = ?-2 - φis a co-latitude. At more exact description of the core drift (or the center of mass drift) an angle? is determined by formula: cos? = cosφP cosφcos(λP - λ) + sinφP sinφ, where φP and λP is a latitude and longitude of pole P; φ and λ is a latitude and longitude of station. The Love numbers of the order (-2) in first have been evaluated in the paper [4] and have small values: k-2=-0.005004 and h-2=0.0062154. Approximately we can put ρdot m⊙ = μmcṙC, where ṙC is a velocity of the drift of the center of mass of the Earth. Then, neglecting small effects, for a variation of gravity (1) we obtain a following expression: ? r = 2ṙCg cos?-r⊙. Leaning on results of works [2], [3], we shall accept the following values of parameters of drift of the center of mass: ṙC=5.54 mm/yr, φP=70°0 N, λP=104°3 E. On the other hand a displacement of the center of mass of the Earth leads to effect of slow change of heights of gravimetric station: ḣ = -?dotC cos? = -5.54 × cos? mm/yr. Errors in determination of the specified characteristics in the given work we shall neglect. Besides the gravitational attraction of a displaced core leads also to effect of increase of horizontal component of gravitational force of an attraction of the Earth on its surface directed to the North along the corresponding meridian with pole P. For any point of a surface of the Earth this component of force is determined by the formula ?φ = ṙCg sin?-r⊙ and has positive values. And the maximal values ?φ are reached on equator, which plane is orthogonal to axes of drift of the core OP. Thus, final working formulas for studying of secular variations of components of force of a gravitational attraction of the Earth and for a variation of the heights caused by a drift of the center of mass of the Earth become: ?r = 1.74cos?-r⊙ ?Gal/yr, ?φ = 0.87sin?-r⊙ ?Gal/yr, ḣ = -5.54cos?-r⊙ mm/yr. Calculated values of mentioned gravimetric characteristics (2) for the wide list of gravimetry stations are resulted in work [5] and used in the given work. 3 Explanation of observable secular variations of a gravity and heights on gravimetric stations. We have been analysed observed variations of a gravity and heights available and accessible to us, namely their secular changes, for 8 known gravimetry stations. The periods of observations at mentioned stations make the order of 5-10 years, i.e. are not greater, but nevertheless the obtained results unequivocally testify in favour of that the basic contribution to secular variations of a gravity gives the drifting core of the Earth (by means of direct gravitational influence and due to a contribution to corresponding variations of heights). In the given work we did not consider other factors influencing on gravimetric measurements (superficial redistributions of fluid masses, variations of coefficients of the second and higher harmonics of a geopotential, etc.). As an example here we shall analyse secular variations of a gravity and heights at Ny-Alesund station (geographical coordinates: 78°93 N, 11°87 E, ? =23°16). Linear trends of a gravity and height observable at this station make -2.5±0.9 ?Gal/yr and + (6.9±0.9) mm/yr, accordingly, during 1998-2002 (Sato et.al., 2006). On our model a slow closing of the core to the Ny-Alesund station causes a positive variation of a gravity in 1.60 ?Gal/yr and a negative variation of height of station in -5.09 mm/yr [5]. These data testify a deformation of a surface of the Earth in area of station with a velocity +11.99±0.9 mm/yr owing to which the gravity tests a negative variation -3.74±0.28 ?Gal/yr. Putting effects of a variation of a gravity because of displacement of the core and from deformation of a surface, we obtain negative value for secular trend of gravity in - (2.14±0.28) ?Gal/yr, that within the limits of errors it will be coordinated with observable value - (2.5±0.9) ?Gal/yr. Similar results we have obtained for 7 another's gravimetric stations. All results are summarized in the table 1. Here we have used known data about observable secular trends of gravity and GPS heights at considered here stations of the following authors: Ny-Alesund (Sato et al., 2006); Churchill (Larson et al., 2000); Medicine (Zerbini et al., 2001); Syowa (Fukuda et.al., 2007); Strastburg (Almavict et. al., 2004); Membach (Francis et al., 2004); Wuhan (Xu et al., 2008); Metsahovi (Gitlein et. al., 2009). Table 1. Theoretical and observable values of secular variations of a gravity. Stations Core attractionSurface deformation Theory Observations Ny-Alesund+1.60 ?Gal/yr -(3.77±0.09) ?Gal/yr -(2.17±0.03) ?Gal/yr -(2.5±0.9) ?Gal/yr Churchill +1.11 ?Gal/yr -(3.38±0.28) ?Gal/yr -(2.22±0.28) ?Gal/yr -(2.13±0.23) ?Gal/yr Medicina +1.13 ?Gal/yr +(1.07±0.20) ?Gal/yr+(2.20±0.20) ?Gal/yr+(1.90±0.20) ?Gal/yr Syowa -1.44 ?Gal/yr +(0.63±0.08) ?Gal/yr-(0.81±0.08) ?Gal/yr -0.56 ?Gal/yr Strastburg +1.18 ?Gal/yr +(0.71±0.02) ?Gal/yr+(1.89±0.02) ?Gal/yr+(1.90±0.20) ?Gal/yr Membach +1.21 ?Gal/yr -(1.98±0.16) ?Gal/yr -(0.77±0.16) ?Gal/yr -(0.6±0.1) ?Gal/yr Wuhan +1.34 ?Gal/yr -(0.17±0.05) ?Gal/yr +(1.17±0.05) ?Gal/yr+(1.39±0.02) ?Gal/yr Metsahovi +1.47 ?Gal/yr -(2.82±0.06) ?Gal/yr +(1.35±0.06) ?Gal/yr-(0.88±0.52) ?Gal/yr

Processes of believing: Where do they come from? What are they good for?

PubMed

Seitz, Rüdiger J; Paloutzian, Raymond F; Angel, Hans-Ferdinand

2016-01-01

Despite the long scholarly discourse in Western theology and philosophy on religion, spirituality, and faith, explanations of what a belief and what believing is are still lacking. Recently, cognitive neuroscience research addressed the human capacity of believing. We present evidence suggesting that believing is a human brain function which results in probabilistic representations with attributes of personal meaning and value and thereby guides individuals' behavior. We propose that the same mental processes operating on narratives and rituals constitute belief systems in individuals and social groups. Our theoretical model of believing is suited to account for secular and non-secular belief formation.

Church ownership and hospital efficiency.

PubMed

White, K R; Ozcan, Y A

1996-01-01

Using a sample of California hospitals, the effect of church ownership was examined as it relates to nonprofit hospital efficiency. Efficiency scores were computed using a nonparametric method called data envelopment analysis (DEA). Controlling for hospital size, location, system membership, and type of church ownership, church-owned hospitals were found to be more frequently in the efficient category than their secular nonprofit counterparts. The outcomes have policy implications for reducing healthcare expenditures by focusing on increasing outputs or decreasing inputs, as appropriate, and bolstering the case for church-sponsored hospitals to retain the tax-exempt status due to their ability to manage their resources as efficiently as (or more efficiently than) secular hospitals.

Secular changes of LOD associated with a growth of the inner core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Denis, C.; Rybicki, K. R.; Varga, P.

2006-05-01

From recent estimates of the age of the inner core based on the theory of thermal evolution of the core, we estimate that nowadays the growth of the inner core may perhaps contribute to the observed overall secular increase of LOD caused mainly by tidal friction (i.e., 1.72 ms per century) by a relative decrease of 2 to 7 μs per century. Another, albeit much less plausible, hypothesis is that crystallization of the inner core does not produce any change of LOD, but makes the inner core rotate differentially with respect to the outer core and mantle.

Bioethics for clinicians: 22. Jewish bioethics

PubMed Central

Goldsand, Gary; Rosenberg, Zahava R.S.; Gordon, Michael

2001-01-01

Jewish bioethics in the contemporary era emerges from the traditional practice of applying principles of Jewish law (Halacha) to ethical dilemmas. The Bible (written law) and the Talmud (oral law) are the foundational texts on which such deliberations are based. Interpretation of passages in these texts attempts to identify the duties of physicians, patients and families faced with difficult health care decisions. Although Jewish law is an integral consideration of religiously observant Jews, secularized Jewish patients often welcome the wisdom of their tradition when considering treatment options. Jewish bioethics exemplifies how an ethical system based on duties may differ from the secular rights-based model prevalent in North American society. PMID:11332319

A proposed International Geomagnetic Reference Field for 1965- 1985.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Peddie, N.W.; Fabiano, E.B.

1982-01-01

A set of spherical harmonic models describing the Earth's main magnetic field from 1965 to 1985 has been developed and is proposed as the next revision of the International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF). A tenth degree and order spherical harmonic model of the main field was derived from Magsat data. A series of eighth degree and order spherical harmonic models of the secular variation of the main field was derived from magnetic observatory annual mean values. Models of the main field at 1965, 1970, 1975, and 1980 were obtained by extrapolating the main-field model using the secular variation models.-Authors spherical harmonic models Earth main magnetic field Magsat data

Super-Hubble de Sitter fluctuations and the dynamical RG

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burgess, C. P.; Leblond, L.; Holman, R.; Shandera, S.

2010-03-01

Perturbative corrections to correlation functions for interacting theories in de Sitter spacetime often grow secularly with time, due to the properties of fluctuations on super-Hubble scales. This growth can lead to a breakdown of perturbation theory at late times. We argue that Dynamical Renormalization Group (DRG) techniques provide a convenient framework for interpreting and resumming these secularly growing terms. In the case of a massless scalar field in de Sitter with quartic self-interaction, the resummed result is also less singular in the infrared, in precisely the manner expected if a dynamical mass is generated. We compare this improved infrared behavior with large-N expansions when applicable.

Processes of believing: Where do they come from? What are they good for?

PubMed Central

Seitz, Rüdiger J.; Paloutzian, Raymond F.; Angel, Hans-Ferdinand

2017-01-01

Despite the long scholarly discourse in Western theology and philosophy on religion, spirituality, and faith, explanations of what a belief and what believing is are still lacking. Recently, cognitive neuroscience research addressed the human capacity of believing. We present evidence suggesting that believing is a human brain function which results in probabilistic representations with attributes of personal meaning and value and thereby guides individuals’ behavior. We propose that the same mental processes operating on narratives and rituals constitute belief systems in individuals and social groups. Our theoretical model of believing is suited to account for secular and non-secular belief formation. PMID:28105309

Church-Based Social Support, Functional Disability, and Change in Personal Control over Time

PubMed Central

Krause, Neal; Hayward, R. David

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study is to see if measures of church-based and secular social support offset the effects of functional disability on change in feelings of personal control over time. Survey data were obtained from Wave 2 and Wave 3 of a nationwide sample of older adults (N = 583). The findings suggest that spiritual support from fellow church members offsets the effects of functional disability on change in feelings of personal control over time. In contrast, neither emotional support from fellow church members nor emotional support from secular social network members exerted a similar effect. PMID:23553003

Religion, secular medicine and utilitarianism: a response to Biggar.

PubMed

Smith, Kevin R

2015-11-01

Nigel Biggar has argued that religion ought to be given a seat at the negotiating table of medical ethics. I respond in broadly utilitarian terms, arguing that the flawed empirical basis, lack of rationality and non-universality inherent in religion disqualify it from ethical discourse. I conclude that while it would be unacceptable to attempt to debar religious individuals from the negotiating table, an exclusively secular approach is required for ethical decision making in medicine. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Poisson equations of rotational motion for a rigid triaxial body with application to a tumbling artificial satellite

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liu, J. J. F.; Fitzpatrick, P. M.

1975-01-01

A mathematical model is developed for studying the effects of gravity gradient torque on the attitude stability of a tumbling triaxial rigid satellite. Poisson equations are used to investigate the rotation of the satellite (which is in elliptical orbit about an attracting point mass) about its center of mass. An averaging method is employed to obtain an intermediate set of differential equations for the nonresonant, secular behavior of the osculating elements which describe the rotational motions of the satellite, and the averaged equations are then integrated to obtain long-term secular solutions for the osculating elements.

Propagation of sound in turbulent media

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wenzel, A. R.

1976-01-01

Perturbation methods commonly used to study the propagation of acoustic waves in turbulent media are reviewed. Emphasis is on those techniques which are applicable to problems involving long-range propagation in the atmosphere and ocean. Characteristic features of the various methods are illustrated by applying them to particular problems. It is shown that conventional perturbation techniques, such as the Born approximation, yield solutions which contain secular terms, and which therefore have a relatively limited range of validity. In contrast, it is found that solutions obtained with the aid of the Rytov method or the smoothing method do not contain secular terms, and consequently have a much greater range of validity.

Effects of socioeconomic factors on secular trends in suicide in Japan, 1953-86.

PubMed

Motohashi, Y

1991-04-01

The effects of socioeconomic factors on secular trends in suicide rates in Japan for the periods 1953-72 and 1973-86 were investigated using twelve socioeconomic indicators. Multiple regression analysis showed that the socioeconomic indicators affecting suicide rates were not identical in the two periods. The rates in both sexes in 1953-72 were closely related to unemployment rate and the labour force but between 1973 and 1986, divorce rate and the proportion in tertiary industry were most influential. The changes reflect the socioeconomic changes in industrial structure in Japan in transition from an industrial to a service economy.

Bioethics: secular philosophy, Jewish law and modern medicine.

PubMed

Steinberg, A

1989-07-01

The recent unprecedented expansion of scientific knowledge and the greater awareness and involvement of the public in medical matters, as well as additional causes described here, have impelled the development of a new form of bioethics over the past three decades. Jewish law and philosophy have always dealt with medical issues. In recent years, however, a voluminous body of literature devoted to Jewish medical ethics has developed. It covers all relevant issues and offers Jewish solutions to many complex problems arising from the recent scientific breakthroughs. This article analyzes the differences between Jewish and secular philosophies regarding fundamental moral theories relevant to modern medical ethics.

Secular Trends in Habitual Physical Activities of Mozambican Children and Adolescents from Maputo City

PubMed Central

dos Santos, Fernanda Karina; Maia, José A. R.; Gomes, Thayse Natacha Q. F.; Daca, Timóteo; Madeira, Aspacia; Damasceno, Albertino; Katzmarzyk, Peter T.; Prista, António

2014-01-01

Social and economic changes occurring in the last two decades in Mozambique may have induced lifestyle changes among youth. This study aimed to document secular changes in habitual physical activities of Mozambican youth between 1992, 1999 and 2012. A total of 3393 youth (eight–15 years), were measured in three different time periods (1992, 1999, 2012). Habitual physical activity (PA) was estimated with a questionnaire, including items related to household chores, sport participation, traditional games and walking activities. Biological maturation was assessed. Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to compare mean differences in PA across the years. Significant decreases between 1992–1999 and 1992–2012 were observed for boys in household chores, games and walking, and a significant decline between 1999 and 2012 was found in sport participation.Among girls, a significant and consistent decline (1992 > 1999 > 2012) was observed for household chores, a decline between 1992–1999 and 1992–2012 for games and walking, and a significant increase between 1992 and 1999 in sport participation. In general, a negative secular trend was found in habitual PA among Mozambican youth. Interventions aimed at increasing PA represent important educational and public health opportunities. PMID:25337941

Adolescents' goal orientations for science in single-gender Israeli religious schools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fortus, David; Daphna, Limor

2017-01-01

Israeli students and their families can choose between state-funded secular, religious, orthodox, and other alternative schools (e.g., Waldorf, Montessori, democratic). Earlier studies showed that the motivation to engage with science differs greatly between Israeli students in secular schools and democratic schools, with these differences being attributed to differences in school culture rather than home influence (Vedder-Weiss & Fortus, 2011, 2012). In this study we extend earlier studies by looking at religious state-funded schools that serve 18% of Israel's Jewish population. These schools provide a unique research environment since from grade 6 they are gender-separated. We examined the science-related mastery, performance-approach, and performance-avoid goal orientations, perceptions of the science teachers, parents, schools, and peers' goal emphases in relation to science of the students in these schools. We compared between students in religious schools (newly collected data) and secular schools (data reported in prior studies), and found that there is a distinct difference between these two populations that is associated with differing attitudes toward gender and science at these schools. This study provides additional evidence for the influence of culture on students' motivation to engage with science, suggests mechanisms by which this influence may occur.

Spherical Cap Harmonic Modelling of 400 Years of Secular Variation in the South-west Pacific

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ingham, M.; Alfheid, M.; Ingham, E. M.; Turner, G. M.

2014-12-01

Historical magnetic data recorded in ship's logs on voyages of exploration and trade in the south-west Pacific have been used as a basis for constructing a model of secular variation in the region using spherical cap harmonic (SCH) analysis. The spherical cap used is centred on colatitude 115° and longitude 160° and has a radius of 50°, thus covering New Zealand, Australia and parts of Antarctica. Gaps in the observational data have been filled by an iterative procedure started by using IGRF field values to obtain SCH models for 2000, 1950 and 1900 and assuming that the spherical cap coefficients have a linear variation in time over the 400 year time period of the model, as is observed to a first approximation for Gauss coefficients calculated from a global spherical harmonic analysis. The resulting field models have generally smooth spatial and temporal variations in declination, inclination and intensity which show some differences from the variations calculated using the global spherical harmonic model gufm1. The technique clearly shows promise for producing more refined models of secular variation in the south-west Pacific when the historical data are supplemented by archeomagnetic and paleomagnetic data.

When Fairness Clashes with Personal Autonomy and Parental Authority: A Comparison of Daughters' and Mothers' Reasoning in Two Cultural Contexts in Turkey.

PubMed

Acar, Melike

2017-01-01

The author examined religious and secular daughters' and mothers' reasoning about personal autonomy, maternal authority, and moral concepts in family decision-making situations in urban Turkey. Sixty-eight daughters and 34 mothers were individually interviewed about decision-making autonomy in general issues and hypothetical daughter-mother conflicts. Results indicated participants regardless of their family status and religious background assigned more decision-making autonomy to mothers when evaluating general issues. Analysis of controversial issues as hypothetical conflicts indicated that daughters and mothers do not hold unitary social judgments about the social world that were always consistent with the norms of their community and family status. There were some religious background differences in evaluations of some conflict stories as a function of whether they evaluated the choices as moral, conventional, personal, and prudential matters. Although secular and religious participants conceptualized daughters and mothers in relational terms rather than characterizing the relations and social issues by harmony, obedience to authority, and acceptance of norms findings suggested that secular women evaluated the hypothetical adolescent-mother conflicts more consistently when the issue entails violation of a moral principle such as justice, fairness, and well-being of the other.

SDSS (g--r) colors of isolated galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fernández Lorenzo, M.; Sulentic, J.; Verdes-Montenegro, L.; Ruiz, J. E.; Sabater, J.; Sánchez-Expósito, S.

2013-05-01

Several processes can affect a galaxy over its lifetime. If effects of interaction with companions are minimized, it is possible to focus on secular evolutionary processes. We present a study of the SDSS (g--r) colors of isolated galaxies in the AMIGA project (Analysis of the interstellar Medium of Isolated GAlaxies; http://www.amiga.iaa.es). Assuming that color is an indicator of the star formation history, this work better records the signature of passive star formation via pure secular evolution. We focused on median values for the main morphological subtypes found in the AMIGA sample (66% Sb--Sc and 14% E/S0) and compared them with equivalent measures of galaxies in denser environments. The main results of this study include: 1) a tendency for AMIGA spiral galaxies to be redder than similar type galaxies in close pairs, but 2) no clear difference when we compare with galaxies in other (e.g. group) environments; 3) a Gaussian distribution of the (g--r) color of isolated galaxies, as might be expected in the case of pure secular evolution; and 4) a smaller median absolute deviation in colors for isolated galaxies compared to both wide and close pairs.

Secular changes in body dimensions and sexual maturation in children of Arkhangelsk city.

PubMed

Godina, Elena Z; Khomyakova, Irina A; Zadorozhnaya, Ludmila V

2016-01-01

The aim of the present study was to analyze secular changes in body measurements in children of the Arkhangelsk city from 1988 to 2010. A large number of anthropometric measurements were taken on each individual including height, weight, arm, leg and trunk lengths (estimated), body diameters and circumferences, skinfold thickness. Stages of secondary sex characteristics were also evaluated; data on menarcheal age were collected by status-quo method. It was shown that main differences in stature occurred at puberty while in elder children (16-17-year-olds) no statistically significant differences were found. The same pattern was typical for weight and BMI. Chest circumference significantly increased, particularly in girls. For modern children, changes in body proportions due to a bigger trunk length were typical. There were also significant differences in the distribution of subcutaneous fat layer: in modern children bigger fat accumulation was present on the trunk, particularly in abdomen area, vs. fat layer on the extremities. Process of sexual maturation according to mean ages of development of secondary sex characteristics occurred earlier in modern adolescents, which is more expressed in girls. The results can be interpreted in terms of ongoing secular trend.

Relationship of Inglehart's and Schwartz's value dimensions revisited.

PubMed

Dobewall, Henrik; Strack, Micha

2014-08-01

This study examines the relationship between Inglehart's and Schwartz's value dimensions-both at the individual and the country levels. By rotating one set of items towards the other, we show that these value dimensions have more in common than previously reported. The ranking of countries (N = 47) based on Schwartz's Embeddedness--Autonomy and the Survival--Self-Expression dimensions reached a maximum of similarity, r = .82, after rotating Inglehart's factor scores 27 degrees clockwise. The correlation between the other pair of dimensions (Schwartz's Hierarchy-Mastery--Egalitarianism-Harmony and Inglehart's Traditional--Secular-Rational values) was near zero before and after rotation. At the individual level (N = 46,444), positive correlations were found for Schwartz's Conservation--Openness dimension with both of Inglehart's dimensions (Survival--Self-Expression and Traditional--Secular-Rational values). The highest correlation with this Schwartz dimension was obtained at the Secular-Rational/Self-Expression diagonal, r = .24, after rotating the factor scores 45 degrees clockwise. We conclude that Schwartz's and Inglehart's originally proposed two-dimensional value structures share one dimension at the country level and some commonality at the individual level, whereas the respective other pair of dimensions seem to be more or less unrelated. © 2013 International Union of Psychological Science.

The 2010 slow slip event and secular motion at Kilauea, Hawai`i inferred from TerraSAR-X InSAR data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chen, Jingyi; Zebker, Howard A.; Segall, Paul; Miklius, Asta

2014-01-01

We present here an Small BAseline Subset (SBAS) algorithm to extract both transient and secular ground deformations on the order of millimeters in the presence of tropospheric noise on the order of centimeters, when the transient is of short duration and known time, and the background deformation is smooth in time. We applied this algorithm to study the 2010 slow slip event as well as the secular motion of Kīlauea's south flank using 49 TerraSAR-X images. We also estimate the tropospheric delay variation relative to a given reference pixel using an InSAR SBAS approach. We compare the InSAR SBAS solution for both ground deformation and tropospheric delays with existing GPS measurements and confirm that the ground deformation signal andtropospheric noise in InSAR data are successfully separated. We observe that the coastal region on the south side of the Hilina Pali moves at a higher background rate than the region north side of the Pali. We also conclude that the 2010 SSE displacement is mainly horizontal and the maximum magnitude of the 2010 SSE vertical component is less than 5 mm.

Observed tidal braking in the earth/moon/sun system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Christodoulidis, D. C.; Smith, D. E.; Williamson, R. G.; Klosko, S. M.

1988-01-01

The low degree and order terms in the spherical harmonic model of the tidal potential were observed through the perturbations which are induced on near-earth satellite orbital motions. Evaluations of tracking observations from 17 satellites and a GEM-T1 geopotential model were used in the tidal recovery which was made in the presence of over 600 long-wavelength coefficients from 32 major and minor tides. Wahr's earth tidal model was used as a basis for the recovery of the ocean tidal terms. Using this tidal model, the secular change in the moon's mean motion due to tidal dissipation was found to be -25.27 + or - 0.61 arcsec/century-squared. The estimation of lunar acceleration agreed with that observed from lunar laser ranging techniques (-24.9 + or - 1.0 arcsec/century-squared), with the corresponding tidal braking of earth's rotation being -5.98 + or - 0.22 X 10 to the -22 rad/second-squared. If the nontidal braking of the earth due to the observed secular change in the earth's second zonal harmonic is considered, satellite techniques yield a total value of the secular change in the earth's rotation rate of -4.69 + or - 0.36 X 10 to the -22 rad/second-squared.

