The significance of work allocation in the professional apprenticeship of solicitors

It is a peculiarity of the solicitors’ profession that it has historically relied on methods of pre-qualification ‘training’ by way of apprenticeship and that an entirely respectable non-graduate route into the profession remains. In a political context, however, where the profession is called upon positively to demonstrate its standards of performance, the professional regulator seeks to attach a competence framework to the existing model; shifting the focus from how the trainee learns to what the trainee learns. This paper will explore the period of traineeship from the perspective of the trainees themselves, drawing on two small qualitative studies, focussing on the fundamental context factor of the allocation and structuring of their work. In the first study the context for this evaluation is the set of outcomes being tested by the professional regulator and in the second, the perceptions of qualified individuals looking back at their apprenticeship, The paper concludes that there remains work for the profession to do not only in fostering supportive and expansive apprenticeships, but in attending, however, supportive the surrounding environment, to the work being carried out by trainees and its relationship with the work carried out by newly qualified solicitors

Forward Modeling of Space-borne Gravitational Wave Detectors

Planning is underway for several space-borne gravitational wave observatories to be built in the next ten to twenty years. Realistic and efficient forward modeling will play a key role in the design and operation of these observatories. Space-borne interferometric gravitational wave detectors operate very differently from their ground based counterparts. Complex orbital motion, virtual interferometry, and finite size effects complicate the description of space-based systems, while nonlinear control systems complicate the description of ground based systems. Here we explore the forward modeling of space-based gravitational wave detectors and introduce an adiabatic approximation to the detector response that significantly extends the range of the standard low frequency approximation. The adiabatic approximation will aid in the development of data analysis techniques, and improve the modeling of astrophysical parameter extraction.Comment: 14 Pages, 14 Figures, RevTex

Stellar populations of classical and pseudo-bulges for a sample of isolated spiral galaxies

In this paper we present the stellar population synthesis results for a sample of 75 bulges in isolated spiral Sb-Sc galaxies, using the spectroscopic data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the STARLIGHT code. We find that both pseudo-bulges and classical bulges in our sample are predominantly composed of old stellar populations, with mean mass-weighted stellar age around 10 Gyr. While the stellar population of pseudo-bulges is, in general, younger than that of classical bulges, the difference is not significant, which indicates that it is hard to distinguish pseudo-bulges from classical bulges, at least for these isolated galaxies, only based on their stellar populations. Pseudo-bulges have star formation activities with relatively longer timescale than classical bulges, indicating that secular evolution is more important in this kind of systems. Our results also show that pseudo-bulges have a lower stellar velocity dispersion than their classical counterparts, which suggests that classical bulges are more dispersion-supported than pseudo-bulges.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures. Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Scienc

The starburst phenomenon from the optical/near-IR perspective

The optical/near-IR stellar continuum carries unique information about the stellar population in a galaxy, its mass function and star-formation history. Star-forming regions display rich emission-line spectra from which we can derive the dust and gas distribution, map velocity fields, metallicities and young massive stars and locate shocks and stellar winds. All this information is very useful in the dissection of the starburst phenomenon. We discuss a few of the advantages and limitations of observations in the optical/near-IR region and focus on some results. Special attention is given to the role of interactions and mergers and observations of the relatively dust-free starburst dwarfs. In the future we expect new and refined diagnostic tools to provide us with more detailed information about the IMF, strength and duration of the burst and its triggering mechanisms.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, to appear in "Starbursts: from 30 Doradus to Lyman Break Galaxies" 2005, eds. R. de Grijs and R. M. Gonzalez Delgado (Kluwer

Universality in D-brane Inflation

We study the six-field dynamics of D3-brane inflation for a general scalar potential on the conifold, finding simple, universal behavior. We numerically evolve the equations of motion for an ensemble of more than 7 \times 10^7 realizations, drawing the coefficients in the scalar potential from statistical distributions whose detailed properties have demonstrably small effects on our results. When prolonged inflation occurs, it has a characteristic form: the D3-brane initially moves rapidly in the angular directions, spirals down to an inflection point in the potential, and settles into single-field inflation. The probability of N_{e} e-folds of inflation is a power law, P(N_{e}) \propto N_{e}^{-3}, and we derive the same exponent from a simple analytical model. The success of inflation is relatively insensitive to the initial conditions: we find attractor behavior in the angular directions, and the D3-brane can begin far above the inflection point without overshooting. In favorable regions of the parameter space, models yielding 60 e-folds of expansion arise approximately once in 10^3 trials. Realizations that are effectively single-field and give rise to a primordial spectrum of fluctuations consistent with WMAP, for which at least 120 e-folds are required, arise approximately once in 10^5 trials. The emergence of robust predictions from a six-field potential with hundreds of terms invites an analytic approach to multifield inflation.Comment: 28 pages, 9 figure

Formation of Small-Scale Condensations in the Molecular Clouds via Thermal Instability