The effect of secular trends in the classroom furniture mismatch: support for continuous update of school furniture standards.

PubMed

Castellucci, H I; Arezes, P M; Molenbroek, J F M; Viviani, C

2015-01-01

In order to create safer schools, the Chilean authorities published a Standard regarding school furniture dimensions. The aims of this study are twofold: to verify the existence of positive secular trend within the Chilean student population and to evaluate the potential mismatch between the anthropometric characteristics and the school furniture dimensions defined by the mentioned standard. The sample consists of 3078 subjects. Eight anthropometric measures were gathered, together with six furniture dimensions from the mentioned standard. There is an average increase for some dimensions within the Chilean student population over the past two decades. Accordingly, almost 18% of the students will find the seat height to be too high. Seat depth will be considered as being too shallow for 42.8% of the students. It can be concluded that the Chilean student population has increased in stature, which supports the need to revise and update the data from the mentioned Standard. Positive secular trend resulted in high levels of mismatch if furniture is selected according to the current Chilean Standard which uses data collected more than 20 years ago. This study shows that school furniture standards need to be updated over time.

Mapping structural influences on sex and HIV education in church and secular schools in Zimbabwe.

PubMed

Mpofu, Elias; Mutepfa, Magen Mhaka; Hallfors, Denise Dion

2012-09-01

The authors used state-of-the-art concept mapping approaches to examine structural institutional effects of church and secular high schools on the types of sexual and HIV-prevention education messages transmitted to learners in Zimbabwe. Participants were school teachers (n = 26), school counselors (n = 28), and pastors involved in student pastoral care (n = 14; males = 27, females = 41). They reported on messages perceived to influence sexual decisions of learners in their school setting. The self-report data were clustered into message types using concept mapping and contrasted for consistency of content and structure both between and within type of school. The authors also engaged in curriculum document study with member checks in the participant schools to determine convergence of the evidence on school-type effects of the messages transmitted to students. Church schools prioritized faith-informed sexual and HIV-prevention messages, whereas both types of schools prioritized Life skills education and a future focus. Secular schools prioritized sex and HIV messages in the context of community norms. Facts about HIV and AIDS were relatively underemphasized by church schools. The implicit knowledge values that differentiate types of schools influence learner access to information important for their sexual decisions.

Mapping Structural Influences on Sex and HIV Education in Church and Secular Schools in Zimbabwe

PubMed Central

Mpofu, Elias; Mutepfa, Magen Mhaka; Hallfors, Denise Dion

2012-01-01

We used state-of-the-art concept mapping approaches to examine structural institutional effects of church and secular schools on the types of sexual and HIV prevention education messages transmitted to learners. Participants were school teachers (n=26), school counselors (n=28) and pastors involved in student pastoral care (n=14) (males =27, females =41). They reported on perceived messages to influence sexual decisions of learners in their school setting. The self-report data were clustered into message types using concept mapping and contrasted for consistency of content and structure both between and within type of school. We also engaged in extended document study with member checks in the participant schools to determine convergence of the evidence on school type effects of the messages transmitted to students. Church schools prioritized faith informed sexual and HIV prevention messages, whereas both types of schools prioritized life skills education and a future focus. Secular schools prioritized sex and HIV messages in the context of community norms. Facts about HIV and AIDS were relatively underemphasized by church schools. The implicit knowledge values that differentiate types of schools influence learner access to information important for their sexual decisions. PMID:22582341

The possibility of a universal declaration of biomedical ethics

PubMed Central

Hedayat, K M

2007-01-01

Statements on issues in biomedical ethics, purporting to represent international interests, have been put forth by numerous groups. Most of these groups are composed of thinkers in the tradition of European secularism, and do not take into account the values of other ethical systems. One fifth of the world's population is accounted for by Islam, which is a universal religion, with more than 1400 years of scholarship. Although many values are held in common by secular ethical systems and Islam, their inferences are different. The question, “Is it possible to derive a truly universal declaration of biomedical ethics?” is discussed here by examining the value and extent of personal autonomy in Western and Islamic biomedical ethical constructs. These constructs are then tested vis‐à‐vis the issue of abortion. It is concluded that having a universal declaration of biomedical ethics in practice is not possible, although there are many conceptual similarities and agreements between secular and Islamic value systems, unless a radical paradigm shift occurs in segments of the world's deliberative bodies. The appellation “universal” should not be used on deliberative statements unless the ethical values of all major schools of thought are satisfied. PMID:17209104

Archaeomagnetic secular variation in the UK during the past 4000 years and its application to archaeomagnetic dating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zananiri, I.; Batt, C. M.; Lanos, Ph.; Tarling, D. H.; Linford, P.

2007-02-01

This paper examines the limitations and deficiencies of the current British archaeomagnetic calibration curve and applies several mathematical approaches in an attempt to produce an improved secular variation curve for the UK for use in archaeomagnetic dating. The dataset compiled is the most complete available in the UK, incorporating published results, PhD theses and unpublished laboratory reports. It comprises 620 archaeomagnetic (directional) data and 238 direct observations of the geomagnetic field, and includes all relevant information available about the site, the archaeomagnetic direction and the archaeological age. A thorough examination of the data was performed to assess their quality and reliability. Various techniques were employed in order to use the data to construct a secular variation (SV) record: moving window with averaging and median, as well as Bayesian statistical modelling. The SV reference curve obtained for the past 4000 years is very similar to that from France, most differences occurring during the early medieval period (or Dark Ages). Two examples of dating of archaeological structures, medieval and pre-Roman, are presented based on the new SV curve for the UK and the implications for archaeomagnetic dating are discussed.

Secular trends: a ten-year comparison of the amount and type of physical activity and inactivity of random samples of adolescents in the Czech Republic

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background An optimal level of physical activity (PA) in adolescence influences the level of PA in adulthood. Although PA declines with age have been demonstrated repeatedly, few studies have been carried out on secular trends. The present study assessed levels, types and secular trends of PA and sedentary behaviour of a sample of adolescents in the Czech Republic. Methods The study comprised two cross-sectional cohorts of adolescents ten years apart. The analysis compared data collected through a week-long monitoring of adolescents' PA in 1998-2000 and 2008-2010. Adolescents wore either Yamax SW-701 or Omron HJ-105 pedometer continuously for 7 days (at least 10 hours per day) excluding sleeping, hygiene and bathing. They also recorded their number of steps per day, the type and duration of PA and sedentary behaviour (in minutes) on record sheets. In total, 902 adolescents (410 boys; 492 girls) aged 14-18 were eligible for analysis. Results Overweight and obesity in Czech adolescents participating in this study increased from 5.5% (older cohort, 1998-2000) to 10.4% (younger cohort, 2008-2010). There were no inter-cohort significant changes in the total amount of sedentary behaviour in boys. However in girls, on weekdays, there was a significant increase in the total duration of sedentary behaviour of the younger cohort (2008-2010) compared with the older one (1998-2000). Studying and screen time (television and computer) were among the main sedentary behaviours in Czech adolescents. The types of sedentary behaviour also changed: watching TV (1998-2000) was replaced by time spent on computers (2008-2010). The Czech health-related criterion (achieving 11,000 steps per day) decreased only in boys from 68% (1998-2000) to 55% (2008-2010). Across both genders, 55%-75% of Czech adolescents met the health-related criterion of recommended steps per day, however less participants in the younger cohort (2008-2010) met this criterion than in the older cohort (1998-2000) ten years ago. Adolescents' PA levels for the monitored periods of 1998-2000 and 2008-2010 suggest a secular decrease in the weekly number of steps achieved by adolescent boys and girls. Conclusion In the younger cohort (2008-2010), every tenth adolescent was either overweight or obese; roughly twice the rate when compared to the older cohort (1998-2000). Sedentary behaviour seems relatively stable across the two cohorts as the increased time that the younger cohort (2008-2010) spent on computers is compensated with an equally decreased time spent watching TV or studying. Across both cohorts about half to three quarters of the adolescents met the health-related criterion for achieved number of steps. The findings show a secular decrease in PA amongst adolescents. The significant interaction effects (cohort × age; and cohort × gender) that this study found suggested that secular trends in PA differ by age and gender. PMID:21943194

Secular trends: a ten-year comparison of the amount and type of physical activity and inactivity of random samples of adolescents in the Czech Republic.

PubMed

Sigmundová, Dagmar; El Ansari, Walid; Sigmund, Erik; Frömel, Karel

2011-09-26

An optimal level of physical activity (PA) in adolescence influences the level of PA in adulthood. Although PA declines with age have been demonstrated repeatedly, few studies have been carried out on secular trends. The present study assessed levels, types and secular trends of PA and sedentary behaviour of a sample of adolescents in the Czech Republic. The study comprised two cross-sectional cohorts of adolescents ten years apart. The analysis compared data collected through a week-long monitoring of adolescents' PA in 1998-2000 and 2008-2010. Adolescents wore either Yamax SW-701 or Omron HJ-105 pedometer continuously for 7 days (at least 10 hours per day) excluding sleeping, hygiene and bathing. They also recorded their number of steps per day, the type and duration of PA and sedentary behaviour (in minutes) on record sheets. In total, 902 adolescents (410 boys; 492 girls) aged 14-18 were eligible for analysis. Overweight and obesity in Czech adolescents participating in this study increased from 5.5% (older cohort, 1998-2000) to 10.4% (younger cohort, 2008-2010). There were no inter-cohort significant changes in the total amount of sedentary behaviour in boys. However in girls, on weekdays, there was a significant increase in the total duration of sedentary behaviour of the younger cohort (2008-2010) compared with the older one (1998-2000). Studying and screen time (television and computer) were among the main sedentary behaviours in Czech adolescents. The types of sedentary behaviour also changed: watching TV (1998-2000) was replaced by time spent on computers (2008-2010).The Czech health-related criterion (achieving 11,000 steps per day) decreased only in boys from 68% (1998-2000) to 55% (2008-2010). Across both genders, 55%-75% of Czech adolescents met the health-related criterion of recommended steps per day, however less participants in the younger cohort (2008-2010) met this criterion than in the older cohort (1998-2000) ten years ago. Adolescents' PA levels for the monitored periods of 1998-2000 and 2008-2010 suggest a secular decrease in the weekly number of steps achieved by adolescent boys and girls. In the younger cohort (2008-2010), every tenth adolescent was either overweight or obese; roughly twice the rate when compared to the older cohort (1998-2000). Sedentary behaviour seems relatively stable across the two cohorts as the increased time that the younger cohort (2008-2010) spent on computers is compensated with an equally decreased time spent watching TV or studying. Across both cohorts about half to three quarters of the adolescents met the health-related criterion for achieved number of steps. The findings show a secular decrease in PA amongst adolescents. The significant interaction effects (cohort × age; and cohort × gender) that this study found suggested that secular trends in PA differ by age and gender.

Secular change and inter-annual variability of the Gulf Stream position, 1993-2013, 70°-55°W

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bisagni, James J.; Gangopadhyay, Avijit; Sanchez-Franks, Alejandra

2017-07-01

The Gulf Stream (GS) is the northeastward-flowing surface limb of the Atlantic Ocean's meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) ;conveyer belt; that flows towards Europe and the Nordic Seas. Changes in the GS position after its separation from the coast at Cape Hatteras, i.e., from 75°W to 50°W, may be key to understanding the AMOC, sea level variability and ecosystem behavior along the east coast of North America. In this study we compare secular change and inter-annual variability (IAV) of the Gulf Stream North Wall (GSNW) position with equator-ward Labrador Current (LC) transport along the southwestern Grand Banks near 52°W using 21 years (1993-2013) of satellite altimeter data. Results at 55°, 60°, and 65°W show a significant southward (negative) secular trend for the GSNW, decreasing to a small but insignificant southward trend at 70°W. IAV of de-trended GSNW position residuals also decreases to the west. The long-term secular trend of annual mean upper layer (200 m) LC transport near 52°W is positive. Furthermore, IAV of LC transport residuals near 52°W along the southwestern Grand Banks are significantly correlated with GSNW position residuals at 55°W at a lag of +1-year, with positive (negative) LC transport residuals corresponding to southward (northward) GSNW positions one year later. The Taylor-Stephens index (TSI) computed from the first principal component of the GSNW position from 79° to 65°W shows a similar relationship with a more distal LC index computed along altimeter ground track 250 located north of the Grand Banks across Hamilton Bank in the western Labrador Sea. Increased (decreased) sea height differences along ground track 250 are significantly correlated with a more southward (northward) TSI two years later (lag of +2-years). Spectral analysis of IAV reveals corresponding spectral peaks at 5-7 years and 2-3 years for the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), GSNW (70°-55°W) and LC transport near 52°W for the 1993-2013 period suggesting a connection between these phenomena. An upper-layer (200 m) slope water volume calculation using the LC IAV rms residual of +1.04 Sv near 52°W results in an estimated GSNW IAV residual of 79 km, or 63% of the observed 125.6 km (1.13°) rms value at 55°W. A similar upper-layer slope water volume calculation using the positive long-term, upper-layer LC transport trend accounts for 68% of the mean observed secular southward shift of the GSNW between 55° and 70°W over the 1993-2013 period. Our work provides additional observational evidence of important interactions between the upper layers of the sub-polar and sub-tropical gyres within the North Atlantic over both secular and inter-annual time scales as suggested by previous studies.

Tilt observations using borehole tiltmeters. I - Analysis of tidal and secular tilt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Levine, Judah; Meertens, Charles; Busby, Robert

1989-01-01

A borehole tiltmeter that uses two horizontal pendulums with periods of 1 sec is described, together with the methods developed for recording and analyzing data obtained with this tiltmeter. The results of measurements made at seven sites in Colorado and Wyoming to evaluate the secular tilt, the tides, and the coherence between nearby instruments are presented. Significant coherance was found between tilts at intermediate periods (from 0.5 to 2 cycles per day) measured by closely spaced instruments, but the long-period tilts showed less correlation. The measurements of the earth tides in Colorado were found to agree well with values predicted on the basis of simple first-order models.

The sociology of late secularization: social divisions and religiosity.

PubMed

Bruce, Steve

2016-12-01

At the start of the twentieth century the religious differed from the religiously indifferent largely in being religious. Now they differ in a number of other social and demographic characteristics that reduce interaction between the two populations further than simple numbers would require. That some of the main carriers of religion are immigrants or adherents of recently imported faiths reinforces the sense that religion is what other people do. In the context of the stock of religious knowledge being depleted and religion-taken-too-seriously being unpopular, the narrow demographic base of the religious makes conversion unlikely and thus makes the reversal of secularization unlikely. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2016.

Physical stature of adult Tsimane' Amerindians, Bolivian Amazon in the 20th century.

PubMed

Godoy, Ricardo A; Leonard, William R; Reyes-García, Victoria; Goodman, Elizabeth; McDade, Thomas; Huanca, Tomás; Tanner, Susan; Vadez, Vincent

2006-06-01

We examine the association between exposure to the market and Western society on the height of adult Tsimane', a foraging-farming society in the Bolivian Amazon. As with other contemporary native peoples, we find little evidence of a significant secular change in height during 1920-1980. Female height bore a positive association with own schooling and fluency in spoken Spanish and with maternal modern human capital (schooling, writing ability, and fluency in spoken Spanish), but male heights bore no association with parental height or with modern human capital. The absence of a secular change likely reflects the persistence of traditional forms of social organization and production that protect health.

The secular and the supernatural: madness and psychiatry in the short stories of Muriel Spark.

PubMed

Beveridge, A W

2015-01-01

Edinburgh-born Muriel Spark is one of modern Scotland's greatest writers. Examination of her work reveals that the subjects of madness and psychiatry are recurrent themes in her writing. She herself had a mental breakdown when she was a young woman and she took an interest in the world of psychiatry and psychoanalysis. In her short stories, Spark approaches the subject of madness in a variety of ways: she relates it to the supernatural; to writing fiction; and to religion. She frequently juxtaposes secular and supernatural explanations of mental disturbance. Spark adopts a sceptical and, at times, mocking view of psychiatrists and psychiatric treatment. Both psychoanalysis and pills are seen as problematic.

True Love Waits: Do Southern Baptists? Premarital Sexual Behavior Among Newly Married Southern Baptist Sunday School Students

PubMed Central

Weathersbee, Byron

2011-01-01

This study measures premarital sex prevalence, sources of sex education, and support for secular sex education among 151 newly married young adults surveyed at 9 Texas Southern Baptist churches. More than 70% of respondents reported having had premarital vaginal or oral sex, but more than 80% regretted premarital sex. The proportion of premarital sex exceeded 80% in 6 of 9 churches, among men and women married after age 25 and women married before age 21. School sex education was the only source of information about sexually transmitted infections for 57% of respondents, and 65% supported secular sex education despite church opposition. PMID:21274632

Schrödinger Evolution of Self-Gravitating Disks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Batygin, Konstantin

2018-04-01

An understanding of the long-term evolution of self-gravitating disks ranks among the classic problems of dynamical astronomy. In this talk, I will describe an intriguing connection between the secular inclination dynamics of a Lagrange-Laplace disk and the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. Within the context of this formalism, nodal bending waves correspond to the eigen-modes of a quasiparticle’s wavefunction, confined in an infinite square well with boundaries given by the radial extent of the disk. I will further show that external secular perturbations upon self-gravitating disks exhibit a mathematical similarity to quantum scattering theory, yielding an analytic criterion for the gravitational rigidity of a nearly-Keplerian disk under external perturbations.

Ensemble of single quadrupolar nuclei in rotating solids: sidebands in NMR spectrum.

PubMed

Kundla, Enn

2006-07-01

A novel way is proposed to describe the evolution of nuclear magnetic polarization and the induced NMR spectrum. In this method, the effect of a high-intensity external static magnetic field and the effects of proper Hamiltonian left over interaction components, which commute with the first, are taken into account simultaneously and equivalently. The method suits any concrete NMR problem. This brings forth the really existing details in the registered spectra, evoked by Hamiltonian secular terms, which may be otherwise smoothed due to approximate treatment of the effects of the secular terms. Complete analytical expressions are obtained describing the NMR spectra including the rotational sideband sets of single quadrupolar nuclei in rotating solids.

Short-term secular change in height, body mass and Tanner-Whitehouse 3 skeletal maturity of Madeira youth, Portugal.

PubMed

Freitas, Duarte; Malina, Robert M; Maia, José; Lefevre, Johan; Stasinopoulos, Mikis; Gouveia, Élvio; Claessens, Albrecht; Thomis, Martine; Lausen, Berthold

2012-05-01

Secular trends in height and weight are reasonably well documented in Europe. Corresponding observations for skeletal maturation are lacking. To assess secular trends in height, body mass and skeletal maturity of Portuguese children and adolescents and to provide updated reference values for skeletal maturity scores (SMSs). Data for 2856 children and adolescents of 4-17 years, 1412 boys and 1444 girls, from The 'Madeira Growth Study' (MGS; 1996-1998) and from the'Healthy Growth of Madeira Children Study' (CRES; 2006) were used. Height and body mass were measured. Skeletal maturity was assessed with the Tanner-Whitehouse 2 and 3 methods. Children from CRES were taller and heavier than peers from MGS. Differences in height reached 5.8 cm in boys and 5.5 cm in girls. RUS SMSs did not differ consistently between surveys boys, while higher RUS scores were observed in CRES girls. Adult RUS SMSs for MGS and CRES combined were attained at 15.8 years in boys and 14.8 years in girls. Corresponding ages for adult Carpal SMSs were 14.4 and 14.0, respectively. The short-term trends for height and mass were not entirely consistent with the trends in RUS and Carpal SMSs and SAs.

The secular evolution of discrete quasi-Keplerian systems. II. Application to a multi-mass axisymmetric disc around a supermassive black hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fouvry, J.-B.; Pichon, C.; Chavanis, P.-H.

2018-01-01

A discrete self-gravitating quasi-Keplerian razor-thin axisymmetric stellar disc orbiting a massive black hole sees its orbital structure diffuse on secular timescales as a result of a self-induced resonant relaxation. In the absence of collective effects, such a process is described by the recently derived inhomogeneous multi-mass degenerate Landau equation. Relying on Gauss' method, we computed the associated drift and diffusion coefficients to characterise the properties of the resonant relaxation of razor-thin discs. For a disc-like configuration in our Galactic centre, we showed how this secular diffusion induces an adiabatic distortion of orbits and estimate the typical timescale of resonant relaxation. When considering a disc composed of multiple masses similarly distributed, we have illustrated how the population of lighter stars will gain eccentricity, driving it closer to the central black hole, provided the distribution function increases with angular momentum. The kinetic equation recovers as well the quenching of the resonant diffusion of a test star in the vicinity of the black hole (the "Schwarzschild barrier") as a result of the divergence of the relativistic precessions. The dual stochastic Langevin formulation yields consistent results and offers a versatile framework in which to incorporate other stochastic processes.

Secular trends, race, and geographic disparity of early-stage breast cancer incidence: 25 years of surveillance in Connecticut.

PubMed

Crabbe, J Christopher F; Gregorio, David I; Samociuk, Holly; Swede, Helen

2015-07-01

We considered changes in the geographic distribution of early stage breast cancer among White and non-White women while secular trends in lifestyle and health care were under way. We aggregated tumor registry and census data by age, race, place of residence, and year of diagnosis to evaluate rate variation across Connecticut census tracts between 1985 and 2009. Global and local cluster detection tests were completed. Age-adjusted incidence rates increased by 2.71% and 0.44% per year for White and non-White women, respectively. Significant global clustering was identified during surveillance of these populations, but the elements of clustering differed between groups. Among White women, fewer local clusters were detected after 1985 to 1989, whereas clustering increased over time among non-White women. Small-area variation of breast cancer incidence rates across time periods proved to be dynamic and race-specific. Incidence rates might have been affected by secular trends in lifestyle or health care. Single cross-sectional analyses might have confused our understanding of disease occurrence by not accounting for the social context in which patient preferences or provider capacity influence the numbers and locations of diagnosed cases. Serial analyses are recommended to identify "hot spots" where persistent geographic disparities in incidence occur.

Associations of Bar and Restaurant Smoking Bans With Smoking Behavior in the CARDIA Study: A 25-Year Study.

PubMed

Mayne, Stephanie L; Auchincloss, Amy H; Tabb, Loni Philip; Stehr, Mark; Shikany, James M; Schreiner, Pamela J; Widome, Rachel; Gordon-Larsen, Penny

2018-06-01

Indoor smoking bans have often been associated with reductions in smoking prevalence. However, few studies have evaluated their association with within-person changes in smoking behaviors. We linked longitudinal data from 5,105 adults aged 18-30 years at baseline from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study (1985-2011) to state, county, and local policies mandating 100% smoke-free bars and restaurants by census tract. We used fixed-effects models to examine the association of smoking bans with within-person change in current smoking risk, smoking intensity (smoking ≥10 cigarettes/day on average vs. <10 cigarettes/day), and quitting attempts, using both linear and nonlinear adjustment for secular trends. In models assuming a linear secular trend, smoking bans were associated with a decline in current smoking risk and smoking intensity and an increased likelihood of a quitting attempt. The association with current smoking was greatest among participants with a bachelor's degree or higher. In models with a nonlinear secular trend, pooled results were attenuated (confidence intervals included the null), but effect modification results were largely unchanged. Findings suggest that smoking ban associations may be difficult to disentangle from other tobacco control interventions and emphasize the importance of evaluating equity throughout policy implementation.

Planetary Engulfment as a Trigger for White Dwarf Pollution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petrovich, Cristobal; Muñoz, Diego J.

2017-01-01

The presence of a planetary system can shield a planetesimal disk from the secular gravitational perturbations due to distant outer massive objects (planets or stellar companions). As the host star evolves off the main sequence to become a white dwarf, these planets can be engulfed during the giant phase, triggering secular instabilities and leading to the tidal disruptions of small rocky bodies. These disrupted bodies can feed the white dwarfs with rocky material and possibly explain the high-metallicity material in their atmospheres. We illustrate how this mechanism can operate when the gravitational perturbations are due to the KL mechanism from a stellar binary companion, a process that is activated only after the planet has been removed/engulfed. We show that this mechanism can explain the observed accretion rates if: (1) the planetary engulfment happens rapidly compared to the secular timescale, which is generally the case for wide binaries (> 100 au) and planetary engulfment during the asymptotic giant branch; (2) the planetesimal disk has a total mass of ˜ {10}-4-{10}-2{M}\\oplus . We show that this new mechanism can provide a steady supply of material throughout the entire life of the white dwarfs for all cooling ages and can account for a large fraction (up to nearly half) of the observed polluted white dwarfs.

Observed tidal braking in the earth/moon/sun system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Christodoulidis, D. C.; Smith, D. E.; Williamson, R. G.; Klosko, S. M.

1987-01-01

The low degree and order terms in the spherical harmonic model of the tidal potential were observed through the perturbations which are induced on near-earth satellite orbital motions. Evaluations of tracking observations from 17 satellites and a GEM-T1 geopotential model were used in the tidal recovery which was made in the presence of over 600 long-wavelength coefficients from 32 major and minor tides. Wahr's earth tidal model was used as a basis for the recovery of the ocean tidal terms. Using this tidal model, the secular change in the moon's mean motion due to tidal dissipation was found to be -25.27 + or - 0.61 arcsec/century squared. The estimation of lunar acceleration agreed with that observed from lunar laser ranging techniques (-24.9 + or - 1.0 arcsec/century squared), with the corresponding tidal braking of earth's rotation being -5.98 + or - 0.22 x 10 to the minus 22 rad/second squared. If the nontidal braking of the earth due to the observed secular change in the earth's second zonal harmonic is considered, satellite techniques yield a total value of the secular change of the earth's rotation rate of -4.69 + or - 0.36 x 10 to the minus 22 rad/second squared.

Secular, Spiritual, and Religious Existential Concerns of Women with Ovarian Cancer during Final Diagnostics and Start of Treatment

PubMed Central

Seibaek, Lene; Hounsgaard, Lise

2013-01-01

Introduction. This paper deals with secular, spiritual, and religious existential concerns during severe illness. Materials and Methods. Qualitative research interviews were made before and after surgery with women who underwent final diagnostics, surgery, and chemotherapy for ovarian cancer. By applying a phenomenological-hermeneutic text interpretation methodology the findings were systematically identified, placed into meaning structures, interpreted, and critically discussed. Results. The analysis offered insight into the complexity of challenges and personal development over time in being a woman with ovarian cancer during her first treatment period. Although the women experienced their health to be seriously threatened, they also felt hope, will, and courage. The diagnostic procedures and treatment had comprehensive impact on their lives. However, hope and spirituality were important resources of comfort and meaning. Conclusion. Hope and courage to face life represent significant personal resources that are created not only in the interplay between body and mind but also between patients and their healthcare professionals. The women dealt with this in a dialectical manner, so that hope and despair could be present simultaneously. In this process secular, spiritual, and religious existential meaning orientations assisted the women in creating new narratives and obtain new orientations in life. PMID:24288565

Joint spatiotemporal variability of global sea surface temperatures and global Palmer drought severity index values

USGS Publications Warehouse

Apipattanavis, S.; McCabe, G.J.; Rajagopalan, B.; Gangopadhyay, S.

2009-01-01

Dominant modes of individual and joint variability in global sea surface temperatures (SST) and global Palmer drought severity index (PDSI) values for the twentieth century are identified through a multivariate frequency domain singular value decomposition. This analysis indicates that a secular trend and variability related to the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) are the dominant modes of variance shared among the global datasets. For the SST data the secular trend corresponds to a positive trend in Indian Ocean and South Atlantic SSTs, and a negative trend in North Pacific and North Atlantic SSTs. The ENSO reconstruction shows a strong signal in the tropical Pacific, North Pacific, and Indian Ocean regions. For the PDSI data, the secular trend reconstruction shows high amplitudes over central Africa including the Sahel, whereas the regions with strong ENSO amplitudes in PDSI are the southwestern and northwestern United States, South Africa, northeastern Brazil, central Africa, the Indian subcontinent, and Australia. An additional significant frequency, multidecadal variability, is identified for the Northern Hemisphere. This multidecadal frequency appears to be related to the Atlantic multidecadal oscillation (AMO). The multidecadal frequency is statistically significant in the Northern Hemisphere SST data, but is statistically nonsignificant in the PDSI data.

Exploring the determinants of secular decreases in dental caries among Korean children.

PubMed

Lee, Hye-Ju; Han, Dong-Hun

2015-08-01

The aim of this study was to determine the contributions of sealant and water fluoridation to the time trends in dental caries from 2003 to 2010. Data were from three waves of the Korean National Oral Health Surveys between 2003 and 2010, including a total of 23 059 children (11 889 boys and 11 170 girls) aged 8, 10, and 12 years. The impacts of sealant and water fluoridation on dental caries were obtained by logistic regression for each age group of children. The contributions of sealant and water fluoridation to the time trends in the prevalence of dental caries were examined by a series of logistic regression models, and changes in the adjusted odds ratios for each survey year were also calculated. Over the past 7 years, the prevalence of dental caries decreased dramatically. Although sealant had a significant impact on dental caries in each survey year, remarkable decreases in dental caries from 2003 to 2010 were not explained by the secular changes in the dental sealant or water fluoridation factor. We observed important population declines in dental caries in Korea in children aged 8-12 years; however, the likely causes for these secular trends remain to be determined. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

In the Name of God: How Children and Adults Judge Agents Who Act for Religious Versus Secular Reasons

PubMed Central

Heiphetz, Larisa; Spelke, Elizabeth S.; Young, Liane L.

2015-01-01

Many people are guided by religious beliefs, but judgments of religiously and secularly motivated individuals remain unclear. We investigated reasoning about religiously versus secularly motivated characters among 5- to 10-year-olds and adults. In Study 1, theist and non-theist children reported similar attitudes toward theists; however, large differences emerged between theist and non-theist adults. Study 2 obtained similar results using a continuous, rather than forced choice, measure of preference. Additionally, Studies 2-3 tested two explanations for the stronger influence of religious background on adults' versus children's responses. Study 2 did not find strong evidence for the theistic majority account, which posits that the greater perceived prevalence of theists as compared with non-theists influenced children's responses more than adults' responses. The results of Study 3 were consistent with the intuition account, which argues that non-theist adults had effortfully overridden the teleological intuitions that may have influenced children's responses in Studies 1-2 and potentially led children to prefer characters whose beliefs were in line with children's own intuitions. The degree to which teleological intuitions persisted implicitly among adults predicted those adults' pro-theist preferences. These findings offer connections between religious judgments and other areas of social cognition, such as social preferences and teleology. PMID:26275836

Future Radiation Damage in Space due to South Atlantic Anomaly

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heirtzler, J. R.

1999-01-01

Predictions of radiation damage for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites now use semi-empirical models developed from prior satellite data. From these models it is clear that the low field strength of the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA) controls where the maximum radiation damage occurs. One may make an estimate of future radiation damage to LEO spacecraft if one can predict the future of the SAA. Although reliable maps of the geomagnetic field strength and its secular change have only been made in the last few decades, certain geomagnetic observatories in South America and Africa have recorded the geomagnetic field for a much longer time. These observatories show that the present geomagnetic field change has persisted for more than 100 years. In spite of the fact that a few observatories have shown sudden changes in secular variation, those around the SAA have shown a stable secular variation. Assuming that this will continue for the next 50 to 100 years one can show that the SAA will expand to cover most of the South Atlantic Ocean and will become much weaker. This will greatly intensify the radiation hazard in LEO, put significant new limitations on radiation-hardened hardware, severely restrict the length of time that humans can remain in orbit, and materially change the configuration of the radiation belts.

Secular Dynamical Anti-friction in Galactic Nuclei

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Madigan, Ann-Marie; Levin, Yuri

2012-07-01

We identify a gravitational-dynamical process in near-Keplerian potentials of galactic nuclei that occurs when an intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH) is migrating on an eccentric orbit through the stellar cluster towards the central supermassive black hole. We find that, apart from conventional dynamical friction, the IMBH experiences an often much stronger systematic torque due to the secular (i.e., orbit-averaged) interactions with the cluster's stars. The force which results in this torque is applied, counterintuitively, in the same direction as the IMBH's precession and we refer to its action as "secular dynamical anti-friction" (SDAF). We argue that SDAF, and not the gravitational ejection of stars, is responsible for the IMBH's eccentricity increase seen in the initial stages of previous N-body simulations. Our numerical experiments, supported by qualitative arguments, demonstrate that (1) when the IMBH's precession direction is artificially reversed, the torque changes sign as well, which decreases the orbital eccentricity; (2) the rate of eccentricity growth is sensitive to the IMBH migration rate, with zero systematic eccentricity growth for an IMBH whose orbit is artificially prevented from inward migration; and (3) SDAF is the strongest when the central star cluster is rapidly rotating. This leads to eccentricity growth/decrease for the clusters rotating in the opposite/same direction relative to the IMBH's orbital motion.

Planet Formation in Small Separation Binaries: Not so Secularly Excited by the Companion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rafikov, Roman R.

2013-03-01

The existence of planets in binaries with relatively small separations (around 20 AU), such as α Centauri or γ Cephei, poses severe challenges to standard planet formation theories. The problem lies in the vigorous secular excitation of planetesimal eccentricities at separations of several AU, where some of the planets are found, by the massive, eccentric stellar companions. High relative velocities of planetesimals preclude their growth in mutual collisions for a wide range of sizes, from below 1 km up to several hundred km, resulting in a fragmentation barrier to planet formation. Here we show that, for the case of an axisymmetric circumstellar protoplanetary disk, the rapid apsidal precession of planetesimal orbits caused by the disk gravity acts to strongly reduce the direct secular eccentricity excitation by the companion, lowering planetesimal velocities by an order of magnitude or even more at 1 AU. By examining the details of planetesimal dynamics, we demonstrate that this effect eliminates the fragmentation barrier for in situ growth of planetesimals as small as <~ 10 km even at separations as wide as 2.6 AU (the semimajor axis of the giant planet in HD 196885), provided that the circumstellar protoplanetary disk has a small eccentricity and is relatively massive, ~0.1 M ⊙.

Sunspot random walk and 22-year variation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Love, Jeffrey J.; Rigler, E. Joshua

2012-01-01

We examine two stochastic models for consistency with observed long-term secular trends in sunspot number and a faint, but semi-persistent, 22-yr signal: (1) a null hypothesis, a simple one-parameter random-walk model of sunspot-number cycle-to-cycle change, and, (2) an alternative hypothesis, a two-parameter random-walk model with an imposed 22-yr alternating amplitude. The observed secular trend in sunspots, seen from solar cycle 5 to 23, would not be an unlikely result of the accumulation of multiple random-walk steps. Statistical tests show that a 22-yr signal can be resolved in historical sunspot data; that is, the probability is low that it would be realized from random data. On the other hand, the 22-yr signal has a small amplitude compared to random variation, and so it has a relatively small effect on sunspot predictions. Many published predictions for cycle 24 sunspots fall within the dispersion of previous cycle-to-cycle sunspot differences. The probability is low that the Sun will, with the accumulation of random steps over the next few cycles, walk down to a Dalton-like minimum. Our models support published interpretations of sunspot secular variation and 22-yr variation resulting from cycle-to-cycle accumulation of dynamo-generated magnetic energy.

Reduced Pain Sensation and Reduced BOLD Signal in Parietofrontal Networks during Religious Prayer

PubMed Central

Elmholdt, Else-Marie; Skewes, Joshua; Dietz, Martin; Møller, Arne; Jensen, Martin S.; Roepstorff, Andreas; Wiech, Katja; Jensen, Troels S.

2017-01-01

Previous studies suggest that religious prayer can alter the experience of pain via expectation mechanisms. While brain processes related to other types of top-down modulation of pain have been studied extensively, no research has been conducted on the potential effects of active religious coping. Here, we aimed at investigating the neural mechanisms during pain modulation by prayer and their dependency on the opioidergic system. Twenty-eight devout Protestants performed religious prayer and a secular contrast prayer during painful electrical stimulation in two fMRI sessions. Naloxone or saline was administered prior to scanning. Results show that pain intensity was reduced by 11% and pain unpleasantness by 26% during religious prayer compared to secular prayer. Expectancy predicted large amounts (70–89%) of the variance in pain intensity. Neuroimaging results revealed reduced neural activity during religious prayer in a large parietofrontal network relative to the secular condition. Naloxone had no significant effect on ratings or neural activity. Our results thus indicate that, under these conditions, pain modulation by prayer is not opioid-dependent. Further studies should employ an optimized design to explore whether reduced engagement of the frontoparietal system could indicate that prayer may attenuate pain through a reduction in processing of pain stimulus saliency and prefrontal control rather than through known descending pain inhibitory systems. PMID:28701940

Reduced Pain Sensation and Reduced BOLD Signal in Parietofrontal Networks during Religious Prayer.

PubMed

Elmholdt, Else-Marie; Skewes, Joshua; Dietz, Martin; Møller, Arne; Jensen, Martin S; Roepstorff, Andreas; Wiech, Katja; Jensen, Troels S

2017-01-01

Previous studies suggest that religious prayer can alter the experience of pain via expectation mechanisms. While brain processes related to other types of top-down modulation of pain have been studied extensively, no research has been conducted on the potential effects of active religious coping. Here, we aimed at investigating the neural mechanisms during pain modulation by prayer and their dependency on the opioidergic system. Twenty-eight devout Protestants performed religious prayer and a secular contrast prayer during painful electrical stimulation in two fMRI sessions. Naloxone or saline was administered prior to scanning. Results show that pain intensity was reduced by 11% and pain unpleasantness by 26% during religious prayer compared to secular prayer. Expectancy predicted large amounts (70-89%) of the variance in pain intensity. Neuroimaging results revealed reduced neural activity during religious prayer in a large parietofrontal network relative to the secular condition. Naloxone had no significant effect on ratings or neural activity. Our results thus indicate that, under these conditions, pain modulation by prayer is not opioid-dependent. Further studies should employ an optimized design to explore whether reduced engagement of the frontoparietal system could indicate that prayer may attenuate pain through a reduction in processing of pain stimulus saliency and prefrontal control rather than through known descending pain inhibitory systems.

Secular trends in the association between nativity/length of US residence with body mass index and waist circumference among Mexican-Americans, 1988–2008

PubMed Central

Diez Roux, Ana V.; Aiello, Allison E.; Schulz, Amy J.; Abraido-Lanza, Ana F.

2012-01-01

Objectives We investigated whether associations between nativity/length of US residence and body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) varied over the past two decades. Methods Mexican-Americans aged 20–64 years from the National Health and Nutrition Survey (NHANES) III (1988–1994), and NHANES (1999–2008). Sex-stratified multivariable linear regression models further adjusted for age, education, and NHANES period. Results We found no evidence of secular variation in the nativity/length of US residence gradient for men or women. Foreign-born Mexican-Americans, irrespective of residence length, had lower mean BMI and WC than their US-born counterparts. However among women, education modified secular trends in nativity differentials: notably, in less-educated women, nativity gradients widened over time due to alarming increases in BMI among the US-born and little increase in the foreign-born. Conclusions Associations between nativity/length of US residence and BMI/WC did not vary over this 20-year period, but we noted important modifications by education in women. Understanding these trends is important for identifying vulnerable subpopulations among Mexican-Americans and for the development of effective health promotion strategies in this fast-growing segment of the population. PMID:23052250

Secular change of sexually dimorphic cranial variables in Euro-Americans and Germans.

PubMed

Manthey, Laura; Jantz, Richard L; Bohnert, Michael; Jellinghaus, Katharina

2017-07-01

Crania are a reliable source for sex estimation in Euro-Americans, Europeans, and most other populations. Besides morphological assessments, the application of Fordisc® has become a useful tool within the last two decades, creating discriminant functions from morphometric data. Unfortunately, until now, white populations are mostly represented by measurements of American individuals. Therefore, classification rates are lower for European skulls than for Euro-Americans. The aim of this study was to show differences in sexual dimorphism between German and Euro-American crania. Furthermore, their secular change from the nineteenth to the twentieth century has been investigated. Analyses have been performed on glabella subtense (GLS), mastoid height (MDH), and bizygomatic breadth (ZYB). Fordisc® 3.1 was used to study sexual dimorphism and secular change, whereas SAS® was used to perform a two-level ANOVA to test for variation in sex dimorphism. Euro-Americans show greater dimorphism than Germans in all three measurements tested. This larger difference is even increasing from the late nineteenth through the late twentieth century in terms of GLS and MDH, while it stays almost the same in the present Europeans. These results explain the unsatisfying classification rates of German and other European crania on Fordisc®. Data collection for European Fordisc® samples is in progress and should improve the current situation.

Intergroup conflict management strategies as related to perceptions of dual identity and separate groups.

PubMed

Bizman, Aharon; Yinon, Yoel

2004-04-01

The authors examined the relations between (a) the perceptions of dual identity and separate groups and (b) intergroup conflict management strategies, in two contexts: the conflict between the secular and religious sectors in Israel and the allocation of resources among organizational subunits. In both contexts, contention (i.e., forcing one's will on the other party) was associated with the perception of separate groups. Only in the organizational context, avoidance (i.e., doing nothing or discontinuing participation in the conflict) was associated with the perception of dual identity. Problem solving (i.e., finding a solution that is acceptable to both parties) was related to the perception of dual identity in the secular-religious context. In the organizational context, this relation appeared only under a low perception of separate groups. Yielding (i.e., satisfying the other party's needs at the expense of one's own) was related to the perception of dual identity in the organizational context. In the secular-religious context, this relation appeared only under a high perception of separate groups. The authors discussed the varying pattern of the associations between (a) the perceptions of dual identity and separate groups and (b) the conflict management strategies in the two contexts in terms of the Dual Concern Model and the perceived feasibility of the strategies.

The 'Parent Circle' Peace Education Program: Does it Make Any Change?

PubMed

Braun-Lewensohn, Orna; Kitain, Boaz

2016-02-01

This study evaluated a peace education program facilitated by the 'parents circle family forum.' The program aims to expose Jewish and Palestinian-Arab adolescents to personal stories of bereavement as a result of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. One hundred and sixty-four Jewish twelfth-grade adolescents from schools throughout Israel filled out questionnaires before the start of the educational program, and 135 Jewish adolescents filled out the same questionnaire up to a week after it ended. Questionnaires included empathy, anger, and legitimacy toward 'self' and 'others' narratives. Results indicate that, overall, there were not any significant differences before and after the educational program with regard to adolescents' attitudes toward 'self' and 'others' narratives. However, when examining differences between subgroups in Israeli society, significant differences between 'secular' and 'traditional' adolescents emerged. The attitudes of secular adolescents favored narratives of the 'others,' while the attitudes of the traditional adolescents favored the 'self' narratives. After the program, these differences diminished, meaning that the program had a different impact on each subgroup. The traditional adolescents became more favorable to the 'others' narratives, while the secular adolescents became more favorable to their own narratives. Results are discussed on the basis of the theoretical foundation of psychological impacts of intractable conflicts.

Spiritual formation, secularization, and reform of professional nursing and education in antebellum America.

PubMed

Libster, Martha Mathews

The origin story of professional nursing associated with antebellum American faith communities is all but lost. This paper provides historical evidence for professional nursing for that period using a case study approach that examines three faith communities: the Sisters and Daughters of Charity, the Shakers, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The purpose is to present an historical analysis of the three communities' health beliefs, recipes and remedies that were foundational to the spiritual formation and education of professional nurses within their communities. The focus of the analysis is to place the evidence for professional nursing in these faith communities within the broader context of the contemporary American narrative of the "secularization" of professional nursing associated with the adoption of the Nightingale Training Model after 1873. Nursing became a profession in America because of the courage and passion of many for spiritual formation in community around a need to relieve suffering and demonstrate kindness. The history of American nursing is comprised of stories of powerful nurse ancestors that have the potential to inspire and unite us in that same purpose today despite the ambiguities that may still exist around spirituality, religiosity, and secularization. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Secular trend in age at menarche in indigenous and nonindigenous women in Chile.

PubMed

Ossa, X M; Munoz, S; Amigo, H; Bangdiwala, S I

2010-01-01

To estimate the secular trend in age at menarche, comparing indigenous and nonindigenous women, and its relationship with socio-demographic, family and nutritional factors. A study (historical cohorts) of 688 indigenous and nonindigenous women, divided into four birth cohorts (1960-69, 1970-79, 1980-89, and 1990-96) in an area in central southern Chile was carried out. Data and measurements were collected by health professionals using a previously validated questionnaire. Age at menarche was self-reported (recall). Adjusted differences among cohorts were estimated using a multivariate regression model. A secular trend (P < 0.001) in age at menarche was found in both ethnic groups, with no significant differences between them (P > 0.05). In an adjusted model, a reduction in age at menarche was estimated at 3.7 months per decade between 1960 and 1990. This trend was moderated by higher socio-economic level, smaller number of siblings, and cohabitation with a single parent during infancy. The trend has occurred in a steady progression over time in indigenous women, whereas in nonindigenous women, it was slow initially but has accelerated in recent years. Nonindigenous women have maintained a slightly lower age of menarche than their indigenous counterparts. (c) 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Morphology of the southern African geomagnetic field derived from observatory and repeat station survey observations: 2005-2014

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kotzé, P. B.; Korte, M.

2016-02-01

Geomagnetic field data from four observatories and annual field surveys between 2005 and 2015 provide a detailed description of Earth's magnetic field changes over South Africa, Namibia and Botswana on time scales of less than 1 year. The southern African area is characterized by rapid changes in the secular variation pattern and lies in close proximity to the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA) where the geomagnetic field intensity is almost 30 % weaker than in other regions at similar latitudes around the globe. Several geomagnetic secular acceleration (SA) pulses (geomagnetic jerks) around 2007, 2010 and 2012 could be identified over the last decade in southern Africa. We present a new regional field model for declination and horizontal and vertical intensity over southern Africa (Southern African REGional (SAREG)) which is based on field survey and observatory data and covering the time interval from 2005 to 2014, i.e. including the period between 2010 and 2013 when no low Earth-orbiting vector field satellite data are available. A comparative evaluation between SAREG and global field models like CHAOS-5, the CHAMP, Orsted and SAC-C model of the Earth's magnetic field and International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF-12) reveals that a simple regional field model based on a relatively dense ground network is able to provide a realistic representation of the geomagnetic field in this area. We particularly note that a global field model like CHAOS-5 does not always indicate similar short-period patterns in the field components as revealed by observatory data, while representing the general secular variation reasonably well during the time interval without near-Earth satellite vector field data. This investigation further shows the inhomogeneous occurrence and distribution of secular variation impulses in the different geomagnetic field components and at different locations in southern African.

Towards an exact theory of linear absorbance and circular dichroism of pigment-protein complexes: Importance of non-secular contributions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dinh, Thanh-Chung; Renger, Thomas

2015-01-01

A challenge for the theory of optical spectra of pigment-protein complexes is the equal strength of the pigment-pigment and the pigment-protein couplings. Treating both on an equal footing so far can only be managed by numerically costly approaches. Here, we exploit recent results on a normal mode analysis derived spectral density that revealed the dominance of the diagonal matrix elements of the exciton-vibrational coupling in the exciton state representation. We use a cumulant expansion technique that treats the diagonal parts exactly, includes an infinite summation of the off-diagonal parts in secular and Markov approximations, and provides a systematic perturbative way to include non-secular and non-Markov corrections. The theory is applied to a model dimer and to chlorophyll (Chl) a and Chl b homodimers of the reconstituted water-soluble chlorophyll-binding protein (WSCP) from cauliflower. The model calculations reveal that the non-secular/non-Markov effects redistribute oscillator strength from the strong to the weak exciton transition in absorbance and they diminish the rotational strength of the exciton transitions in circular dichroism. The magnitude of these corrections is in a few percent range of the overall signal, providing a quantitative explanation of the success of time-local convolution-less density matrix theory applied earlier. A close examination of the optical spectra of Chl a and Chl b homodimers in WSCP suggests that the opening angle between Qy transition dipole moments in Chl b homodimers is larger by about 9∘ than for Chl a homodimers for which a crystal structure of a related WSCP complex exists. It remains to be investigated whether this change is due to a different mutual geometry of the pigments or due to the different electronic structures of Chl a and Chl b.