A systematic study of the linear thermal instability of a self-gravitating magnetic molecular cloud is carried out for the case when the unperturbed background is subject to local expansion or contraction. We consider the ambipolar diffusion, or ion-neutral friction on the perturbed states. In this way, we obtain a non-dimensional characteristic equation that reduces to the prior characteristic equation in the non-gravitating stationary background. By parametric manipulation of this characteristic equation, we conclude that there are, not only oblate condensation forming solutions, but also prolate solutions according to local expansion or contraction of the background. We obtain the conditions for existence of the Field lengths that thermal instability in the molecular clouds can occur. If these conditions establish, small-scale condensations in the form of spherical, oblate, or prolate may be produced via thermal instability.Comment: 16 page, accepted by Ap&S

Monitoring Soil Quality to Assess the Sustainability of Harvesting Corn Stover

Harvesting feedstock for biofuel production must not degrade soil, water, or air resources. Our objective is to provide an overview of field research being conducted to quantify effects of harvesting corn (Zea mays L.) stover as a bioenergy feedstock. Coordinated field studies are being conducted near Ames, IA; St. Paul and Morris, MN; Mead, NE; University Park, PA; Florence, SC; and Brookings, SD., as part of the USDA-ARS Renewable Energy Assessment Project (REAP). A baseline soil quality assessment was made using the Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF). Corn grain and residue yield for two different stover harvest rates (∼50% and ∼90%) are being measured. Available soil data remains quite limited but sufficient for an initial SMAF analysis that confirms total organic carbon (TOC) is a soil quality indicator that needs to be closely monitored closely to quantify crop residue removal effects. Overall, grain yields averaged 9.7 and 11.7 Mg ha−1 (155 and 186 bu acre−1) in 2008 and 2009, values that are consistent with national averages for both years. The average amount of stover collected for the 50% treatment was 2.6 and 4.2 Mg ha−1 for 2008 and 2009, while the 90% treatment resulted in an average removal of 5.4 and 7.4 Mg ha−1, respectively. Based on a recent literature review, both stover harvest scenarios could result in a gradual decline in TOC. However, the literature value has a large standard error, so continuation of this long-term multi-location study for several years is warranted

A supernova constraint on bulk majorons

In models with large extra dimensions all gauge singlet fields can in principle propagate in the extra dimensional space. We have investigated possible constraints on majoron models of neutrino masses in which the majorons propagate in extra dimensions. It is found that astrophysical constraints from supernovae are many orders of magnitude stronger than previous accelerator bounds. Our findings suggest that unnatural types of the "see-saw" mechanism for neutrino masses are unlikely to occur in nature, even in the presence of extra dimensions.Comment: Minor changes, matches the version to appear in PR

A circular polarimeter for the Cosmic Microwave Background

A primordial degree of circular polarization of the Cosmic Microwave Background is not observationally excluded. The hypothesis of primordial dichroism can be quantitatively falsified if the plasma is magnetized prior to photon decoupling since the initial V-mode polarization affects the evolution of the temperature fluctuations as well as the equations for the linear polarization. The observed values of the temperature and polarization angular power spectra are used to infer constraints on the amplitude and on the spectral slope of the primordial V-mode. Prior to photon decoupling magnetic fields play the role of polarimeters insofar as they unveil the circular dichroism by coupling the V-mode power spectrum to the remaining brightness perturbations. Conversely, for angular scales ranging between 4 deg and 10 deg the joined bounds on the magnitude of circular polarization and on the magnetic field intensity suggest that direct limits on the V-mode power spectrum in the range of 0.01 mK could directly rule out pre-decoupling magnetic fields in the range of 10-100 nG. The frequency dependence of the signal is located, for the present purposes, in the GHz range.Comment: 28 pages, 12 included figures

Dynamic Evolution Model of Isothermal Voids and Shocks

We explore self-similar hydrodynamic evolution of central voids embedded in an isothermal gas of spherical symmetry under the self-gravity. More specifically, we study voids expanding at constant radial speeds in an isothermal gas and construct all types of possible void solutions without or with shocks in surrounding envelopes. We examine properties of void boundaries and outer envelopes. Voids without shocks are all bounded by overdense shells and either inflows or outflows in the outer envelope may occur. These solutions, referred to as type $\mathcal{X}$ void solutions, are further divided into subtypes $\mathcal{X}_{\rm I}$ and $\mathcal{X}_{\rm II}$ according to their characteristic behaviours across the sonic critical line (SCL). Void solutions with shocks in envelopes are referred to as type $\mathcal{Z}$ voids and can have both dense and quasi-smooth edges. Asymptotically, outflows, breezes, inflows, accretions and static outer envelopes may all surround such type $\mathcal{Z}$ voids. Both cases of constant and varying temperatures across isothermal shock fronts are analyzed; they are referred to as types $\mathcal{Z}_{\rm I}$ and $\mathcal{Z}_{\rm II}$ void shock solutions. We apply the `phase net matching procedure' to construct various self-similar void solutions. We also present analysis on void generation mechanisms and describe several astrophysical applications. By including self-gravity, gas pressure and shocks, our isothermal self-similar void (ISSV) model is adaptable to various astrophysical systems such as planetary nebulae, hot bubbles and superbubbles in the interstellar medium as well as supernova remnants.Comment: 24 pages, 13 figuers, accepted by ApS