A global analysis of the 1991 geomagnetic jerk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De Michelis, Paola; Cafarella, Lili; Meloni, Antonio

2000-12-01

A recent examination of the geomagnetic annual mean values for the European magnetic observatories has shown the existence of a sudden change in the secular acceleration in about 1991 (Cafarella & Meloni 1995; Macmillan 1996). Using first differences of the Y (east geomagnetic field component) mean values from 74 observatories, the worldwide character of the 1991 impulse has been determined (De Michelis et al. 1998). Using data from 109 observatories widely distributed all over the world, the structure of the secular variation for the X (north) and Z (vertical) magnetic field intensities around 1990 was investigated, and evidence of this most recent jerk was found. External effects were removed from the annual mean data by comparing the long-term variations of the geomagnetic field components at individual observatories with the long-term variations of two geomagnetic indices, aa and Dst, and of a solar index, the Wolf number R. A careful analysis has been carried out on the amplitude of the external disturbance, on its dependence on latitude, and on the weights of the geomagnetic indices in the evaluation of the resulting external field. The secular variation has been evaluated from the corrected annual means. Around 1990, the secular variation can be fitted at many observatories by two straight lines with a sudden and marked change in slope. In this manner the jerk occurrence time and the intensity of the step in the second time derivative (ΔX'', ΔY'' and ΔZ'') were computed. Maps of ΔX'', ΔY'' and ΔZ'' provide information on the worldwide intensity distribution of the examined event. Maps of the jerk occurrence-time distributions are also given. The mean jerk occurrence time is 1990.1+/-0.6. Finally, a spherical harmonic analysis was used to complete the quantitative description of this phenomenon in order to study the trend of the energy density spectrum as a function of the harmonic degree n.

Differentiation of Secular and Postseismic Deformation in the Mojave Shear Zone in Southern California and Inference of Lithospheric Rheology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Z.; Liu, S.; Burgmann, R.

2015-12-01

The 1992 Mw 7.3 Landers and 1999 Mw7.1 Hector Mine earthquakes struck the Eastern California Shear Zone (ECSZ) in the Mojave Desert, Southern California. Coseismic and postseismic deformation from these events affect efforts to use Global Positioning System (GPS) observations collected since these events to establish a secular surface velocity field, especially in the near field of the coseismic ruptures. We devise block motion models constrained by both historical pre-Landers triangulation and trilateration observations and post-Landers GPS measurements to recover the secular deformation field and differentiate the postseismic transients in the Mojave region. Postseismic transients are found to remain in various "interseismic" GPS velocity solutions in the form of 2-3 mm/yr excess right-lateral shear across the Landers and Hector Mine coseismic ruptures [Liu et al., 2015 JGR]. Postseismic GPS time series differentiated from the secular velocity field reveal enduring late-stage transient motions in the near field of the coseismic ruptures. Using the postseismic time series data as model constraints, we develop postseismic deformation model invoking afterlip on faults and viscoelastic relaxation in the lower crust and upper mantle. A Burgers body material and a Maxwell material are assumed for the lower crust and upper mantle respectively. Our preliminary modeling result, constrained using GPS time series data from the SCEC Crustal Motion Map 4.0 (covering the time period of 1992-2004), reveals that both the long-term viscosities for the lower crust and upper mantle are on the order of e+19 Pa-s. This finding differs significantly from the "Crème Brulee" model predictions about the rheological structure of the lower crust and upper mantle, in which the lower crust has a substantially higher viscosity. We are incorporating more GPS time series data into our model, particularly the ones from continuous sites of the Plate Boundary Observatory network with post-2004 time span, and the modeling result will be presented at the meeting.

A Modern Picture of Barred Galaxy Dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petersen, Michael; Weinberg, Martin; Katz, Neal

2018-01-01

Observations of disk galaxies suggest that bars are responsible for altering global galaxy parameters (e.g. structures, gas fraction, star formation rate). The canonical understanding of the mechanisms underpinning bar-driven secular dynamics in disk galaxies has been largely built upon the analysis of linear theory, despite galactic bars being clearly demonstrated to be nonlinear phenomena in n-body simulations. We present simulations of barred Milky Way-like galaxy models designed to elucidate nonlinear barred galaxy dynamics. We have developed two new methodologies for analyzing n-body simulations that give the best of both powerful analytic linear theory and brute force simulation analysis: orbit family identification and multicomponent torque analysis. The software will be offered publicly to the community for their own simulation analysis.The orbit classifier reveals that the details of kinematic components in galactic disks (e.g. the bar, bulge, thin disk, and thick disk components) are powerful discriminators of evolutionary paradigms (i.e. violent instabilities and secular evolution) as well as the basic parameters of the dark matter halo (mass distribution, angular momentum distribution). Multicomponent torque analysis provides a thorough accounting of the transfer of angular momentum between orbits, global patterns, and distinct components in order to better explain the underlying physics which govern the secular evolution of barred disk galaxies.Using these methodologies, we are able to identify the successes and failures of linear theory and traditional n-body simulations en route to a detailed understanding of the control bars exhibit over secular evolution in galaxies. We present explanations for observed physical and velocity structures in observations of barred galaxies alongside predictions for how structures will vary with dynamical properties from galaxy to galaxy as well as over the lifetime of a galaxy, finding that the transfer of angular momentum through previously unidentified channels can more fully explain the observed dynamics.

Intersection of economics, history, and human biology: secular trends in stature in nineteenth-century Sioux Indians.

PubMed

Prince, J M

1995-06-01

An unusual confluence of historical factors may be responsible for nineteenth-century Sioux being able to sustain high statures despite enduring adverse conditions during the early reservation experience. An exceptionally long span of Dakota Sioux history was examined for secular trends using a cross-sectional design. Two primary sources were used: One anthropometric data set was collected in the late nineteenth century under the direction of Franz Boas, and another set was collected by James R. Walker in the early twentieth century. Collectively, the data represent the birth years between 1820 and 1880 for adult individuals 20 years old or older. Adult heights (n = 1197) were adjusted for aging effects and regressed on age, with each data set and each sex analyzed separately. Tests for differences between the adult means of age cohorts by decade of birth (1820-1880) were also carried out. Only one sample of adults showed any convincing secular trend (p < 0.05): surprisingly, a positive linear trend for Walker's sample of adult males. This sample was also the one sample of adults that showed significant differences between age cohorts. The failure to find any negative secular trend in this population of Amerindians is remarkable, given the drastic socioeconomic changes that occurred with the coming of the reservation period (ca. 1868). Comparisons with contemporary white Americans show that the Sioux remained consistently taller than whites well into the reservation period and that Sioux children (Prince 1989) continued to grow at highly favorable rates during this time of severe conditions. A possible explanation for these findings involves the relatively favorable level of subsistence support received by most of the Sioux from the US government, as stipulated by various treaties. Conservative estimates suggest that the Sioux may have been able to sustain net levels of per capita annual meat consumption that exceeded the US average for several years before 1893.

Body Size of Male Youth Soccer Players: 1978-2015.

PubMed

Malina, Robert M; Figueiredo, António J; Coelho-E-Silva, Manuel J

2017-10-01

Studies of the body size and proportions of athletes have a long history. Comparisons of athletes within specific sports across time, though not extensive, indicate both positive and negative trends. To evaluate secular variation in heights and weights of male youth soccer players reported in studies between 1978 and 2015. Reported mean ages, heights, and weights of male soccer players 9-18 years of age were extracted from the literature and grouped into two intervals: 1978-99 and 2000-15. A third-order polynomial was fitted to the mean heights and weights across the age range for each interval, while the Preece-Baines model 1 was fitted to the grand means of mean heights and mean weights within each chronological year to estimate ages at peak height velocity and peak weight velocity for each time interval. Third-order polynomials applied to all data points and estimates based on the Preece-Baines model applied to grand means for each age group provided similar fits. Both indicated secular changes in body size between the two intervals. Secular increases in height and weight between 1978-99 and 2000-15 were especially apparent between 13 and 16 years of age, but estimated ages at peak height velocity (13.01 and 12.91 years) and peak weight velocity (13.86 and 13.77 years) did not differ between the time intervals. Although the body size of youth soccer players increased between 1978-99 and 2000-15, estimated ages at peak height velocity and peak weight velocity did not change. The increase in height and weight likely reflected improved health and nutritional conditions, in addition to the selectivity of soccer reflected in systematic selection and retention of players advanced in maturity status, and exclusion of late maturing players beginning at about 12-13 years of age. Enhanced training programs aimed at the development of strength and power are probably an additional factor contributing to secular increases in body weight.

Secular dynamics of an exterior test particle: the inverse Kozai and other eccentricity-inclination resonances

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vinson, Benjamin R.; Chiang, Eugene

2018-03-01

The behaviour of an interior test particle in the secular three-body problem has been studied extensively. A well-known feature is the Lidov-Kozai resonance in which the test particle's argument of periastron librates about ±90° and large oscillations in eccentricity and inclination are possible. Less explored is the inverse problem: the dynamics of an exterior test particle and an interior perturber. We survey numerically the inverse secular problem, expanding the potential to hexadecapolar order and correcting an error in the published expansion. Four secular resonances are uncovered that persist in full N-body treatments (in what follows, ϖ and Ω are the longitudes of periapse and of ascending node, ω is the argument of periapse, and subscripts 1 and 2 refer to the inner perturber and the outer test particle): (i) an orbit-flipping quadrupole resonance requiring a non-zero perturber eccentricity e1, in which Ω2 - ϖ1 librates about ±90°; (ii) a hexadecapolar resonance (the `inverse Kozai' resonance) for perturbers that are circular or nearly so and inclined by I ≃ 63°/117°, in which ω2 librates about ±90° and which can vary the particle eccentricity by Δe2 ≃ 0.2 and lead to orbit crossing; (iii) an octopole `apse-aligned' resonance at I ≃ 46°/107° wherein ϖ2 - ϖ1 librates about 0° and Δe2 grows with e1; and (iv) an octopole resonance at I ≃ 73°/134° wherein ϖ2 + ϖ1 - 2Ω2 librates about 0° and Δe2 can be as large as 0.3 for small but non-zero e1. Qualitatively, the more eccentric the perturber, the more the particle's eccentricity and inclination vary; also, more polar orbits are more chaotic. Our solutions to the inverse problem have potential application to the Kuiper belt and debris discs, circumbinary planets, and hierarchical stellar systems.

Infrequent visitors of the Kozai kind: the dynamical lives of 2012 FC71, 2014 EK24, 2014 QD364, and 2014 UR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de la Fuente Marcos, C.; de la Fuente Marcos, R.

2015-08-01

Context. Asteroids with semi-major axes very close to that of a host planet can avoid node crossings when their nodal points are at perihelion and at aphelion. This layout protects the asteroids from close encounters, and eventual collisions, with the host planet. Aims: Here, we study the short-term dynamical evolution of four recently discovered near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) - 2012 FC71, 2014 EK24, 2014 QD364, and 2014 UR - that follow very Earth-like orbits. Methods: Our analysis is based on results of direct N-body calculations that use the most updated ephemerides and include perturbations from the eight major planets, the Moon, the barycentre of the Pluto-Charon system, and the three largest asteroids. Results: These four NEAs exhibit an orbital evolution unlike any other known near-Earth object (NEO). Beyond horseshoe, tadpole, or quasi-satellite trajectories, they follow co-orbital passing orbits relative to the Earth within the Kozai domain. Our calculations show that secular interactions induce librations of their relative argument of perihelion with respect to our planet but also to Venus, Mars, and Jupiter. Secular chaos is also present. The size of this transient population is probably large. Conclusions: Although some of these NEAs can remain orbitally stable for many thousands of years, their secular dynamics are substantially more complicated than commonly thought and cannot be properly described within the framework of the three-body problem alone owing to the overlapping of multiple secular resonances. Objects in this group are amongst the most atypical NEOs regarding favourable visibility windows because these are separated in time by many decades or even several centuries. Figures 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, 18, Table 2, and Appendix A are available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

Nihilism, relativism, and Engelhardt.

PubMed

Wreen, M

1998-01-01

This paper is a critical analysis of Tristram Engelhardt's attempts to avoid unrestricted nihilism and relativism. The focus of attention is his recent book, The Foundations of Bioethics (Oxford University Press, 1996). No substantive or "content-full" bioethics (e.g., that of Roman Catholicism or the Samurai) has an intersubjectively verifiable and universally binding foundation, Engelhardt thinks, for unaided secular reason cannot show that any particular substantive morality (or moral code) is correct. He thus seems to be committed to either nihilism or relativism. The first is the view that there is not even one true or valid moral code, and the second is the view that there is a plurality of true or valid moral codes. However, Engelhardt rejects both nihilism and relativism, at least in unrestricted form. Strictly speaking, he himself is a universalist, someone who believes that there is a single true moral code. Two argumentative strategies are employed by him to fend off unconstrained nihilism and relativism. The first argues that although all attempts to establish a content-full morality on the basis of secular reason fail, secular reason can still establish a content-less, purely procedural morality. Although not content-full and incapable of providing positive direction in life, much less a meaning of life, such a morality does limit the range of relativism and nihilism. The second argues that there is a single true, content-full morality. Grace and revelation, however, are needed to make it available to us; secular reason alone is not up to the task. This second line of argument is not pursued in The Foundations at any length, but it does crop up at times, and if it is sound, nihilism and relativism can be much more thoroughly routed than the first line of argument has it. Engelhardt's position and argumentative strategies are exposed at length and accorded a detailed critical examination. In the end, it is concluded that neither strategy will do, and that Engelhardt is probably committed to some form of relativism.

Secular trends in hip fractures worldwide: opposing trends East versus West.

PubMed

Ballane, Ghada; Cauley, Jane A; Luckey, Marjorie M; Fuleihan, Ghada El-Hajj

2014-08-01

Despite wide variations in hip rates fractures worldwide, reasons for such differences are not clear. Furthermore, secular trends in the age-specific hip fracture rates are changing the world map of this devastating disease, with the highest rise projected to occur in developing countries. The aim of our investigation is to systematically characterize secular trends in hip fractures worldwide, examine new data for various ethnic groups in the United States, evidence for divergent temporal patterns, and investigate potential contributing factors for the observed change in their epidemiology. All studies retrieved through a complex Medline Ovid search between 1966 and 2013 were examined. For each selected study, we calculated the percent annual change in age-standardized hip fracture rates de-novo. Although occurring at different time points, trend breaks in hip fracture incidence occurred in most Western countries and Oceania. After a steep rise in age-adjusted rates in these regions, a decrease became evident sometimes between the mid-seventies and nineties, depending on the country. Conversely, the data is scarce in Asia and South America, with evidence for a continuous rise in hip fracture rates, with the exception of Hong-Kong and Taiwan that seem to follow Western trends. The etiologies of these secular patterns in both the developed and the developing countries have not been fully elucidated, but the impact of urbanization is at least one plausible explanation. Data presented here show close parallels between rising rates of urbanization and hip fractures across disparate geographic locations and cultures. Once the proportion of the urban population stabilized, hip fracture rates also stabilize or begin to decrease perhaps due to the influence of other factors such as birth cohort effects, changes in bone mineral density and BMI, osteoporosis medication use and/or lifestyle interventions such as smoking cessation, improvement in nutritional status and fall prevention. © 2014 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

On the first ν6 anti-aligned librating asteroid family of Tina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carruba, V.; Morbidelli, A.

2011-04-01

Asteroid families are groups of bodies identified in the space of proper elements or of frequencies that share a common origin in the collisional break-up of their progenitors. Their dynamical evolution is shaped by the interaction with the local web of mean-motion and secular resonances, and by non-gravitational effects, such as the 'Yarkovsky' and 'Yarkovsky-O'Keefe-Radzievskii-Paddack' (YORP) effects. Thus, obtaining information on their age and original ejection velocity field is generally a difficult task. Recently, two families were found to have a large fraction of members in the non-linear secular resonance z1: the Agnia and Padua families. Conserved quantities of the z1resonance allowed for a more precise determination of their ages and ejection velocity fields. So far, however, no family was known to be in a linear secular resonance, such as the ν6 resonance, although individual asteroids were known to be in ν6 anti-aligned librating states. The ν6 resonance occurs when there is a commensurability between the frequency of precession of the pericentre of an asteroid and that of Saturn. As a consequence, in librating states, the resonant argument oscillates around a stable point. In anti-aligned librating states, the resonant argument oscillates around the stable point at 180°. Here we show that the newly identified Tina family is characterized by having all its members in such a state, making it the only family in the asteroid belt known to be completely embedded in a secular resonance configuration. This rare dynamical configuration limits the maximum eccentricity of Tina members, preventing them from experiencing Martian close encounters and forming a stable island of a new dynamical type. The current dispersion of asteroid resonant elements suggests that the family should be at least 2.5 Myr old, while Monte Carlo simulations including the Yarkovsky and YORP effects suggest that the Tina family should be 170+20-30 Myr old.

Estimating secular velocities from GPS data contaminated by postseismic motion at sites with limited pre-earthquake data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murray, J. R.; Svarc, J. L.

2016-12-01

Constant secular velocities estimated from Global Positioning System (GPS)-derived position time series are a central input for modeling interseismic deformation in seismically active regions. Both postseismic motion and temporally correlated noise produce long-period signals that are difficult to separate from secular motion and can bias velocity estimates. For GPS sites installed post-earthquake it is especially challenging to uniquely estimate velocities and postseismic signals and to determine when the postseismic transient has decayed sufficiently to enable use of subsequent data for estimating secular rates. Within 60 km of the 2003 M6.5 San Simeon and 2004 M6 Parkfield earthquakes in California, 16 continuous GPS sites (group 1) were established prior to mid-2001, and 52 stations (group 2) were installed following the events. We use group 1 data to investigate how early in the post-earthquake time period one may reliably begin using group 2 data to estimate velocities. For each group 1 time series, we obtain eight velocity estimates using observation time windows with successively later start dates (2006 - 2013) and a parameterization that includes constant velocity, annual, and semi-annual terms but no postseismic decay. We compare these to velocities estimated using only pre-San Simeon data to find when the pre- and post-earthquake velocities match within uncertainties. To obtain realistic velocity uncertainties, for each time series we optimize a temporally correlated noise model consisting of white, flicker, random walk, and, in some cases, band-pass filtered noise contributions. Preliminary results suggest velocities can be reliably estimated using data from 2011 to the present. Ongoing work will assess velocity bias as a function of epicentral distance and length of post-earthquake time series as well as explore spatio-temporal filtering of detrended group 1 time series to provide empirical corrections for postseismic motion in group 2 time series.

Secular trends in meal and snack patterns among adolescents from 1999 to 2010

PubMed Central

Larson, Nicole; Story, Mary; Eisenberg, Marla E.; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2015-01-01

Background Linkages between snack patterns, diet, and obesity in adolescents likely depend on the consumption of main meals, how often snacks are prepared away from home, and whether energy-dense, nutrient-poor snack foods and sugary drinks are frequently consumed. Nutritional interventions need to be informed by an understanding of how secular changes in the contribution of snacks to dietary intake may be related to changes in meal frequency as well as how these trends differ by sociodemographics. Objectives To examine secular trends from 1999 to 2010 in meal and snack patterns among adolescents. Design A repeated cross-sectional design was used. Participants/setting Participants from Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN secondary schools completed classroom-administered surveys and food frequency questionnaires in 1999 (n=2,598) and 2010 (n=2,540). Main outcome measures Weekly meal frequencies; number of snacks consumed on school and vacation/weekend days; frequent consumption of snacks prepared away from home (≥3 times/week); and daily servings of energy-dense, nutrient-poor food/drinks that are commonly consumed at snack occasions. Statistical analyses performed Trends from 1999 to 2010 were examined using inverse probability weighting to control for differences in sociodemographic characteristics in the two samples. Results Mean frequencies of breakfast and lunch increased modestly in the overall population (both P<0.001), and there were decreases in the number of snacks consumed on schools days (P<0.001) and vacation/weekend days (P=0.003). Although there was no change in the proportion of adolescents who reported frequent consumption of snacks prepared away from home, there was a secular decrease in energy-dense, nutrient-poor food/drink consumption (P<0.001). Sociodemographic differences in the identified trends were evident. Conclusions The observed pattern of sociodemographic differences in meal and snack trends among adolescents suggests the need for targeted efforts to ensure public health messages reach low-income and ethnic/racial minority population subgroups most vulnerable to poor nutrition and the development of obesity. PMID:26482095

Dating of palaeomagnetic secular variation in Swedish varved lake sediments using radiocarbon wiggle-matching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mellström, Anette; Nilsson, Andreas; Stanton, Tania; Muscheler, Raimund; Snowball, Ian

2013-04-01

Well-dated natural archives are crucial when investigating the timing between climate change and climate forcing. Annually laminated (varved) lake sediments, in particular, can provide valuable knowledge about past climatic and environmental conditions as the annual nature of the sediments enables the establishment of high-resolution archives. In addition, lake sediments can record variations in the Earth's magnetic field, which has the potential to be used as a dating validation technique if the palaeo-secular and -intensity curves are dated correctly. If individual and well-defined geomagnetic events can be dated accurately, they can then be used as isochrones, thereby allowing the synchronisation of different records. We therefore aim to date the "f" event, a late Holocene secular variation change, which is recorded in many sites in the northern hemisphere. Varved sites in Sweden have dated the "f" event to ~2700 cal. yrs BP. In order to constrain this date further, we have used the radiocarbon wiggle-matching method on a lake in central west Sweden, Kälksjön (Stanton et al., 2010), whose chronology has previously been validated using a number of complimentary dating methods. With the radiocarbon wiggle-matching technique, closely spaced samples are measured and matched to distinct wiggles in the radiocarbon calibration curve. The advantage of using varve-dated sediments is that it is possible to know the exact number of years between each sample, and therefore improve the initial age model. We compare the wiggle-match results of Kälksjön with results from a newly discovered varved lake sediment sequence in southern Sweden, Gyltigesjön. This comparison can provide information about magnetisation processes in sediments, such as the length of the palaeomagnetic lock-in delay. Stanton, T., Snowball, I., Zillén, L., Wastegård, S., 2010. Validating a Swedish varve chronology using radiocarbon, palaeomagnetic secular variation, lead pollution history and statistical correlation, Quaternary Geochronology 5, 611-624.

Division H Commission 33: Structure & Dynamics of the Galactic System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nordström, Birgitta; Bland-Hawthorn, Joss; Wyse, Rosemary; Athanassoula, Lia; Feltzing, Sofia; Jog, Chanda; Lockman, Jay; Minniti, Dante; Robin, Annie

2016-04-01

Research on the structure and dynamics of the Galactic System covers a large field of research, from formation scenarios to long-term evolution and secular processes. Today we speak of near-field cosmology where the oldest parts of the Galaxy are used to probe back to early times, e.g. studying the chemical signatures of the oldest star clusters and dwarf galaxies to learn about the byproducts of the first stars. Some of the most detailed work relates to the structure of the dark matter and baryons in order to compare with expectation from N-body models. Secular processes have been identified (e.g. stellar migration) where material within the Galaxy is being reorganized by dynamical resonances and feedback processes.

The odyssey of Orpheus: the evolution of solo singing.

PubMed

Miller, R

1996-06-01

Notated sacred solo song dates from 1,000 B.C. Early secular song exhibits modest vocal demands of chant-like character. Popular song and liturgical solo song share common origins. Western European secular song notation began in the early Medieval Age. Compositional writing for solo voice took a dramatic turn toward virtuosity about 1600. By the mid-17th century, the modern solo voice emerged. "Classical" solo vocal literature is not static but is constantly evolving, requiring skills far in excess of those of speech or of early solo song literature; this is equally the case with ethnomusicological and popular singing styles. Efficient use of the singing instrument is essential to the healthy accomplishment of all of these literatures.

Simultaneous stochastic inversion for geomagnetic main field and secular variation. I - A large-scale inverse problem

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bloxham, Jeremy

1987-01-01

The method of stochastic inversion is extended to the simultaneous inversion of both main field and secular variation. In the present method, the time dependency is represented by an expansion in Legendre polynomials, resulting in a simple diagonal form for the a priori covariance matrix. The efficient preconditioned Broyden-Fletcher-Goldfarb-Shanno algorithm is used to solve the large system of equations resulting from expansion of the field spatially to spherical harmonic degree 14 and temporally to degree 8. Application of the method to observatory data spanning the 1900-1980 period results in a data fit of better than 30 nT, while providing temporally and spatially smoothly varying models of the magnetic field at the core-mantle boundary.

Accuracy of gravitational physics tests using ranges to the inner planets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ashby, N.; Bender, P.

1981-01-01

A number of different types of deviations from Kepler's laws for planetary orbits can occur in nonNewtonian metric gravitational theories. These include secular changes in all of the orbital elements and in the mean motion, plus additional periodic perturbations in the coordinates. The first order corrections to the Keplerian motion of a single planet around the Sun due to the parameterized post Newtonian theory parameters were calculated as well as the corrections due to the solar quadrupole moment and a possible secular change in the gravitational constant. The results were applied to the case of proposed high accuracy ranging experiments from the Earth to a Mercury orbiting spacecraft in order to see how well the various parameters can be determined.

Extending religion-health research to secular minorities: issues and concerns.

PubMed

Hwang, Karen; Hammer, Joseph H; Cragun, Ryan T

2011-09-01

Claims about religion's beneficial effects on physical and psychological health have received substantial attention in popular media, but empirical support for these claims is mixed. Many of these claims are tenuous because they fail to address basic methodological issues relating to construct validity, sampling methods or analytical problems. A more conceptual problem has to do with the near universal lack of atheist control samples. While many studies include samples of individuals classified as "low spirituality" or religious "nones", these groups are heterogeneous and contain only a fraction of members who would be considered truly secular. We illustrate the importance of including an atheist control group whenever possible in the religiosity/spirituality and health research and discuss areas for further investigation.

Religious perspectives on the use of psychopharmaceuticals as an enhancement technology.

PubMed

Fitzpatrick, Scott J; Jordens, Christopher F C; Kerridge, Ian H; Keown, Damien; Walter, James J; Nelson, Paul; Abdalla, Mohamad; Lehmann, Lisa Soleymani; Sarma, Deepak

2014-10-01

The use of psychopharmaceuticals as an enhancement technology has been the focus of attention in the bioethics literature. However, there has been little examination of the challenges that this practice creates for religious traditions that place importance on questions of being, authenticity, and identity. We asked expert commentators from six major world religions to consider the issues raised by psychopharmaceuticals as an enhancement technology. These commentaries reveal that in assessing the appropriate place of medical therapies, religious traditions, like secular perspectives, rely upon ideas about health and disease and about normal human behavior. But unlike secular perspectives, faith traditions explicitly concern themselves with ways in which medicine should or should not be used to live a "good life".

Secular Evolution in Barred Galaxies: Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merrifield, M.

2002-12-01

This paper describes a framework for studying galaxy morphology, particularly bar strength, in a quantitative manner, and presents applications of this approach that reveal observational evidence for secular evolution in bar morphology. The distribution of bar strength in galaxies is quite strongly bimodal, suggesting that barred and unbarred systems are distinct entities, and that any evolution between these two states must occur on a relatively rapid timescale. Bars' strengths appear to be correlated with their pattern speeds, implying that these structures weaken as they start to slow, and disappear entirely before the bars have slowed significantly. There is also tantalizing evidence that bars are rare beyond a redshift of z ~ 0.7, indicating that galaxies have only recently evolved to a point where bars can readily form.

Evaluation of models proposed for the 1991 revision of the International Geomagnetic Reference Field

USGS Publications Warehouse

Peddie, N.W.

1992-01-01

The 1991 revision of the International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF) comprises a definitive main-field model for 1985.0, a main-field model for 1990.0, and a forecast secular-variation model for the period 1990-1995. The five 1985.0 main-field models and five 1990.0 main-field models that were proposed have been evaluated by comparing them with one another, with magnetic observatory data, and with Project MAGNET aerial survey data. The comparisons indicate that the main-field models proposed by IZMIRAN, and the secular-variation model proposed jointly by the British Geological Survey and the US Naval Oceanographic Office, should be assigned relatively lower weight in the derivation of the new IGRF models. -Author

Stroke survivors in low- and middle-income countries: A meta-analysis of prevalence and secular trends.

PubMed

Ezejimofor, Martinsixtus C; Chen, Yen-Fu; Kandala, Ngianga-Bakwin; Ezejimofor, Benedeth C; Ezeabasili, Aloysius C; Stranges, Saverio; Uthman, Olalekan A

2016-05-15

To provide an up-to-date estimate on the changing prevalence of stroke survivors, and examines the geographic and socioeconomic variations in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, SCOPUS and Web of Science databases and systematically reviewed articles reporting stroke prevalence and risk factors from inception to July 2015. Pooled prevalence estimates and secular trends based on random-effects models were conducted across LMICs, World Bank regions and income groups. Overall, 101 eligible community-based studies were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled crude prevalence of stroke survivors was highest in Latin America and Caribbean (21.2 per 1000, 95% CI 13.7 to 30.29) but lowest in sub-Saharan Africa (3.5 per 1000, 95% CI 1.9 to 5.7). Steepest increase in stroke prevalence occurred in low-income countries, increasing by 14.3% annually while the lowest increase occurred in lower-middle income countries (6% annually), and for every 10years increase in participants' mean age, the prevalence of stroke survivors increases by 62% (95% CI 6% to 147%). The prevalence estimates of stroke survivors are significantly different across LMICs in both magnitude and secular trend. Improved stroke surveillance and care, as well as better management of the underlying risk factors, primarily undetected or uncontrolled high blood pressure (HBP) are needed. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Steady induction effects in geomagnetism. Part 1A: Steady motional induction of geomagnetic chaos

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Voorhies, Coerte V.

1992-01-01

Geomagnetic effects of magnetic induction by hypothetically steady fluid motion and steady magnetic flux diffusion near the top of Earth's core are investigated using electromagnetic theory, simple magnetic earth models, and numerical experiments with geomagnetic field models. The problem of estimating a steady fluid velocity field near the top of Earth's core which induces the secular variation indicated by broad-scale models of the observed geomagnetic field is examined and solved. In Part 1, the steady surficial core flow estimation problem is solved in the context of the source-free mantle/frozen-flux core model. In the first paper (IA), the theory underlying such estimates is reviewed and some consequences of various kinematic and dynamic flow hypotheses are derived. For a frozen-flux core, fluid downwelling is required to change the mean square normal magnetic flux density averaged over the core-mantle boundary. For surficially geostrophic flow, downwelling implies poleward flow. The solution of the forward steady motional induction problem at the surface of a frozen-flux core is derived and found to be a fine, easily visualized example of deterministic chaos. Geomagnetic effects of statistically steady core surface flow may well dominate secular variation over several decades. Indeed, effects of persistent, if not steady, surficially geostrophic core flow are described which may help explain certain features of the present broad-scale geomagnetic field and perhaps paleomagnetic secular variation.

Crustal structure of Precambrian terranes in the southern African subcontinent with implications for secular variation in crustal genesis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kachingwe, Marsella; Nyblade, Andrew; Julià, Jordi

2015-07-01

New estimates of crustal thickness, Poisson's ratio and crustal shear wave velocity have been obtained for 39 stations in Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zambia by modelling P-wave receiver functions using the H-κ stacking method and jointly inverting the receiver functions with Rayleigh-wave phase and group velocities. These estimates, combined with similar results from previous studies, have been examined for secular trends in Precambrian crustal structure within the southern African subcontinent. In both Archean and Proterozoic terranes we find similar Moho depths [38-39 ± 3 km SD (standard deviation)], crustal Poisson's ratio (0.26 ± 0.01 SD), mean crustal shear wave velocity (3.7 ± 0.1 km s-1 SD), and amounts of heterogeneity in the thickness of the mafic lower crust, as defined by shear wave velocities ≥4.0 km s-1. In addition, the amount of variability in these crustal parameters is similar within each individual age grouping as between age groupings. Thus, the results provide little evidence for secular variation in Precambrian crustal structure, including between Meso- and Neoarchean crust. This finding suggests that (1) continental crustal has been generated by similar processes since the Mesoarchean or (2) plate tectonic processes have reworked and modified the crust through time, erasing variations in structure resulting from crustal genesis.

Religiosity as a protective factor against suicidal behaviour.

PubMed

Burshtein, S; Dohrenwend, B P; Levav, I; Werbeloff, N; Davidson, M; Weiser, M

2016-06-01

Data suggest that adherence to religious beliefs is associated with lower rates of suicide. A number of mediating factors have been hypothesized to explain this association, including enhanced social support, less substance abuse, and lower rates of psychopathology. We utilized data from a two-phase population-based, epidemiological study of mental disorders among young Jewish Israel born in a 10-year birth-cohort conducted in the 1980s. This study included data on religiosity and suicidal behaviour. Twenty-five years thereafter, mortality data were obtained from a national vital statistics registry. Rates of suicidal ideation were similar among secular, partially observant, and religious subjects (9.4%, 6.7%, and 6.2%, respectively; adjusted OR for linear trend: 0.80, 95% CI: 0.58-1.09). Rates of suicide attempts were significantly lower among religious subjects (2.4%, 2.5%, and 0.4% for secular, partially observant, and religious, respectively; adjusted OR for linear trend: 0.62, 95% CI: 0.43-0.88). Of the 4914 subjects, eight died by suicide: Seven of them were secular and one was partially observant (χ(2) = 2.52, P = 0.09). There were no differences in social functioning or rates of psychopathology among the study groups. Religiosity has a protective effect against suicide attempts, which is independent of social functioning, psychopathology, and substance use. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Fundamental movement skills in adolescents: Secular trends from 2003 to 2010 and associations with physical activity and BMI.

PubMed

Huotari, P; Heikinaro-Johansson, P; Watt, A; Jaakkola, T

2018-03-01

The aim of this study was to examine the secular trends in fundamental movement skills (FMS) among 15- to 16-year-old adolescents at 2 assessment points scheduled in 2003 and 2010 and to investigate the associations between FMS, physical activity (PA), and body mass index (BMI). In 2003, self-reported PA, weight and height, and objective FMS scores were collected from 2390 students, and in 2010, similar data were generated from a second sample of 1346 students. FMS were assessed during both assessment phases using 3 identical objective FMS tests that were figure 8 dribbling, jumping laterally, and coordination track tests. This study indicated that the sum index of FMS did not change among the boys and the girls between 2 data collection points. However, findings demonstrated a secular decline in coordination test scores in both gender groups between 2 measurement points but an improvement in girls' object control skills between 2003 and 2010. The results also showed that FMS had a significant main effect on BMI in both gender groups, whereas the main effect of PA on BMI was not significant for either gender group. Results also demonstrated that there was no significant interaction effect between FMS and PA on BMI in either of the girls' or the boys' groups. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Evidence of codon usage in the nearest neighbor spacing distribution of bases in bacterial genomes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Higareda, M. F.; Geiger, O.; Mendoza, L.; Méndez-Sánchez, R. A.

2012-02-01

Statistical analysis of whole genomic sequences usually assumes a homogeneous nucleotide density throughout the genome, an assumption that has been proved incorrect for several organisms since the nucleotide density is only locally homogeneous. To avoid giving a single numerical value to this variable property, we propose the use of spectral statistics, which characterizes the density of nucleotides as a function of its position in the genome. We show that the cumulative density of bases in bacterial genomes can be separated into an average (or secular) plus a fluctuating part. Bacterial genomes can be divided into two groups according to the qualitative description of their secular part: linear and piecewise linear. These two groups of genomes show different properties when their nucleotide spacing distribution is studied. In order to analyze genomes having a variable nucleotide density, statistically, the use of unfolding is necessary, i.e., to get a separation between the secular part and the fluctuations. The unfolding allows an adequate comparison with the statistical properties of other genomes. With this methodology, four genomes were analyzed Burkholderia, Bacillus, Clostridium and Corynebacterium. Interestingly, the nearest neighbor spacing distributions or detrended distance distributions are very similar for species within the same genus but they are very different for species from different genera. This difference can be attributed to the difference in the codon usage.

Eccentricity Evolution of Extrasolar Multiple Planetary Systems Due to the Depletion of Nascent Protostellar Disks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nagasawa, M.; Lin, D. N. C.; Ida, S.

2003-04-01

Most extrasolar planets are observed to have eccentricities much larger than those in the solar system. Some of these planets have sibling planets, with comparable masses, orbiting around the same host stars. In these multiple planetary systems, eccentricity is modulated by the planets' mutual secular interaction as a consequence of angular momentum exchange between them. For mature planets, the eigenfrequencies of this modulation are determined by their mass and semimajor axis ratios. However, prior to the disk depletion, self-gravity of the planets' nascent disks dominates the precession eigenfrequencies. We examine here the initial evolution of young planets' eccentricity due to the apsidal libration or circulation induced by both the secular interaction between them and the self-gravity of their nascent disks. We show that as the latter effect declines adiabatically with disk depletion, the modulation amplitude of the planets' relative phase of periapsis is approximately invariant despite the time-asymmetrical exchange of angular momentum between planets. However, as the young planets' orbits pass through a state of secular resonance, their mean eccentricities undergo systematic quantitative changes. For applications, we analyze the eccentricity evolution of planets around υ Andromedae and HD 168443 during the epoch of protostellar disk depletion. We find that the disk depletion can change the planets' eccentricity ratio. However, the relatively large amplitude of the planets' eccentricity cannot be excited if all the planets had small initial eccentricities.

Planetary chaos and the (In)stability of Hungaria asteroids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ćuk, Matija; Nesvorný, David

2018-04-01

The Hungaria asteroid group is located interior to the main asteroid belt, with semimajor axes between 1.8 and 2 AU, low eccentricities and inclinations of 16-35 degrees. Recently, it has been proposed that Hungaria asteroids are a secularly declining population that may be related to the Late Heavy Bombardment (LHB) impactors (Cuk, 2012; Bottke et al., 2012). While Cuk (2012) and Bottke et al. (2012) have reproduced a Hungaria-like population that declined exponentially, the real Hungarias were never confirmed to be unstable to the same degree. Here we find that the stability of Hungarias is strongly dependent on the evolution of the eccentricity of Mars, which is chaotic and unpredictable on Gyr timescales. We find that the high Martian eccentricity chiefly affects Hungarias through close approaches with Mars, rather than planetary secular modes. However, current minimum perihelia of Hungarias (over Myr timescales) are not diagnostic of their long-term stability due to a number of secular and mean motion resonances affecting the Hungaria region Milani et al., 2010. We conclude that planetary chaos makes it impossible to determine the effective lifetimes of observed Hungarias. Furthermore, long-term changes of Martian eccentricity could lead to variable Hungaria loss over time. We speculate that some of the most stable Hungarias may have been placed in their present orbit when the eccentricity of Mars was significantly higher than today.

CHARGED DUST GRAIN DYNAMICS SUBJECT TO SOLAR WIND, POYNTING–ROBERTSON DRAG, AND THE INTERPLANETARY MAGNETIC FIELD

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lhotka, Christoph; Bourdin, Philippe; Narita, Yasuhito, E-mail: christoph.lhotka@oeaw.ac.at, E-mail: philippe.bourdin@oeaw.ac.at, E-mail: yasuhito.narita@oeaw.ac.at

We investigate the combined effect of solar wind, Poynting–Robertson drag, and the frozen-in interplanetary magnetic field on the motion of charged dust grains in our solar system. For this reason, we derive a secular theory of motion by the means of an averaging method and validate it with numerical simulations of the unaveraged equations of motions. The theory predicts that the secular motion of charged particles is mainly affected by the z -component of the solar magnetic axis, or the normal component of the interplanetary magnetic field. The normal component of the interplanetary magnetic field leads to an increase ormore » decrease of semimajor axis depending on its functional form and sign of charge of the dust grain. It is generally accepted that the combined effects of solar wind and photon absorption and re-emmision (Poynting–Robertson drag) lead to a decrease in semimajor axis on secular timescales. On the contrary, we demonstrate that the interplanetary magnetic field may counteract these drag forces under certain circumstances. We derive a simple relation between the parameters of the magnetic field, the physical properties of the dust grain, as well as the shape and orientation of the orbital ellipse of the particle, which is a necessary conditions for the stabilization in semimajor axis.« less

Engelhardt and children: the failure of libertarian bioethics in pediatric interactions.

PubMed

Hanson, Stephen

2005-06-01

In Engelhardt's secular bioethics, moral obligations derive from contracts and agreements between rational persons, and no infants or children and few adolescents meet Engelhardt's requirements for being a rational person. This is a problem, as one cannot have any direct secular moral obligations toward nonpersons such as infants and adolescents. The Engelhardtian concepts of ownership, indenture, and social personhood, which are meant to allow the theory to accommodate children and adolescents adequately, fail to give an Engelhardtian any actual means of determining the right action to take in difficult cases, even on his or her own terms. Thus, the theory is incapable of determining the morally correct action to take in cases involving children and therefore is unhelpful in dealing with moral questions involving children.

Constraints on geomagnetic secular variation modeling from electromagnetism and fluid dynamics of the Earth's core

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Benton, E. R.

1986-01-01

A spherical harmonic representation of the geomagnetic field and its secular variation for epoch 1980, designated GSFC(9/84), is derived and evaluated. At three epochs (1977.5, 1980.0, 1982.5) this model incorporates conservation of magnetic flux through five selected patches of area on the core/mantle boundary bounded by the zero contours of vertical magnetic field. These fifteen nonlinear constraints are included like data in an iterative least squares parameter estimation procedure that starts with the recently derived unconstrained field model GSFC (12/83). Convergence is approached within three iterations. The constrained model is evaluated by comparing its predictive capability outside the time span of its data, in terms of residuals at magnetic observatories, with that for the unconstrained model.

[Adolphe Quetelet and biopolitics as secularized theology].

PubMed

Pich, Santiago

2013-01-01

The article recaptures the work of an author who has been forgotten by the contemporary social sciences, that is, the Belgium polymath Adolphe Quetelet. Focusing on his main work, Sur l'homme et le développement de ses facultés, ou Essai de physique sociale, the study underscores how the secularization of theological principles within the realm of science was important to the construction of Quetelet's work. His dual engagement in science and politics is pertinent here, as he was the main nineteenth-century force behind the incorporation of statistics as a science essential to the State's ability to govern its people. He also played a relevant role in the realization of the hegemonic political project of modernity, biopolitics, and its influence in the field of biomedicine in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Abortion in Islamic Ethics, and How it is Perceived in Turkey: A Secular, Muslim Country

PubMed Central

Ekmekci, Perihan Elif

2016-01-01

Abortion is among the most widely discussed concepts of medical ethics. Since the well-known ethical theories have emerged from Western world, the position of Islamic ethics regarding main issues of medical ethics has been overlooked. Muslims constitute a considerable amount of world population. Turkish Republic is the only Muslim country ruled with secular democracy and one of the three Muslim countries where abortion is legalized. The first aim of this paper is to present discussions on abortion in Islamic ethics in the context of major ethical concepts; the legal status of the fetus, respect for life and the right not to be born. The second aim is to put forth Turkey’s present legislation about abortion in the context of Islamic ethical and religious aspects. PMID:27364347

Abortion in Islamic Ethics, and How it is Perceived in Turkey: A Secular, Muslim Country.

PubMed

Ekmekci, Perihan Elif

2017-06-01

Abortion is among the most widely discussed concepts of medical ethics. Since the well-known ethical theories have emerged from Western world, the position of Islamic ethics regarding main issues of medical ethics has been overlooked. Muslims constitute a considerable amount of world population. Turkish Republic is the only Muslim country ruled with secular democracy and one of the three Muslim countries where abortion is legalized. The first aim of this paper is to present discussions on abortion in Islamic ethics in the context of major ethical concepts; the legal status of the fetus, respect for life and the right not to be born. The second aim is to put forth Turkey's present legislation about abortion in the context of Islamic ethical and religious aspects.

Secular trends in the geologic record and the supercontinent cycle

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bradley, Dwight C.

2011-01-01

Geologic secular trends are used to refine the timetable of supercontinent assembly, tenure, and breakup. The analysis rests on what is meant by the term supercontinent, which here is defined broadly as a grouping of formerly dispersed continents. To avoid the artificial pitfall of an all-or-nothing definition, quantitative measures of “supercontinentality” are presented: the number of continents, and the area of the largest continent, which both can be gleaned from global paleogeographic maps for the Phanerozoic. For the secular trends approach to be viable in the deep past when the very existence of supercontinents is debatable and reconstructions are fraught with problems, it must first be calibrated in the Phanerozoic against the well-constrained Pangea supercontinent cycle. The most informative geologic variables covering both the Phanerozoic and Precambrian are the abundances of passive margins and of detrital zircons. Both fluctuated with size of the largest continent during the Pangea supercontinent cycle and can be quantified back to the Neoarchean. The tenure of Pangea was a time represented in the rock record by few zircons and few passive margins. Thus, previously documented minima in the abundance of detrital zircons (and orogenic granites) during the Precambrian (Condie et al., 2009a, Gondwana Research 15, 228–242) now can be more confidently interpreted as marking the tenures of supercontinents. The occurrences of carbonatites, granulites, eclogites, and greenstone-belt deformation events also appear to bear the imprint of Precambrian supercontinent cyclicity. Together, these secular records are consistent with the following scenario. The Neoarchean continental assemblies of Superia and Sclavia broke up at ca. 2300 and ca. 2090 Ma, respectively. Some of their fragments collided to form Nuna by about 1750 Ma; Nuna then grew by lateral accretion of juvenile arcs during the Mesoproterozoic, and was involved in a series of collisions at ca. 1000 Ma to form Rodinia. Rodinia broke up in stages from ca. 1000 to ca. 520 Ma. Before Rodinia had completely come apart, some of its pieces had already been reassembled in a new configuration, Gondwana, which was completed by 530 Ma. Gondwana later collided with Laurentia, Baltica, and Siberia to form Pangea by about 300 Ma. Breakup of Pangea began at about 180 Ma (Early Jurassic) and continues today. In the suggested scenario, no supercontinent cycle in Earth history corresponded to the ideal, in which all the continents were gathered together, then broke apart, then reassembled in a new configuration. Nuna and Gondwana ended their tenures not by breakup but by collision and name change; Rodinia's assembly overlapped in time with its disassembly; and Pangea spalled Tethyan microcontinents throughout much of its tenure. Many other secular trends show a weak or uneven imprint of the supercontinent cycle, no imprint at all. Instead, these secular trends together reveal aspects of the shifting background against which the supercontinents came and went, making each cycle unique. Global heat production declined; plate tectonics sped up through the Proterozoic and slowed down through the Phanerozoic; the atmosphere and oceans became oxidized; life emerged as a major geochemical agent; some rock types went extinct or nearly so (BIF, massif-type anorthosite, komatiite); and other rock types came into existence or became common (blueschists, bioclastic limestone, coal).

Use of GRACE determined secular gravity rates for glacial isostatic adjustment studies in North-America

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van der Wal, Wouter; Wu, Patrick; Sideris, Michael G.; Shum, C. K.

2008-10-01

Monthly geopotential spherical harmonic coefficients from the GRACE satellite mission are used to determine their usefulness and limitations for studying glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) in North-America. Secular gravity rates are estimated by unweighted least-squares estimation using release 4 coefficients from August 2002 to August 2007 provided by the Center for Space Research (CSR), University of Texas. Smoothing is required to suppress short wavelength noise, in addition to filtering to diminish geographically correlated errors, as shown in previous studies. Optimal cut-off degrees and orders are determined for the destriping filter to maximize the signal to noise ratio. The halfwidth of the Gaussian filter is shown to significantly affect the sensitivity of the GRACE data (with respect to upper mantle viscosity and ice loading history). Therefore, the halfwidth should be selected based on the desired sensitivity. It is shown that increase in water storage in an area south west of Hudson Bay, from the summer of 2003 to the summer of 2006, contributes up to half of the maximum estimated gravity rate. Hydrology models differ in the predictions of the secular change in water storage, therefore even 4-year trend estimates are influenced by the uncertainty in water storage changes. Land ice melting in Greenland and Alaska has a non-negligible contribution, up to one-fourth of the maximum gravity rate. The estimated secular gravity rate shows two distinct peaks that can possibly be due to two domes in the former Pleistocene ice cover: west and south east of Hudson Bay. With a limited number of models, a better fit is obtained with models that use the ICE-3G model compared to the ICE-5G model. However, the uncertainty in interannual variations in hydrology models is too large to constrain the ice loading history with the current data span. For future work in which GRACE will be used to constrain ice loading history and the Earth's radial viscosity profile, it is important to include realistic uncertainty estimates for hydrology models and land ice melting in addition to the effects of lateral heterogeneity.

Secular Trends in Meal and Snack Patterns among Adolescents from 1999 to 2010.

PubMed

Larson, Nicole; Story, Mary; Eisenberg, Marla E; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2016-02-01

Linkages between snack patterns, diet, and obesity in adolescents likely depend on the consumption of main meals, how often snacks are prepared away from home, and whether energy-dense, nutrient-poor snack foods and sugary drinks are frequently consumed. Nutrition-based interventions need to be informed by an understanding of how secular changes in the contribution of snacks to dietary intake may be related to changes in meal frequency as well as how these trends differ by sociodemographic characteristics. To examine secular trends from 1999 to 2010 in meal and snack patterns among adolescents. A repeated cross-sectional design was used. Participants from Minneapolis/St Paul, MN, secondary schools completed classroom-administered surveys and food frequency questionnaires in 1999 (n=2,598) and 2010 (n=2,540). Weekly meal frequencies; number of snacks consumed on school and vacation/weekend days; frequent consumption of snacks prepared away from home (≥3 times/week); and daily servings of energy-dense, nutrient-poor food/drinks that are commonly consumed at snack occasions. Trends from 1999 to 2010 were examined using inverse probability weighting to control for differences in sociodemographic characteristics in the two samples. Mean frequencies of breakfast and lunch increased modestly in the overall population (both P values <0.001), and there were decreases in the number of snacks consumed on schools days (P<0.001) and vacation/weekend days (P=0.003). Although there was no change in the proportion of adolescents who reported frequent consumption of snacks prepared away from home, there was a secular decrease in energy-dense, nutrient-poor food/drink consumption (P<0.001). Sociodemographic differences in the identified trends were evident. The observed pattern of sociodemographic characteristic differences in meal and snack trends among adolescents suggests the need for targeted efforts to ensure public health messages reach low-income and ethnic/racial minority population subgroups most vulnerable to poor nutrition and the development of obesity. Copyright © 2016 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Internal and environmental secular evolution of disk galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kormendy, John

2015-03-01

This Special Session is devoted to the secular evolution of disk galaxies. Here `secular' means `slow' i.e., evolution on time scales that are generally much longer than the galaxy crossing or rotation time. Internal and environmentally driven evolution both are covered. I am indebted to Albert Bosma for reminding me at the 2011 Canary Islands Winter School on Secular Evolution that our subject first appeared in print in a comment made by Ivan King (1977) in his introductory talk at the Yale University meeting on The Evolution of Galaxies and Stellar Populations: `John Kormendy would like us to consider the possibility that a galaxy can interact with itself.. . . I'm not at all convinced, but John can show you some interesting pictures.' Two of the earliest papers that followed were Kormendy (1979a, b); the first discusses the interaction of galaxy components with each other, and the second studies these phenomena in the context of a morphological survey of barred galaxies. The earliest modeling paper that we still use regularly is Combes & Sanders (1981), which introduces the now well known idea that box-shaped bulges in edge-on galaxies are side-on, vertically thickened bars. It is gratifying to see how this subject has grown since that time. Hundreds of papers have been written, and the topic features prominently at many meetings (e.g., Block et al. 2004; Falcoń-Barroso & Knapen 2012, and this Special Session). My talk here introduces both internal and environmental secular evolution; a brief abstract follows. My Canary Islands Winter School review covers both subjects in more detail (Kormendy 2012). Kormendy & Kennicutt (2004) is a comprehensive review of internal secular evolution, and Kormendy & Bender (2012) covers environmental evolution. Both of these subject make significant progress at this meeting. Secular evolution happens because self-gravitating systems evolve toward the most tightly bound configuration that is reachable by the evolution processes that are available to them. They do this by spreading - the inner parts shrink while the outer parts expand. Significant changes happen only if some process efficiently transports energy or angular momentum outward. The consequences are very general: evolution by spreading happens in stars, star clusters, protostellar and protoplanetary disks, black hole accretion disks and galaxy disks. This meeting is about disk galaxies, so the evolution most often involves the redistribution of angular momentum. We now have a good heuristic understanding of how nonaxisymmetric structures rearrange disk gas into outer rings, inner rings and stuff dumped onto the center. Numerical simulations reproduce observed morphologies very well. Gas that is transported to small radii reaches high densities that are seen in CO observations. Star formation rates measured (e.g.) in the mid-infrared show that many barred and oval galaxies grow, on timescales of a few Gyr, dense central `pseudobulges' that are frequently mistaken for classical (elliptical-galaxy-like) bulges but that were grown slowly out of the disk (not made rapidly by major mergers). Our resulting picture of secular evolution accounts for the richness observed in morphological classification schemes such as those of de Vaucouleurs (1959) and Sandage (1961). State-of-the art morphology discussions include the de Vaucouleurs Atlas of Galaxies (Buta et al. 2007) and Buta (2012, 2013). Pseudobulges as disk-grown alternatives to merger-built classical bulges are important because they impact many aspects of our understanding of galaxy evolution. For example, they are observed to contain supermassive black holes (BHs), but they do not show the well known, tight correlations between BH mass and host properties (Kormendy et al. 2011). We can distinguish between classical and pseudo bulges because the latter retain a `memory' of their disky origin. That is, they have one or more characteristics of disks: (1) flatter shapes than those of classical bulges, (2) correspondingly large ratios of ordered to random velocities, (3) small velocity dispersions σ with respect to the Faber-Jackson correlation between σ and bulge luminosity, (4) spiral structure or nuclear bars in the `bulge' part of the light profile, (5) nearly exponential brightness profiles and (6) starbursts. None of the above classification criteria are 100% reliable. Published disagreements on (pseudo)bulge classifications usually result from the use of diffferent criteria. It is very important to use as many classification criteria as possible. When two or more criteria are used, the probability of misclassification becomes very small. I also review environmental secular evolution - the transformation of gas-rich, star-forming spiral and irregular galaxies into gas-poor, `red and dead' S0 and spheroidal (`Sph') galaxies. I show that Sph galaxies such as NGC 205 and Draco are not the low-luminosity end of the structural sequence (the `fundamental plane') of elliptical galaxies. Instead, Sph galaxies have structural parameters like those of low-luminosity S+Im galaxies. Spheroidals are continuous in their structural parameters with the disks of S0 galaxies. They are bulgeless S0s. S+Im -> S0+Sph transformation involves a variety of internal (supernova-driven baryon ejection) and environmental processes (e.g., ram-pressure gas stripping, harassment, and starvation). Improved evidence for galaxy transformation is presented in several papers at this meeting.

19 CFR 12.104a - Importations prohibited.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... TREASURY SPECIAL CLASSES OF MERCHANDISE Cultural Property § 12.104a Importations prohibited. (a) No article of cultural property documented as appertaining to the inventory of a museum or religious or secular...

Nuclear quadrupole resonance studies in semi-metallic structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Murty, A. N.

1974-01-01

Both experimental and theoretical studies are presented on spectrum analysis of nuclear quadrupole resonance of antimony and arsenic tellurides. Numerical solutions for secular equations of the quadrupole interaction energy are also discussed.

Secular Changes in the Solar Semidiurnal Tide of the Western North Atlantic Ocean

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ray, Richard D.

2009-01-01

An analysis of twentieth century tide gauge records reveals that the solar semidiurnal tide S, has been decreasing in amplitude along the eastern coast of North America and at the mid-ocean site Bermuda. In relative terms the observed rates are unusually large, of order 10% per century. Periods of greatest change, however, are inconsistent among the stations, and roughly half the stations show increasing amplitude since the late 1990s. Excepting the Gulf of Maine, lunar tides are either static or slightly increasing in amplitude; a few stations show decreases. Large changes in solar, but not lunar, tides suggest causes related to variable radiational forcing, but the hypothesis is at present unproven. Citation: Ray, R. D. (2009), Secular changes in the solar semidiurnal tide of the western North Atlantic Ocean

Time-causal decomposition of geomagnetic time series into secular variation, solar quiet, and disturbance signals

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rigler, E. Joshua

2017-04-26

A theoretical basis and prototype numerical algorithm are provided that decompose regular time series of geomagnetic observations into three components: secular variation; solar quiet, and disturbance. Respectively, these three components correspond roughly to slow changes in the Earth’s internal magnetic field, periodic daily variations caused by quasi-stationary (with respect to the sun) electrical current systems in the Earth’s magnetosphere, and episodic perturbations to the geomagnetic baseline that are typically driven by fluctuations in a solar wind that interacts electromagnetically with the Earth’s magnetosphere. In contrast to similar algorithms applied to geomagnetic data in the past, this one addresses the issue of real time data acquisition directly by applying a time-causal, exponential smoother with “seasonal corrections” to the data as soon as they become available.

The Solar Constant, Climate, and Some Tests of the Storage Hypothesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eddy, J. A.

1984-01-01

Activity related modulation of the solar constant can have practical consequences for climate only if storage is involved, as opposed to a detailed balance between sunspot blocking and facular reemission. Four empirical tests are considered that might distinguish between these opposing interpretations: monochromatic measurements of positive and negative flux; comparison of modelled and measured irradiance variations; the interpretation of secular trends in irradiance data; and the direct test of an anticipated signal in climate records of surface air temperature. The yet unanswered question of the role of faculae as possible reemitters of blocked radiation precludes a definitive answer, although other tests suggest their role to be minor, and that storage and an 11 year modulation is implicated. A crucial test is the behavior of the secular trend in irradiance in the declining years of the present activity cycle.

The art of professional development and caring in cancer nursing.

PubMed

Wengström, Yvonne; Ekedahl, Marieanne

2006-03-01

The impetus for this qualitative study was the premise expressed by lay people that nursing terminally ill cancer patients must be depressing and difficult to cope with. Its focus was nurses' stress and coping strategies, both secular and religious. Data was collected using a narrative life-story approach, and then Lazaruz and Folkman's coping theory and Pargament's theory on the psychology of religion were used during the analysis of the data. Several factors were identified, related to the individual and group levels, that influence a nurse's identity and professional development. A person's life orientation was suggested as a first concept for developing a professional paradigm that includes caritas as a main orienting factor. Directed by the nurse's secular and religious orientation, competence develops, making it possible to understand, analyze, manage, and appreciate the significance of the professional work of caring.

Main field and recent secular variation.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alldredge, L.R.

1983-01-01

As Cain (1979) indicated might happen in the last IUGG quadrennial report, added resources were made available during the past few years and a real impulse was added to the geomagnetic work in the US by the launching of the MAGSAT Satellite. This new effort paid off in terms of new charts, additional long wavelength studies, and external source studies. As before, however, the future funding for new starts in geomagnetism does not look bright at the present time. A single MAGSAT in orbit a little more than seven months did wonders for main field (M.F.) charting, but did little or nothing for secular variation (S.V.) charting. It would take a number of repeated MAGSATS to help the S.V. picture. Meanwhile, the world magnetic observatory net and surface repeat stations remain as the main source of S.V. data. -from Author

Magmatically triggered slow slip at Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii.

PubMed

Brooks, Benjamin A; Foster, James; Sandwell, David; Wolfe, Cecily J; Okubo, Paul; Poland, Michael; Myer, David

2008-08-29

We demonstrate that a recent dike intrusion probably triggered a slow fault-slip event (SSE) on Kilauea volcano's mobile south flank. Our analysis combined models of Advanced Land Observing Satellite interferometric dike-intrusion displacement maps with continuous Global Positioning System (GPS) displacement vectors to show that deformation nearly identical to four previous SSEs at Kilauea occurred at far-field sites shortly after the intrusion. We model stress changes because of both secular deformation and the intrusion and find that both would increase the Coulomb failure stress on possible SSE slip surfaces by roughly the same amount. These results, in concert with the observation that none of the previous SSEs at Kilauea was directly preceded by intrusions but rather occurred during times of normal background deformation, suggest that both extrinsic (intrusion-triggering) and intrinsic (secular fault creep) fault processes can lead to SSEs.

Fluid flow near the surface of earth's outer core

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bloxham, Jeremy; Jackson, Andrew

1991-01-01

This review examines the recent attempts at extracting information on the pattern of fluid flow near the surface of the outer core from the geomagnetic secular variation. Maps of the fluid flow at the core surface are important as they may provide some insight into the process of the geodynamo and may place useful constraints on geodynamo models. In contrast to the case of mantle convection, only very small lateral variations in core density are necessary to drive the flow; these density variations are, by several orders of magnitude, too small to be imaged seismically; therefore, the geomagnetic secular variation is utilized to infer the flow. As substantial differences exist between maps developed by different researchers, the possible underlying reasons for these differences are examined with particular attention given to the inherent problems of nonuniqueness.

Secular change in adult stature associated with modernization in Vanuatu.

PubMed

Olszowy, Kathryn M; Sun, Cheng; Silverman, Harold; Pomer, Alysa; Dancause, Kelsey N; Chan, Chim W; Lee, Gwang; Tarivonda, Len; Kaneko, Akira; Weitz, Charles; Koji Lum, J; Garruto, Ralph M

2017-09-10

To determine whether: (1) there is a secular increase in adult stature in Vanuatu, and (2) whether adult stature is positively associated with modernization in Vanuatu. This study reports on stature measurements collected on 650 adult (age > 17 years) men and women from four islands of varying economic development in Vanuatu. Measurements were collected as part of the Vanuatu Health Transitions Research Project in 2007 and 2011. Stature increased significantly in adults born between the 1940s and 1960s in Vanuatu, before leveling off in those born between the 1970s and 1990s. Adults are significantly taller on Efate, the most modernized island in the study sample, than on the less economically developed islands. Modernization is likely associated with improvements in child growth in Vanuatu, as assessed by gains in adult stature. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Secular variation and fluctuation of GPS Total Electron Content over Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jin, Rui; Jin, Shuanggen

2013-01-01

The total electron content (TEC) is an important parameters in the Earth's ionosphere, related to various space weather and solar activities. However, understanding of the complex ionospheric environments is still a challenge due to the lack of direct observations, particularly in the polar areas, e.g., Antarctica. Now the Global Positioning System (GPS) can be used to retrieve total electron content (TEC) from dual-frequency observations. The continuous GPS observations in Antarctica provide a good opportunity to investigate ionospheric climatology. In this paper, the long-term variations and fluctuations of TEC over Antarctica are investigated from CODE global ionospheric maps (GIM) with a resolution of 2.5°×5° every two hours since 1998. The analysis shows significant seasonal and secular variations in the GPS TEC. Furthermore, the effects of TEC fluctuations are discussed.

Secular rotational motions and the mechanical structure of a dynamical viscoelastic earth

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yuen, D. A.; Sabadini, R.

1984-01-01

A survey is presented of analytical methods for computing the linear responses of the rotational axis of a layered viscoelastic earth to surface loading. Theoretical research in this area is first summarized, and the differences between the mechanical boundary conditions to be applied at the interface separating the upper and lower mantles for an adiabatically and chemically stratified mantle are discussed. Some examples of polar wander and secular variation of the spin rate from glacial excitation are presented for various types of chemical and viscosity stratifications. The effects of an artificial density jump at the base of the lithosphere in models are examined, and certain issues concerning the fluid tidal Love number for different types of density stratification are addressed. The meaning of effective plate thickness over geological time scales for rotational dynamics is discussed.

Double Magnetic Reconnection Driven by Kelvin-Helmholtz Vortices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horton, W., Jr.; Faganello, M.; Califano, F.; Pegoraro, F.

2017-12-01

Simulations and theory for the solar wind driven magnetic reconnection in the flanks of the magnetopause is shown to be intrinsically 3D with the secular growth of couple pairs of reconnection regions off the equatorial plane. We call the process double mid-latitude reconnection and show supporting 3D simulations and theory descripting the secular growth of the magnetic reconnection with the resulting mixing of the solar wind plasma with the magnetosphere plasma. The initial phase develops Kelvin-Helmholtz vortices at low-latitude and, through the propagation of Alfven waves far from the region where the stresses are generated, creates a standard quasi-2D low latitude boundary layer magnetic reconnection but off the equatorial plane and with a weak guide field component. The reconnection exponential growth is followed by a secularly growing nonlinear phase that gradually closes the solar wind field lines on the Earth. The nonlinear field line structure provides a channel for penetration of the SW plasma into the MS as observed by spacecraft [THEMIS and Cluster]. The simulations show the amount of solar wind plasma brought into the magnetosphere by tracing the time evolution of the areas corresponding to double reconnected field lines with Poincare maps. The results for the solar wind plasma brought into the magnetosphere seems consistent with the observed plasma transport. Finally, we have shown how the intrinsic 3D nature of the doubly reconnected magnetic field lines leads to the generation of twisted magnetic spatial structures that differ from the quasi-2D magnetic islands structures.

Gravitational anomalies in the solar system?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iorio, Lorenzo

2015-02-01

Mindful of the anomalous perihelion precession of Mercury discovered by Le Verrier in the second half of the nineteenth century and its successful explanation by Einstein with his General Theory of Relativity in the early years of the twentieth century, discrepancies among observed effects in our Solar system and their theoretical predictions on the basis of the currently accepted laws of gravitation applied to known matter-energy distributions have the potential of paving the way for remarkable advances in fundamental physics. This is particularly important now more than ever, given that most of the universe seems to be made of unknown substances dubbed Dark Matter and Dark Energy. Should this not be directly the case, Solar system's anomalies could anyhow lead to advancements in either cumulative science, as shown to us by the discovery of Neptune in the first half of the nineteenth century, and technology itself. Moreover, investigations in one of such directions can serendipitously enrich the other one as well. The current status of some alleged gravitational anomalies in the Solar system is critically reviewed. They are: (a) Possible anomalous advances of planetary perihelia. (b) Unexplained orbital residuals of a recently discovered moon of Uranus (Mab). (c) The lingering unexplained secular increase of the eccentricity of the orbit of the Moon. (d) The so-called Faint Young Sun Paradox. (e) The secular decrease of the mass parameter of the Sun. (f) The Flyby Anomaly. (g) The Pioneer Anomaly. (h) The anomalous secular increase of the astronomical unit.

Effects of secular evolution on the star formation history of galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lorenzo, M. Fernández; Sulentic, J.; Verdes-Montenegro, L.; Argudo-Fernández, M.; Ruiz, J. E.; Sabater, J.; Sánchez-Expósito, S.

2015-03-01

We report the study performed as part of the AMIGA (Analysis of the interstellar Medium of Isolated GAlaxies; http://www.amiga.iaa.es) project, focused on the SDSS (g-r) colors of the sample. Assuming that color is an indicator of star formation history, this work better records the signature of passive star formation via pure secular evolution. Median values for each morphological type in AMIGA were compared with equivalent measures for galaxies in denser environments. We found a tendency for AMIGA spiral galaxies to be redder than galaxies in close pairs, but no clear difference when we compare with galaxies in other (e.g. group) environments. The (g-r) color of isolated galaxies presents a Gaussian distribution, as indicative of pure secular evolution, and a smaller median absolute deviation (almost half) compared to both wide and close pairs. This redder color and lower color dispersion of AMIGA spirals compared with close pairs is likely due to a more passive star formation in very isolated galaxies. In Fig. 1, we represent the size versus stellar mass for early and late-type galaxies of our sample, compared with the local relations of Shen et al. (2003). The late-type isolated galaxies are ~1.2 times larger or have less stellar mass than local spirals in other environments. The latter would be in agreement with the passive star formation found in the previous part. We acknowledge Grant AYA2011-30491-C02-01, P08-FQM-4205 and TIC-114.

Transplantation ethics from the Islamic point of view.

PubMed

Golmakani, Mohammad Mehdi; Niknam, Mohammad Hussein; Hedayat, Kamyar M

2005-04-01

Organ transplantation has been transformed from an experimental procedure at Western academic centers to an increasingly common procedure in private and public hospitals throughout the world. Attendant with advancements in organ harvesting, preservation, and transplantation come moral issues. Islam is a holistic religion that takes into account social affairs of man as well as spiritual ones. Islam has a long history of ethics literature including the subgenre of medical ethics. Historical considerations are discussed as to why Muslim thinkers were late to consider contemporary medical issues such as organ donation. Islam respects life and values the needs of the living over the dead, thus allowing organ donation to be considered in certain circumstances. The sources of Islamic law are discussed in brief in order for non-Muslims to appreciate how the parameters of organ transplantation are derived. The Islamic viewpoint, both Shiite and Sunni, is examined in relation to organ donation and its various sources. The advantages and disadvantages of brain dead and cadaveric donation is reviewed with technical and ethical considerations. The Islamic concept of brain death, informed and proxy consent are also discussed. We discuss the concept of rewarded donation as a way to alleviate the current shortage of organs available for transplantation and consider secular and religious support for such a program. Suggestions are made for greater discussion and exchange of ideas between secular and religious thinkers in the Islamic world and between the Islamic world and secular Western countries.

Socioeconomic development and secular trend in height in China.

PubMed

Zong, Xin-Nan; Li, Hui; Wu, Hua-Hong; Zhang, Ya-Qin

2015-12-01

The objective of this study was to examine the effect of socioeconomic development on secular trend in height among children and adolescents in China. Body height and spermarcheal/menarcheal ages were obtained from two periodic large-scale national representative surveys in China between 1975 and 2010. Chinese socioeconomic development indicators were obtained from the United Nations world population prospects. The effects of plausible determinants were assessed by partial least-squares regression. The average height of children and adolescents improved in tandem with socioeconomic development, without any tendency to plateau. The increment of height trend presented larger around puberty than earlier or later ages. The partial least-squares regressions with gross national income, life expectancy and spermarcheal/menarcheal age accounted for increment of height trend from 88.3% to 98.3% for males and from 82.9% to 97.3% for females in adolescence. Further, through the analysis of the variable importance for projection, the contributions of gross national income and life expectancy on height increment were confirmed to be significant in childhood and adolescence, and the contribution of spermarcheal/menarcheal age was superior to both of them in adolescence. We concluded that positive secular trend in height in China was significantly associated with socioeconomic status (GNI as indicator) and medical and health conditions (life expectancy as indicator). Earlier onset of spermarche and menarche proved to be an important role in larger increment of the trend over time of height at puberty for a population. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Holiness, virtue, and social justice: contrasting understandings of the moral life.

PubMed

Engelhardt, H Tristram

1997-03-01

Being a Christian involves metaphysical, epistemological, and social commitments that set Christians at variance with the dominant secular culture. Because Christianity is not syncretical, but proclaims the unique truth of its revelations, Christians will inevitably be placed in some degree of conflict with secular health care institutions. Because being Christian involves a life of holiness, not merely living justly or morally, Christians will also be in conflict with the ethos of many contemporary Christian health care institutions which have abandoned a commitment to Christian spirituality. In this regard, managed care raises the special question of how Christian institutions can act morally under financial constraints and maintain their character while under the control of secular managers. This question itself raises the further question as to why health care institutions need even pose this query when there are Christian physicians and nurses who could work for less, or Christian men and women who could become sisters and brothers and work for nothing. Contemporary challenges to Christians to maintain their integrity in a post-Christian world have much of their force because Christians have failed to maintain traditional Christian sprituality. In the face of that failure, Christian physicans and nurses will find themselves in greater conflict with health care institutions, because few will any longer understand the requirements of traditional Christianity. In its place, they will have put a generic spirituality, a value-neutral understanding of the role of the health professional, and an anonymous commitment to social justice.

Organization-level principles and practices to support spiritual care at the end of life: a qualitative study.

PubMed

Holyoke, Paul; Stephenson, Barry

2017-04-11

Though most models of palliative care specifically include spiritual care as an essential element, secular health care organizations struggle with supporting spiritual care for people who are dying and their families. Organizations often leave responsibility for such care with individual care providers, some of whom are comfortable with this role and well supported, others who are not. This study looked to hospice programs founded and operated on specific spiritual foundations to identify, if possible, organizational-level practices that support high-quality spiritual care that then might be applied in secular healthcare organizations. Forty-six digitally-recorded interviews were conducted with bereaved family members, care providers and administrators associated with four hospice organizations in North America, representing Buddhist, Catholic, Jewish, and Salvation Army faith traditions. The interviews were analyzed iteratively using the constant comparison method within a grounded theory approach. Nine Principles for organizational support for spiritual care emerged from the interviews. Three Principles identify where and how spiritual care fits with the other aspects of palliative care; three Principles guide the organizational approach to spiritual care, including considerations of assessment and of sacred places; and three Principles support the spiritual practice of care providers within the organizations. Organizational practices that illustrate each of the principles were provided by interviewees. These Principles, and the practices underlying them, could increase the quality of spiritual care offered by secular health care organizations at the end of life.

BIRTH LOCATIONS OF THE KEPLER CIRCUMBINARY PLANETS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Silsbee, Kedron; Rafikov, Roman R., E-mail: ksilsbee@astro.princeton.edu

2015-07-20

The Kepler mission has discovered about a dozen circumbinary planetary systems, all containing planets on ∼1 AU orbits. We place bounds on the locations in the circumbinary protoplanetary disk, where these planets could have formed through collisional agglomeration starting from small (kilometer-sized or less) planetesimals. We first present a model of secular planetesimal dynamics that accounts for the (1) perturbation due to the eccentric precessing binary, as well as the (2) gravity and (3) gas drag from a precessing eccentric disk. Their simultaneous action leads to rich dynamics, with (multiple) secular resonances emerging in the disk. We derive analytic resultsmore » for size-dependent planetesimal eccentricity and demonstrate the key role of the disk gravity for circumbinary dynamics. We then combine these results with a simple model for collisional outcomes and find that in systems like Kepler-16, planetesimal growth starting with 10–100 m planetesimals is possible outside a few AU. The exact location exterior to which this happens is sensitive to disk eccentricity, density, and precession rate, as well as to the size of the first generation of planetesimals. Strong perturbations from the binary in the inner part of the disk, combined with a secular resonance at a few AU, inhibit the growth of kilometer-sized planetesimals within 2–4 AU of the binary. In situ planetesimal growth in the Kepler circumbinary systems is possible only starting from large initial planetesimals (few-kilometer-sized even assuming favorable disk properties, i.e., low surface density)« less

[Secular trend of growth in stature in Florianópolis in the state of Santa Catarina (Brazil) in relation with the human development index (HDI)].

PubMed

Pinheiro, Andressa Caroline Carneiro; Niederauer, Juliana Minuzzi; Vargas, Deisi Maria

2014-01-01

The article seks to evaluate the secular trend of growth in stature of recruits in the 63rd Infantry Battalion in Florianópolis and correlate the information with the human development index (HDI). It involves a transversal and retrospective study of recruits aged between 18 and 20 who joined the 63rd IB in Florianópolis from 1963 to 2007. The sample comprised 600 individuals out of a total of 3000 recruits enlisted over the period. In each decade, three years were selected and within these years the first 40 files were systematically selected for analysis. It was seen that there was an increase in the order of 7 cm in height of recruits in Florianopolis over the past 47 years. This increase was more marked between the decades of 1990 and 2000, with the municipality of Blumenau having the highest average. The average heights study over the decades showed a strong positive correlation with the HDI of Florianopolis during the same period. When comparing the heights of the capital of Santa Catarina and previous studies in Blumenau, it was found that both cities have achieved the same increase of 1.4 cm/decade in the period between the 1960 and 2000. There was a positive secular trend in growth in Florianopolis, with a strong correlation with HDI values of the city between 1960 and 2000.

Evolution of angular velocity for defunct satellites as a result of YORP: An initial study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Albuja, Antonella A.; Scheeres, Daniel J.; McMahon, Jay W.

2015-07-01

Observations of defunct satellites show that these objects are generally rotating, with some having very fast rotation rates, yet the cause of these rapid rates is unknown. The observed secular change in the spin rate and spin axis orientation of asteroids is known to be caused by the Yarkovsky-O'Keefe-Radzievskii-Paddack (YORP) effect, however, its effect on inactive satellites in Earth orbit remains unexplored. This paper applies the YORP effect to defunct satellites and analyzes its effect on the spin rate and obliquity of these objects. This work uses two different satellite geometries to explore the secular change of the spin rate and obliquity caused by the YORP effect for inactive Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) satellites. One of the model satellites has an asymmetric geometry, which leads to the classical YORP effect as originally formulated for asteroids. The other model satellite is geometrically symmetric, but relies on mass distribution asymmetry to generate the YORP effect. For both models the secular change is explored with averaged dynamics, and the solutions of the averaged theory are compared with numerical integrations of the non-averaged equations of motion. Additionally, previously published observations of inactive GEO satellites are used to estimate the YORP torque acting on those bodies. A comparison between this torque and the expected torque on a defunct satellite shows that the two are of the same order of magnitude. These results motivate further study on the YORP effect in the realm of inactive satellites.

The Egyptian geomagnetic reference field to the Epoch, 2010.0

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deebes, H. A.; Abd Elaal, E. M.; Arafa, T.; Lethy, A.; El Emam, A.; Ghamry, E.; Odah, H.

2017-06-01

The present work is a compilation of two tasks within the frame of the project ;Geomagnetic Survey & Detailed Geomagnetic Measurements within the Egyptian Territory; funded by the ;Science and Technology Development Fund agency (STDF);. The National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics (NRIAG), has conducted a new extensive land geomagnetic survey that covers the whole Egyptian territory. The field measurements have been done at 3212 points along all the asphalted roads, defined tracks, and ill-defined tracks in Egypt; with total length of 11,586 km. In the present work, the measurements cover for the first time new areas as: the southern eastern borders of Egypt including Halayeb and Shlatin, the Quattara depresion in the western desert, and the new roads between Farafra and Baharia oasis. Also marine geomagnetic survey have been applied for the first time in Naser lake. Misallat and Abu-Simble geomagnetic observatories have been used to reduce the field data to the Epoch 2010. During the field measurements, whenever possible, the old stations occupied by the previous observers have been re-occupied to determine the secular variations at these points. The geomagnetic anomaly maps, the normal geomagnetic field maps with their corresponding secular variation maps, the normal geomagnetic field equations of the geomagnetic elements (EGRF) and their corresponding secular variations equations, are outlined. The anomalous sites, as discovered from the anomaly maps are, only, mentioned. In addition, a correlation between the International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF) 2010.0 and the Egyptian Geomagnetic Reference Field (EGRF) 2010 is indicated.

Periodic Variations in the O - C Diagrams of Five Pulsation Frequencies of the DB White Dwarf EC 20058-5234

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dalessio, J.; Sullivan, D. J.; Provencal, J. L.; Shipman, H. L.; Sullivan, T.; Kilkenny, D.; Fraga, L.; Sefako, R.

2013-03-01

Variations in the pulsation arrival time of five independent pulsation frequencies of the DB white dwarf EC 20058-5234 individually imitate the effects of reflex motion induced by a planet or companion but are inconsistent when considered in unison. The pulsation frequencies vary periodically in a 12.9 year cycle and undergo secular changes that are inconsistent with simple neutrino plus photon-cooling models. The magnitude of the periodic and secular variations increases with the period of the pulsations, possibly hinting that the corresponding physical mechanism is located near the surface of the star. The phase of the periodic variations appears coupled to the sign of the secular variations. The standards for pulsation-timing-based detection of planetary companions around pulsating white dwarfs, and possibly other variables such as subdwarf B stars, should be re-evaluated. The physical mechanism responsible for this surprising result may involve a redistribution of angular momentum or a magnetic cycle. Additionally, variations in a supposed combination frequency are shown to match the sum of the variations of the parent frequencies to remarkable precision, an expected but unprecedented confirmation of theoretical predictions. Based on observations obtained at the Southern Astrophysical Research (SOAR) telescope, which is a joint project of the Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia, e Inovação (MCTI) da República Federativa do Brasil, the US National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC), and Michigan State University (MSU).

Cultural values: can they explain self-reported health?

PubMed

Roudijk, Bram; Donders, Rogier; Stalmeier, Peep

2017-06-01

Self-reported health (SRH) is a measure widely used in health research and population studies. Differences in SRH have been observed between countries and cultural values have been hypothesized to partly explain such differences. Cultural values can be operationalized by two cultural dimensions using the World Values Survey (WVS), namely the traditional/rational-secular and the survival/self-expression dimension. We investigate whether there is an association between the WVS cultural dimensions and SRH, both within and between countries. Data from 51 countries in the WVS is used and combined with macroeconomic data from the Worldbank database. The association between SRH and the WVS cultural dimensions is tested within each of the 51 countries and multilevel mixed models are used to test differences between these countries. Socio-demographic and macroeconomic variables are used to correct for non-cultural variables related to SRH. Within countries, the survival/self-expression dimension was positively associated with SRH, while in most countries there was a negative association for the traditional/rational-secular dimension. Values range between 4 and 17% within countries. Further analyses show that the associations within countries and between countries are similar. Controlling for macroeconomic and socio-demographic factors did not change our results. The WVS cultural dimensions predict SRH within and between countries. Contrary to our expectations, traditional/rational-secular values were negatively associated with SRH. As SRH is associated with cultural values between countries, cultural values could be considered when interpreting SRH between countries.

Stellar dynamics around a massive black hole - II. Resonant relaxation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sridhar, S.; Touma, Jihad R.

2016-06-01

We present a first-principles theory of resonant relaxation (RR) of a low-mass stellar system orbiting a more massive black hole (MBH). We first extend the kinetic theory of Gilbert to include the Keplerian field of a black hole of mass M•. Specializing to a Keplerian stellar system of mass M ≪ M•, we use the orbit-averaging method of Sridhar & Touma to derive a kinetic equation for RR. This describes the collisional evolution of a system of N ≫ 1 Gaussian rings in a reduced 5-dim space, under the combined actions of self-gravity, 1 post-Newtonian (PN) and 1.5 PN relativistic effects of the MBH and an arbitrary external potential. In general geometries, RR is driven by both apsidal and nodal resonances, so the distinction between scalar RR and vector RR disappears. The system passes through a sequence of quasi-steady secular collisionless equilibria, driven by irreversible two-ring correlations that accrue through gravitational interactions, both direct and collective. This correlation function is related to a `wake function', which is the linear response of the system to the perturbation of a chosen ring. The wake function is easier to appreciate, and satisfies a simpler equation, than the correlation function. We discuss general implications for the interplay of secular dynamics and non-equilibrium statistical mechanics in the evolution of Keplerian stellar systems towards secular thermodynamic equilibria, and set the stage for applications to the RR of axisymmetric discs in Paper III.

Familial resemblance in religiousness in a secular society: a twin study.

PubMed

Hvidtjørn, Dorte; Petersen, Inge; Hjelmborg, Jacob; Skytthe, Axel; Christensen, Kaare; Hvidt, Niels C

2013-04-01

It is well known that human behavior and individual psychological traits are moderately to substantially heritable. Over the past decade, an increasing number of studies have explored the genetic and environmental influence on religiousness. These studies originate predominantly from countries generally considered more religious than the very secular northern European countries. Comparisons of the results are complicated by diverse definitions of religiousness, but several studies indicate that the influence of the family environment is most predominant in early life, whereas genetic influences increase with age. We performed a population-based twin study of religiousness in a secular society using data from a Web-based survey sent to 6,707 Danish twins born 1970-1989, who were identified in the Danish Twin Registry. We applied Fishman's three conceptual dimensions of religiousness: cognition, practice, and importance. In all polygenic models and biometric analyses, we controlled for gender and age. The study sample comprised 2,237 same sex twins, a response rate of 45%. We found high correlations within both monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs in most items of religiousness, indicating a large influence from shared environmental factors. Personal religiousness such as praying to God, believing in God, and finding strength and comfort in religion were more influenced by genetic factors than were social forms of religiousness such as church attendance. We found a small tendency for increasing genetic influence with increasing age for some religious items, but not for all.

The Rhetoric of the Moral Majority: An Analysis of Romantic Form.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Conrad, Charles

1983-01-01

Examines the rhetoric of the Moral Majority. Argues that it expresses a romantic confrontation between agents of a liberal, secular, and humanistic world and those of an idyllic and moral America. (PD)

15 CFR 950.5 - National Geophysical and Solar-Terrestrial Data Center (NGSDC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

..., climatological, and descriptive products to meet user requirements; and provides facilities for World Data Center... monthly basis. (4) Geomagnetic main field. Magnetic survey data and secular-change data tables. (b...

15 CFR 950.5 - National Geophysical and Solar-Terrestrial Data Center (NGSDC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

..., climatological, and descriptive products to meet user requirements; and provides facilities for World Data Center... monthly basis. (4) Geomagnetic main field. Magnetic survey data and secular-change data tables. (b...

15 CFR 950.5 - National Geophysical and Solar-Terrestrial Data Center (NGSDC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

..., climatological, and descriptive products to meet user requirements; and provides facilities for World Data Center... monthly basis. (4) Geomagnetic main field. Magnetic survey data and secular-change data tables. (b...

15 CFR 950.5 - National Geophysical and Solar-Terrestrial Data Center (NGSDC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

..., climatological, and descriptive products to meet user requirements; and provides facilities for World Data Center... monthly basis. (4) Geomagnetic main field. Magnetic survey data and secular-change data tables. (b...

15 CFR 950.5 - National Geophysical and Solar-Terrestrial Data Center (NGSDC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

..., climatological, and descriptive products to meet user requirements; and provides facilities for World Data Center... monthly basis. (4) Geomagnetic main field. Magnetic survey data and secular-change data tables. (b...

Early formation and long-term stability of continents resulting from decompression melting in a convecting mantle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De Smet, J.; Van den Berg, A. P.; Vlaar, N. J.

2000-07-01

The origin of stable old continental cratonic roots is still debated. We present numerical modelling results which show rapid initial formation during the Archaean of continental roots of ca. 200 km thick. These results have been obtained from an upper mantle thermal convection model including differentiation by pressure release partial melting of mantle peridotite. The upper mantle model includes time-dependent radiogenic heat production and thermal coupling with a heat reservoir representing the Earth's lower mantle and core. This allows for model experiments including secular cooling on a time-scale comparable to the age of the Earth. The model results show an initial phase of rapid continental root growth of ca. 0.1 billion year, followed by a more gradual increase of continental volume by addition of depleted material produced through hot diapiric, convective upwellings which penetrate the continental root from below. Within ca. 0.6 Ga after the start of the experiment, secular cooling of the mantle brings the average geotherm below the peridotite solidus thereby switching off further continental growth. At this time the thickness of the continental root has grown to ca. 200 km. After 1 Ga of secular cooling small scale thermal instabilities develop at the bottom of the continental root causing continental delamination without breaking up the large scale layering. This delaminated material remixes with the deeper layers. Two more periods, each with a duration of ca. 0.5 Ga and separated by quiescent periods were observed when melting and continental growth was reactivated. Melting ends at 3 Ga. Thereafter secular cooling proceeds and the compositionally buoyant continental root is stabilized further through the increase in mechanical strength induced by the increase of the temperature dependent mantle viscosity. Fluctuating convective velocity amplitudes decrease to below 10 mma -1 and the volume average temperature of the sub-continental convecting mantle has decreased ca. 340 K after 4 Ga. Surface heatflow values decrease from 120 to 40 mW m -2 during the 4 Ga model evolution. The surface heatflow contribution from an almost constant secular cooling rate was estimated to be 6 mW m -2, in line with recent observational evidence. The modelling results show that the combined effects of compositional buoyancy and strong temperature dependent rheology result in continents which overall remain stable for a duration longer than the age of the Earth. Tracer particles have been used for studying the patterns of mantle differentiation in greater detail. The observed ( p, T, F, t)-paths are consistent with proposed stratification and thermo-mechanical history of the depleted continental root, which have been inferred from mantle xenoliths and other upper mantle samples. In addition, the particle tracers have been used to derive the thermal age of the modelled continental root, defined by a hypothetical closing temperature.

What's the problem? A response to "secular humanism and scientific psychiatry"

PubMed Central

Bolton, Derek

2006-01-01

Notwithstanding the interest and importance of Szasz's position, it neglects the phenomena, the real problems which take people to the clinic seeking treatment, and the conditionality of the notion of individual responsibility. PMID:16759418

The rhetorician's craft, distinctions in science, and political morality

PubMed Central

Sadler, John Z

2006-01-01

In his response to Szasz' Secular Humanism and Scientific Psychiatry, the author considers the use of rhetorical devices in Szasz' work, Szasz' avoidance of acknowledging psychiatry's scientific distinctions, and Szaszian libertarianism versus liberalism. PMID:16759356

Survival Of Pure Disc Galaxies Over The Last 8 Billion Years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sachdeva, Sonali

2016-09-01

The presence of pure disk galaxies without any bulge component, i.e., neither classical nor pseudo, poses a severe challenge not just to the hierarchical galaxy formation models but also to the theories of internal secular evolution. We discover that a significant fraction of disk galaxies ( 15-18 %) in the Hubble Deep Field (0.4 < z < 1.0) as well as in the local Universe (0.02 < z < 0.05) are such pure disk systems (PDS). We trace the evolution of this population to find how they survived the merger violence and other disk instabilities to remain dynamically undisturbed. We find that smooth accretion of cold gas via cosmic filaments is the most probable mode of their growth in mass and size since z 1. We speculate that PDSs are dynamically hotter and cushioned in massive dark matter haloes which may prevent them from undergoing strong secular evolution.

From theurgical to secular medicine in ancient Greece: pínakes and sanationes.

PubMed

Angeletti, L R

1991-01-01

Although rational secular medicine, i.e. medicine founded on clinical observation and on the exploration of the natural causes of diseases, prevailed in Greece as late as the IV century B.C., testimonies of theurgical medicine survive in temples dedicated to the gods of medicine, e.g. Maleatas, Amphiaros and Asklepios. Votive inscriptions (Latin sanationes) show clinical cases, solved with the aid of the physician-god, who acts during the dream, which is an essential component in classical medicine and art of the medical treatment. It is worth noting that sanationes have been found in temples of many healing cities, e.g. Epidauros and Lebena and in Tiberine Island in Rome, but not in Kos and Pergamon, where Hippocrates and Galen were active, respectively. Is it just fortuitousness or testimony of the prevailing "scientific" meaning due to the work of the two most representative physicians of the classical world?

ACRIM-gap and total solar irradiance revisited: Is there a secular trend between 1986 and 1996?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krivova, N. A.; Solanki, S. K.; Wenzler, T.

2009-10-01

A gap in the total solar irradiance (TSI) measurements between ACRIM-1 and ACRIM-2 led to the ongoing debate on the presence or not of a secular trend between the minima preceding cycles 22 (in 1986) and 23 (1996). It was recently proposed to use the SATIRE model of solar irradiance variations to bridge this gap. When doing this, it is important to use the appropriate SATIRE-based reconstruction, which we do here, employing a reconstruction based on magnetograms. The accuracy of this model on months to years timescales is significantly higher than that of a model developed for long-term reconstructions used by the ACRIM team for such an analysis. The constructed ‘mixed’ ACRIM — SATIRE composite shows no increase in the TSI from 1986 to 1996, in contrast to the ACRIM TSI composite.

Corruption and Local Democratization in Indonesia: The Role of Islamic Parties1

PubMed Central

Henderson, J. Vernon; Kuncoro, Ari

2013-01-01

Indonesia has a tradition of corruption among local officials who harass and collect bribes from firms. This paper examines whether corruption is affected by a change in institutions introducing local democratization and by party composition of local assemblies. Democratization occurred in 1999 and decentralization in 2001. We have firm-level data for 2001 and 2004. The 2001 data benchmark corruption at the time of decentralization, but for a limited sample of districts. We find that corruption declines between 2001 and 2004 overall, but much less [more] so in districts with more secular [Islamic] party representatives in district assemblies. For a larger sample of districts, correspondingly, we find that corruption in 2004 is more in districts which voted more in favor of secular party representatives in the first elections in 1999. We argue that the effects seem to be causal, over above any effects of changing religiosity and economic circumstances across districts. PMID:25083023

The ethical implications and religious significance of organ transplantation payment systems.

PubMed

Smith, Hunter Jackson

2016-03-01

One of the more polarizing policies proposed to alleviate the organ shortage is financial payment of donors in return for organs. A priori and empirical investigation concludes that such systems are ethically inadequate. A new methodological approach towards policy formation and implementation is proposed which places ethical concerns at its core. From a hypothetical secular origin, the optimal ethical policy structure concerning organ donation is derived. However, when applied universally, it does not yield ideal results for every culture and society due to region-specific variation. Since religion holds significant influence in the organ donation debate, three religions-Catholicism, Islam, and Shinto-were examined in order to illustrate this variation. Although secular ethical concerns should rest at the core of policy construction, certain region-specific contexts require cultural and religious competence and necessitate the adjustment of the optimal template policy accordingly to yield the best moral and practical results.

Gravity increase before the 2015 Mw 7.8 Nepal earthquake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Shi; Liu, Mian; Xing, Lelin; Xu, Weimin; Wang, Wuxing; Zhu, Yiqing; Li, Hui

2016-01-01

The 25 April 2015 Nepal earthquake (Mw 7.8) ruptured a segment of the Himalayan front fault zone. Four absolute gravimetric stations in southern Tibet, surveyed from 2010/2011 to 2013 and corrected for secular variations, recorded up to 22.40 ± 1.11 μGal/yr of gravity increase during this period. The gravity increase is distinct from the long-wavelength secular trends of gravity decrease over the Tibetan Plateau and may be related to interseismic mass change around the locked plate interface under the Himalayan-Tibetan Plateau. We modeled the source region as a disk of 580 km in diameter, which is consistent with the notion that much of the southern Tibetan crust is involved in storing strain energy that drives the Himalayan earthquakes. If validated in other regions, high-precision ground measurements of absolute gravity may provide a useful method for monitoring mass changes in the source regions of potential large earthquakes.

Secular motion around synchronously orbiting planetary satellites.

PubMed

Lara, Martin; San-Juan, Juan F; Ferrer, Sebastián

2005-12-01

We investigate the secular motion of a spacecraft around the natural satellite of a planet. The satellite rotates synchronously with its mean motion around the planet. Our model takes into account the gravitational potential of the satellite up to the second order, and the third-body perturbation in Hill's approximation. Close to the satellite, the ratio of rotation rate of the satellite to mean motion of the orbiter is small. When considering this ratio as a small parameter, the Coriolis effect is a first-order perturbation, while the third-body tidal attraction, the ellipticity effect, and the oblateness perturbation remain at higher orders. Then, we apply perturbation theory and find that a third-order approach is enough to show the influence of the satellite's ellipticity in the pericenter dynamics. Finally, we discuss the averaged system in the three-dimensional parametric space, and provide a global description of the flow.

Religiosity as self-enhancement: a meta-analysis of the relation between socially desirable responding and religiosity.

PubMed

Sedikides, Constantine; Gebauer, Jochen E

2010-02-01

In a meta-analysis, the authors test the theoretical formulation that religiosity is a means for self-enhancement. The authors operationalized self-enhancement as socially desirable responding (SDR) and focused on three facets of religiosity: intrinsic, extrinsic, and religion-as-quest. Importantly, they assessed two moderators of the relation between SDR and religiosity. Macro-level culture reflected countries that varied in degree of religiosity (from high to low: United States, Canada, United Kingdom). Micro-level culture reflected U.S. universities high (Christian) versus low (secular) on religiosity. The results were generally consistent with the theoretical formulation. Both macro-level and micro-level culture moderated the relation between SDR and religiosity: This relation was more positive in samples that placed higher value on religiosity (United States > Canada > United Kingdom; Christian universities > secular universities). The evidence suggests that religiosity is partly in the service of self-enhancement.

On the Possibilities of Predicting Geomagnetic Secular Variation with Geodynamo Modeling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuang, Wei-Jia; Tangborn, Andrew; Sabaka, Terrance

2004-01-01

We use our MoSST core dynamics model and geomagnetic field at the core-mantle boundary (CMB) continued downward from surface observations to investigate possibilities of geomagnetic data assimilation, so that model results and current geomagnetic observations can be used to predict geomagnetic secular variation in future. As the first attempt, we apply data insertion technique to examine evolution of the model solution that is modified by geomagnetic input. Our study demonstrate that, with a single data insertion, large-scale poloidal magnetic field obtained from subsequent numerical simulation evolves similarly to the observed geomagnetic variation, regardless of the initial choice of the model solution (so long it is a well developed numerical solution). The model solution diverges on the time scales on the order of 60 years, similar to the time scales of the torsional oscillations in the Earth's core. Our numerical test shows that geomagnetic data assimilation is promising with our MoSST model.

Proper motion and secular variations of Keplerian orbital elements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Butkevich, Alexey G.

2018-05-01

High-precision observations require accurate modelling of secular changes in the orbital elements in order to extrapolate measurements over long time intervals, and to detect deviation from pure Keplerian motion caused, for example, by other bodies or relativistic effects. We consider the evolution of the Keplerian elements resulting from the gradual change of the apparent orbit orientation due to proper motion. We present rigorous formulae for the transformation of the orbit inclination, longitude of the ascending node and argument of the pericenter from one epoch to another, assuming uniform stellar motion and taking radial velocity into account. An approximate treatment, accurate to the second-order terms in time, is also given. The proper motion effects may be significant for long-period transiting planets. These theoretical results are applicable to the modelling of planetary transits and precise Doppler measurements as well as analysis of pulsar and eclipsing binary timing observations.

Church-Based Social Relationships and Change in Self-Esteem Over Time

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

This study had two goals. The first goal was to see if church-based social relationships are associated with change in self-esteem. Emotional support from fellow church members and having a close personal relationship with God served as measures of church-based social ties. The second goal was to see whether emotional support from fellow church members is more strongly associated with self-esteem than emotional support from secular social network members. The data came from an ongoing nationwide survey of older adults. The findings revealed that having a close personal relationship with God is associated with a stronger sense of self-esteem at the baseline and follow-up interviews. In contrast, emotional support from fellow church members was not associated with self-esteem at either point in time. However, emotional support from secular social network members was related to self-esteem at the baseline but not the follow-up interview. PMID:20300481

Systematics of strength function sum rules

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Johnson, Calvin W.

2015-08-28

Sum rules provide useful insights into transition strength functions and are often expressed as expectation values of an operator. In this letter I demonstrate that non-energy-weighted transition sum rules have strong secular dependences on the energy of the initial state. Such non-trivial systematics have consequences: the simplification suggested by the generalized Brink–Axel hypothesis, for example, does not hold for most cases, though it weakly holds in at least some cases for electric dipole transitions. Furthermore, I show the systematics can be understood through spectral distribution theory, calculated via traces of operators and of products of operators. Seen through this lens,more » violation of the generalized Brink–Axel hypothesis is unsurprising: one expectssum rules to evolve with excitation energy. Moreover, to lowest order the slope of the secular evolution can be traced to a component of the Hamiltonian being positive (repulsive) or negative (attractive).« less

Secular trends in salt and soy sauce intake among Chinese adults, 1997-2011.

PubMed

Yu, Lianlong; Li, Suyun; Zhao, Jinshan; Zhang, Junli; Wang, Liansen; Wang, Kebo

2018-03-01

Salt and soy sauce are the main ways of sodium intake in Chinese dietary. In this study, we used the data of the China Health and Nutrition Surveys to describe the secular trends of salt and soy sauce intake among Chinese adults from 1997 to 2011. Trends were tested by multiple linear regression models. During the past 14 years, the consumption of sodium, salt and soy sauce intake values decreased significantly across the six study periods (p < .0001) among both men and women. Averaged salt values decreased by 4.9 g/d in men and 4.1 g/d in women. Mean soy sauce intake values decreased by 9.0 g/d among men and 7.3 g/d among women. Similar significant trends were observed in all age groups, activity levels and regions (p < .0001).

Earth Albedo and the orbit of LAGEOS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rubincam, D. P.; Weiss, N. R.

1985-01-01

The long-period perturbations in the orbit of the Lageos satellite due to the Earth's albedo have been found using a new analytical formalism. The Earth is assumed to be a sphere whose surface diffusely reflects sunlight according to Lambert's law. Specular reflection is not considered. The formalism is based on spherical harmonics; it produces equations which hold regardless of whether the terminator is seen by the satellite or not. Specializing to the case of a realistic zonal albedo shows that Lageos' orbital semimajor axis changes periodically by only the a few millimeters and the eccentricity by one part in 100,000. The longitude of the node increases secularly. The effect considered here can explain neither the secular decay of 1.1 mm/day in the semimajor axis nor the observed along-track variations in acceleration of order 2 x 10 to the minus 12 power/sq ms.

Earth albedo and the orbit of Lageos

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rubincam, D. P.; Weiss, N. S.

1986-01-01

The long-period perturbations in the orbit of the Lageos satellite due to the Earth's albedo have been found using a new analytical formalism. The Earth is assumed to be a sphere whose surface diffusely reflects sunlight according to Lambert's law. Specular reflection is not considered. The formalism is based on spherical harmonics; it produces equations which hold regardless of whether the terminator is seen by the satellite or not. Specializing to the case of a realistic zonal albedo shows that Lageos' orbital semimajor axis changes periodically by only a few millimeters and the eccentricity by one part in 100,000. The longitude of the node increases secularly. The effect considered here can explain neither the secular decay of 1.1 mm/day in the semimajor axis nor the observed along-track variations in acceleration of order 2 x 10 to the minus 12 power/sq ms.

Labor markets and employment insecurity: impacts of globalization on service and healthcare-sector workforces.

PubMed

Ostry, Aleck S; Spiegel, Jerry M

2004-01-01

Global changes in the economies of most developed nations have impacted the way healthcare is organized, even within largely public systems, and the working conditions of healthcare workers. Since the acceleration of globalization in the 1970s, service-sector workers in developed nations have faced high unemployment, increased skill requirements for most jobs, and a rise in non-traditional work arrangements. These secular shifts in service-sector labor markets have occurred against the background of an erosion of the welfare state and growing income inequality. As well, many healthcare systems, including Canada's, were severely downsized and restructured in the 1990s, exacerbating the underlying negative secular trends in the service sector, and worsening the working conditions for many healthcare workers. Globalization has altered the labor market and shifted working conditions in ways that have been unfavorable to many healthcare workers.

On the potentially dramatic history of the super-Earth ρ 55 Cancri e

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hansen, Bradley M. S.; Zink, Jonathon

2015-07-01

We demonstrate that tidal evolution of the inner planet (`e') of the system orbiting the star ρ 55 Cancri could have led to passage through two secular resonances with other planets in the system. The consequence of this evolution is excitation of both the planetary eccentricity and inclination relative to the original orbital plane. The large mass ratio between the innermost planet and the others means that these excitations can be of substantial amplitude and can have dramatic consequences for the system organization. Such evolution can potentially explain the large observed mutual inclination between the innermost and outermost planets in the system, and implies that tidal heating could have substantially modified the structure of planet e, and possibly reduced its mass by Roche lobe overflow. Similar inner secular resonances may be found in many multiple planet systems and suggest that many of the innermost planets in these systems could have suffered similar evolutions.

Measurement of the total activity concentrations of Libyan oil scale

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Da Silva, F. C. A.; Bradley, D. A.; Regan, P. H.; Rozaila, Z. Siti

2017-08-01

Twenty-three oil scale samples obtained from the Libyan oil and gas industry production facilities onshore have been measured using high-resolution gamma-ray spectrometry with a shielded HPGe detector, the work being carried out within the Environmental Radioactivity Laboratory at the University of Surrey. The main objectives of this work were to determine the extent to which the predominant radionuclides associated with the uranium and thorium natural decay chains were in secular equilibrium with their decay progeny, also to compare differences between the total activity concentrations (TAC) in secular equilibrium and disequilibrium and to evaluate the measured activities for the predominant gamma-ray emitting decay radionuclides within the 232Th and 238U chains. The oil scale NORM samples did not exhibit radioactive equilibrium between the decay progeny and longer-lived parent radionuclides of the 238U and 232Th series.

An economical semi-analytical orbit theory for micro-computer applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gordon, R. A.

1988-01-01

An economical algorithm is presented for predicting the position of a satellite perturbed by drag and zonal harmonics J sub 2 through J sub 4. Simplicity being of the essence, drag is modeled as a secular decay rate in the semi-axis (retarded motion); with the zonal perturbations modeled from a modified version of the Brouwers formulas. The algorithm is developed as: an alternative on-board orbit predictor; a back up propagator requiring low energy consumption; or a ground based propagator for microcomputer applications (e.g., at the foot of an antenna). An O(J sub 2) secular retarded state partial matrix (matrizant) is also given to employ with state estimation. The theory was implemented in BASIC on an inexpensive microcomputer, the program occupying under 8K bytes of memory. Simulated trajectory data and real tracking data are employed to illustrate the theory's ability to accurately accommodate oblateness and drag effects.

Reply [to “Comment on ‘Changes in relative mean sea level’”

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carter, W. E.

There is little question that the International Latitude Service (ILS) polar motion time series displays a statistically significant drift in the mean position of the pole. The difficult problem is to determine “Whether this secular motion is apparent (a consequence of the measuring process, local crustal deformation and deflections of the vertical) or real (due to continental drift or a secular motion of the axis of rotation) …,” (K. Lambeck, The Earth's Variable Rotation: Geophysical Causes and Consequences, Cambridge University Press, London, 1980). Neither the n-sigma nor the theoretical plausibility arguments presented by S.R. Dickman are of much use in answering that question. The best evidence that at least some portion of the observed motion may be real is the loose agreement among the ILS, IPMS, and Doppler series during the limited periods of overlap.

Secular Decrease of the Spin Period of the White Dwarf in the Asynchronous AM HER Binary RX J1940.1-1025

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Staubert, Ruediger

We propse to perform four 1 day observations of the near-synchronous AM Her binary RX J1940.1-1025, spread equally over Cycle 6, and at phases near 0.25 with respect to its 50 day beat period. The orbital period is 12116.3 s and the spin period of the white dawarf is 12150.7 s. We have evidence for a secular decrease of this spin period at a rate of 5 10^(-9), which is mainly based on optical data. X-ray data (from ROSAT and RXTE) are sparse, but indicate that there might be a systematic phase shift of a feature (the so-called "trough") in the flux profiles between optical and X-rays. If this shift is confirmed and measured accurately, optical and X-ray data can be confidently combined and the synchronisation time scale (about 200 years) determined.

The 2000 revision of the joint UK/US geomagnetic field models and an IGRF 2000 candidate model

USGS Publications Warehouse

Macmillan, S.; Quinn, J.M.

2000-01-01

The method of derivation of the joint UK/US spherical harmonic geomagnetic main-field and secular-variation models is presented. Early versions of these models, with the main field truncated at degree 10, are the UK/US candidates for the IGRF 2000 model. The main-field model describes the Earth's magnetic field at the 2000.0 epoch, while the secular-variation model predicts the evolution of this field between 2000.0 and 2005.0. A revised 1995.0 main-field model was also generated. Regional models for the continental US, Alaska and Hawaii were also produced as a by-product of the UK/US global modelling effort. Copy right?? The Society of Geomagnetism and Earth, Planetary and Space Sciences (SGEPSS); The Seismological Society of Japan; The Volcanological Society of Japan; The Geodetic Society of Japan; The Japanese Society for Planetary Sciences.

Corruption and Local Democratization in Indonesia: The Role of Islamic Parties.

PubMed

Henderson, J Vernon; Kuncoro, Ari

2011-03-01

Indonesia has a tradition of corruption among local officials who harass and collect bribes from firms. This paper examines whether corruption is affected by a change in institutions introducing local democratization and by party composition of local assemblies. Democratization occurred in 1999 and decentralization in 2001. We have firm-level data for 2001 and 2004. The 2001 data benchmark corruption at the time of decentralization, but for a limited sample of districts. We find that corruption declines between 2001 and 2004 overall, but much less [more] so in districts with more secular [Islamic] party representatives in district assemblies. For a larger sample of districts, correspondingly, we find that corruption in 2004 is more in districts which voted more in favor of secular party representatives in the first elections in 1999. We argue that the effects seem to be causal, over above any effects of changing religiosity and economic circumstances across districts.

Simultaneous stochastic inversion for geomagnetic main field and secular variation. II - 1820-1980

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bloxham, Jeremy; Jackson, Andrew

1989-01-01

With the aim of producing readable time-dependent maps of the geomagnetic field at the core-mantle boundary, the method of simultaneous stochastic inversion for the geomagnetic main field and secular variation, described by Bloxham (1987), was applied to survey data from the period 1820-1980 to yield two time-dependent geomagnetic-field models, one for the period 1900-1980 and the other for 1820-1900. Particular consideration was given to the effect of crustal fields on observations. It was found that the existing methods of accounting for these fields as sources of random noise are inadequate in two circumstances: (1) when sequences of measurements are made at one particular site, and (2) for measurements made at satellite altitude. The present model shows many of the features in the earth's magnetic field at the core-mantle boundary described by Bloxham and Gubbins (1985) and supports many of their earlier conclusions.

An economical semi-analytical orbit theory for micro-computer applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gordon, R. A.

1986-01-01

An economical algorithm is presented for predicting the position of a satellite perturbed by drag and zonal harmonics J2 through J4. Simplicity being of the essence, drag is modeled as a secular decay rate in the semimajor axis (retarded motion) with the zonal perturbations modeled from a modified version of Brouwers formulas. The algorithm is developed as an alternative on-board orbit predictor; a back up propagator requiring low energy consumption; or a ground based propagator for microcomputer applications (e.g., at the foot of an antenna). An O(J2) secular retarded state partial matrix (matrizant) is also given to employ with state estimation. The theory has been implemented in BASIC on an inexpensive microcomputer, the program occupying under 8K bytes of memory. Simulated trajectory data and real tracking data are employed to illustrate the theory's ability to accurately accommodate oblateness and drag effects.

A model of geomagnetic secular variation for 1980-1983

USGS Publications Warehouse

Peddie, N.W.; Zunde, A.K.

1987-01-01

We developed an updated model of the secular variation of the main geomagnetic field during 1980 through 1983 based on annual mean values for that interval from 148 worldwide magnetic observatories. The model consists of a series of 80 spherical harmonics, up to and including those of degree and order 8. We used it to form a proposal for the 1985 revision of the International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF). Comparison of the new model, whose mean epoch is approximately 1982.0, with the Provisional Geomagnetic Reference Field for 1975-1980 (PGRF 1975), indicates that the moment of the centered-dipole part of the geomagnetic field is now decreasing faster than it was 5 years ago. The rate (in field units) indicated by PGRF 1975 was about -25 nT a-1, while for the new model it is -28 nT a-1. ?? 1987.

Schrödinger evolution of self-gravitating discs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Batygin, Konstantin

2018-04-01

An understanding of the long-term evolution of self-gravitating discs ranks among the classic outstanding problems of astrophysics. In this work, we show that the secular inclination dynamics of a geometrically thin quasi-Keplerian disc, with a surface density profile that scales as the inverse square-root of the orbital radius, are described by the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. Within the context of this formalism, nodal bending waves correspond to the eigenmodes of a quasi-particle's wavefunction, confined in an infinite square well with boundaries given by the radial extent of the disc. We further show that external secular perturbations upon self-gravitating discs exhibit a mathematical similarity to quantum scattering theory. Employing this framework, we derive an analytic criterion for the gravitational rigidity of a nearly-Keplerian disc under external perturbations. Applications of the theory to circumstellar discs and Galactic nuclei are discussed.

Spreading a medical home redesign: effects on emergency department use and hospital admissions.

PubMed

Reid, Robert J; Johnson, Eric A; Hsu, Clarissa; Ehrlich, Kelly; Coleman, Katie; Trescott, Claire; Erikson, Michael; Ross, Tyler R; Liss, David T; Cromp, DeAnn; Fishman, Paul A

2013-01-01

The patient-centered medical home (PCMH) is being rapidly deployed in many settings to strengthen US primary care, improve quality, and control costs; however, evidence supporting this transformation is still lacking. We describe the Group Health experience in attempting to replicate the effects on health care use seen in a PCMH prototype clinic via a systemwide spread using Lean as the change strategy. We used an interrupted time series analysis with a patient-month unit of analysis over a 4-year period that included baseline, implementation, and stabilization periods for 412,943 patients. To account for secular trends across these periods, we compared changes in use of face-to-face primary care visits, emergency department visits, and inpatient admissions with those of a nonequivalent comparison group of patients served by community network practices. After accounting for secular trends among network patients, patients empaneled to the PCMH clinics had 5.1% and 6.7% declines in primary care office visits in early and later stabilization years, respectively, after the implementation year. This trend was accompanied by a 123% increase in the use of secure electronic message threads and a 20% increase in telephone encounters. Declines were also seen in emergency department visits at 1 and 2 years (13.7% and 18.5%) compared with what would be expected based on secular trends in network practices. No statistically significant changes were found for hospital admissions. The Group Health experience shows it is possible to reduce emergency department use with PCMH transformation across a diverse set of clinics using a clear change strategy (Lean) and sufficient resources and supports.

Saturn's very axisymmetric magnetic field: No detectable secular variation or tilt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Hao; Russell, Christopher T.; Christensen, Ulrich R.; Dougherty, Michele K.; Burton, Marcia E.

2011-04-01

Saturn is the only planet in the solar system whose observed magnetic field is highly axisymmetric. At least a small deviation from perfect symmetry is required for a dynamo-generated magnetic field. Analyzing more than six years of magnetometer data obtained by Cassini close to the planet, we show that Saturn's observed field is much more axisymmetric than previously thought. We invert the magnetometer observations that were obtained in the "current-free" inner magnetosphere for an internal model, varying the assumed unknown rotation rate of Saturn's deep interior. No unambiguous non-axially symmetric magnetic moment is detected, with a new upper bound on the dipole tilt of 0.06°. An axisymmetric internal model with Schmidt-normalized spherical harmonic coefficients g10 = 21,191 ± 24 nT, g20 = 1586 ± 7 nT. g30 = 2374 ± 47 nT is derived from these measurements, the upper bounds on the axial degree 4 and 5 terms are 720 nT and 3200 nT respectively. The secular variation for the last 30 years is within the probable error of each term from degree 1 to 3, and the upper bounds are an order of magnitude smaller than in similar terrestrial terms for degrees 1 and 2. Differentially rotating conducting stable layers above Saturn's dynamo region have been proposed to symmetrize the magnetic field (Stevenson, 1982). The new upper bound on the dipole tilt implies that this stable layer must have a thickness L >= 4000 km, and this thickness is consistent with our weak secular variation observations.

Bulgeless Galaxies Hosting 107 M⊙ AGN in Galaxy Zoo: The Growth of Black Holes via Secular Processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simmons, Brooke; Lintott, C. J.; Schawinski, K.; Moran, E. C.; Han, A.; Kaviraj, S.; Masters, K. L.; Urry, C. M.; Willett, K.; Bamford, S. P.; Nichol, R.

2013-01-01

The growth of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) appears to proceed via multiple pathways including mergers and secular processes, but these are difficult to disentangle for most galaxies given their complex evolutionary histories. In order to understand the effects of secular galaxy evolution on black hole growth, we require a sample of active galactic nuclei (AGN) in galaxies with a calm formation history free of significant mergers, a population that heretofore has been difficult to locate. Here we present a sample of 13 AGN in massive galaxies lacking the classical bulges believed inevitably to result from mergers; they also either lack or have extremely small pseudobulges, meaning they have had very calm accretion histories. This is the largest sample to date of massive, bulgeless AGN host galaxies selected without any direct restriction on the SMBH mass. The broad-line objects in the sample have black hole masses of 106-7 M⊙ Eddington arguments imply similar masses for the rest of the sample, meaning these black holes have grown substantially in the absence of mergers or other bulge-building processes such as violent disk instabilities. The black hole masses are systematically higher than expected from established bulge-black hole relations. However, these systems may be consistent with the correlation between black hole mass and total stellar mass. We discuss these results in the context of other studies and consider the implication that the details of stellar galaxy evolution and dynamics may not be fundamental to the co-evolution of galaxies and black holes.

Statistical geochemistry reveals disruption in secular lithospheric evolution about 2.5 Gyr ago.

PubMed

Keller, C Brenhin; Schoene, Blair

2012-05-23

The Earth has cooled over the past 4.5 billion years (Gyr) as a result of surface heat loss and declining radiogenic heat production. Igneous geochemistry has been used to understand how changing heat flux influenced Archaean geodynamics, but records of systematic geochemical evolution are complicated by heterogeneity of the rock record and uncertainties regarding selection and preservation bias. Here we apply statistical sampling techniques to a geochemical database of about 70,000 samples from the continental igneous rock record to produce a comprehensive record of secular geochemical evolution throughout Earth history. Consistent with secular mantle cooling, compatible and incompatible elements in basalts record gradually decreasing mantle melt fraction through time. Superimposed on this gradual evolution is a pervasive geochemical discontinuity occurring about 2.5 Gyr ago, involving substantial decreases in mantle melt fraction in basalts, and in indicators of deep crustal melting and fractionation, such as Na/K, Eu/Eu* (europium anomaly) and La/Yb ratios in felsic rocks. Along with an increase in preserved crustal thickness across the Archaean/Proterozoic boundary, these data are consistent with a model in which high-degree Archaean mantle melting produced a thick, mafic lower crust and consequent deep crustal delamination and melting--leading to abundant tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite magmatism and a thin preserved Archaean crust. The coincidence of the observed changes in geochemistry and crustal thickness with stepwise atmospheric oxidation at the end of the Archaean eon provides a significant temporal link between deep Earth geochemical processes and the rise of atmospheric oxygen on the Earth.

Dynamical Evolution Induced by Planet Nine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Batygin, Konstantin; Morbidelli, Alessandro

2017-12-01

The observational census of trans-Neptunian objects with semimajor axes greater than ˜ 250 {au} exhibits unexpected orbital structure that is most readily attributed to gravitational perturbations induced by a yet-undetected, massive planet. Although the capacity of this planet to (I) reproduce the observed clustering of distant orbits in physical space, (II) facilitate the dynamical detachment of their perihelia from Neptune, and (III) excite a population of long-period centaurs to extreme inclinations is well-established through numerical experiments, a coherent theoretical description of the dynamical mechanisms responsible for these effects remains elusive. In this work, we characterize the dynamical processes at play from semi-analytic grounds. We begin by considering a purely secular model of orbital evolution induced by Planet Nine and show that it is at odds with the ensuing stability of distant objects. Instead, the long-term survival of the clustered population of long-period Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) is enabled by a web of mean-motion resonances driven by Planet Nine. Then, by taking a compact-form approach to perturbation theory, we show that it is the secular dynamics embedded within these resonances that regulate the orbital confinement and perihelion detachment of distant KBOs. Finally, we demonstrate that the onset of large-amplitude oscillations of the orbital inclinations is accomplished through the capture of low-inclination objects into a high-order secular resonance, and we identify the specific harmonic that drives the evolution. In light of the developed qualitative understanding of the governing dynamics, we offer an updated interpretation of the current observational data set within the broader theoretical framework of the Planet Nine hypothesis.

High-resolution chronology of sediment below CCD based on Holocene paleomagnetic secular variations in the Tohoku-oki earthquake rupture zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kanamatsu, Toshiya; Usami, Kazuko; McHugh, Cecilia M. G.; Ikehara, Ken

2017-08-01

Using high-resolution paleomagnetic data, we examined the potential for obtaining precise ages from sediment core samples recovered from deep-sea basins close to rupture zones of the 2011 and earlier earthquakes off Tohoku, Japan. Obtaining detailed stratigraphic ages from deep-sea sediments below the calcium compensation depth (CCD) is difficult, but we found that the samples contain excellent paleomagnetic secular variation records to constrain age models. Variations in paleomagnetic directions obtained from the sediments reveal systematic changes in the cores. A stacked paleomagnetic profile closely matches the Lake Biwa data sets in southwest Japan for the past 7000 years, one can establish age models based on secular variations of the geomagnetic field on sediments recovered uniquely below the CCD. Comparison of paleomagnetic directions near a tephra and a paleomagnetic direction of contemporaneous pyroclastic flow deposits acquired by different magnetization processes shows precise depositional ages reflecting the magnetization delay of the marine sediment record.