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The article evaluates several beverages including the new line of Fever Stimulation Beverage from Fever Beverage USA, Zun Brain Boosting Energy Lightly Carbonated Energy Drink from Fuzzee Bee Beverage, and the H100 Vitamin Infused Water for Men from H100 Beverage Co. LLC.

Using the 3-telescope IOTA interferometer on Mt. Hopkins, we report results from the first near-infrared (lambda=1.65 mu) closure-phase survey of Young Stellar Objects (YSOs). These closure phases allow us to unambiguously detect departures from centrosymmetry (i.e., skew) in the emission pattern from YSO disks on the scale of ~4 milliarcseconds, expected from generic ``flared disk'' models. Six of fourteen targets showed small, yet statistically-significant, non-zero closure phases, with largest values from the young binary system MWC 361-A and the (pre-main sequence?) Be star HD 45677. Our observations are quite sensitive to the vertical structure of the inner disk and we confront the predictions of the ``puffed-up inner wall'' models of Dullemond, Dominik, and Natta (DDN). Our data support disks models with curved inner rims because the expected emission appear symmetrically-distributed around the star over a wide range of inclination angles. In contrast, our results are incompatible with the models possessing vertical inner walls because they predict extreme skewness (i.e., large closure phases) from the near-IR disk emission that is not seen in our data. In addition, we also present the discovery of mysterious H-band ``halos'' (~5-10% of light on scales 0.01-0.50 arcsec) around a few objects, a preliminary ``parametric imaging'' study for HD 45677, and the first astrometric orbit for the young binary MWC 361-A., Comment: Accepted for publication in Astrophysical Journal

We examine the ``puffed-up inner disk'' model (Dullemond, Dominik & Natta 2001), proposed for explaining the near-IR excess radiation from Herbig Ae/Be stars. Detailed model computations show that the observed near-IR excess requires more hot dust than is contained in the puffed-up disk rim. The rim can produce the observed near-IR excess only if its dust has perfectly gray opacity, but such dust is in conflict with the observed 10$\mu$m spectral feature. We find that a compact ($\sim$ 10 AU) tenuous ($\tau_V \la 0.4$) dusty halo around the disk inner regions contains enough dust to readily explain the observations. Furthermore, this model also resolves the puzzling relationship noted by Monnier and Millan-Gabet (2002) between luminosity and the interferometric inner radii of disks., Comment: 14 pages, 10 figures, accepted in ApJ

Very low-mass stars and brown dwarfs can undergo pulsational instability excited by central deuterium burning during the initial phases of their evolution. We present the results of evolutionary and nonadiabatic linear stability models that show the presence of unstable fundamental modes. The pulsation periods vary bewteen ~5 hr for a 0.1 Msun star and ~1 hr for a 0.02 M$_\odot$ brown dwarf. The results are rather insensitive to variations in the input physics of the models. We show the location of the instability strip in the HR and c-m diagrams and discuss the observational searches for young pulsators in nearby star forming regions., Comment: to appear in Low Mass Stars and Brown Dwarfs: IMF, Accretion and Activity, eds. L. Testi & A. Natta (Mem. S.A.It 2005, Vol. 76, N.2)

Models for the structure of protoplanetary disks have so far been based on the assumption that the gas and the dust temperature are equal. The gas temperature, an essential ingredient in the equations of hydrostatic equilibrium of the disk, is then determined from a continuum radiative transfer calculation, in which the continuum opacity is provided by the dust. It has been long debated whether this assumption still holds in the surface layers of the disk, where the dust infrared emission features are produced. In this paper we compute the temperature of the gas in the surface layers of the disk in a self-consistent manner. The gas temperature is determined from a heating-cooling balance equation in which processes such as photoelectric heating, dissociative heating, dust-gas thermal heat exchange and line cooling are included. The abundances of the dominant cooling species such as CO, C, C+ and O are determined from a chemical network based on the atomic species H, He, C, O, S, Mg, Si, Fe (Kamp & Bertoldi 2000). The underlying disk models to our calculations are the models of Dullemond, van Zadelhoff & Natta (2002). We find that in general the dust and gas temperature are equal to withing 10% for A_V >~ 0.1, which is above the location of the `super-heated surface layer' in which the dust emission features are produced (e.g. Chiang & Goldreich 1997). High above the disk surface the gas temperature exceeds the dust temperature and can can become -- in the presence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons -- as high as 600 K at a radius of 100 AU. This is a region where CO has fully dissociated, but a significant fraction of hydrogen is still in molecular form. The densities are still high enough for non-negligible H_2 emission to be produced.....(see paper for full abstract), Comment: 28 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ

We discuss spectral energy distributions of a sample of Herbig Ae/Be stars in the context of a passive irradiated disk model. The data have been presented earlier by Meeus et al (2001), and preliminary interpretations of these data were given in that paper. While the spectra of Herbig Ae stars all show similarities, there is significant variation between the spectra, in particular in the shape of the mid-IR rise and in the presence or absence of a silicate feature. We explore the hypothesis that all these different spectra can be interpreted as pure disk spectra without additional components. Using the model of Dullemond, Dominik and Natta (2001) we deduce the disk parameters of a number of the sources, and find that for a large fraction of investigated sources, satisfactory fits can be obtained. The derived model parameters show that some group Ia sources can only be fit with radially increasing surface densities, indicating the presence of depleted inner disk regions. The steep-sloped SEDs of group IIa sources can be fit with very compact disks, probably representing disks with collapsed outer regions. The largest difficulties arise from sources that do not show significant silicate emission features. Our attempts to explain these objects with a pure geometric effect are only partially successful. It seems that these stars indeed require a strong depletion of small silicate grains., Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures

In this paper the two-dimensional structure of protoplanetary disks around Herbig Ae/Be stars is studied. This is done by constructing a self-consistent model based on 2-D radiative transfer coupled to the equation of vertical hydrostatics. As a simplifying assumption a grey opacity is used. It is found that the disk can adopt four different structures, dependent on the surface density distribution Sigma(R) as a function of radius, i.e. on radial- and vertical optical depth of the disk. For the case of high to intermediate vertical optical depth, the temperature and density structures are in agreement with the simple ``disk with inner hole'' model of Dullemond, Dominik & Natta (2001, henceforth DDN01). At large radii the disk adopts a flaring shape as expected, and near the dust destruction radius (located at about 0.5 AU for most Herbig Ae stars) the disk is superheated and puffs up. The region directly behind this ``puffed-up inner dust wall'' is shadowed, as predicted by DDN01. For the case of intermediate to low vertical optical depth, but still high radial optical depth, the 2-D models show that the shadow can cover the entire disk. The disk is then no longer flaring. When the disk is optically thin even in radial direction, it becomes unshadowed again because the inner rim can no longer block the stellar light. Finally, for disks that flare at intermediate radii, but become too optically thin at large radii, the outer parts once again become shadowed. But this time the shadowing is caused by the flaring part of the disk instead of the inner rim. Observational consequences of these four geometries are discussed., Comment: A&A in press

We have performed a statistical analysis using broad band IRAS data on about 500 planetary nebulae with the aim of characterizing their dust content. Our approach is different from previous studies in that it uses an extensive grid of photoionization models to test the methods for deriving the dust temperature, the dust-to-gas mass ratio and the average grain size. In addition, we use only distance independent diagrams. With our models, we show the effect of contamination by atomic lines in the broad band IRAS fluxes during planetary nebula evolution. We find that planetary nebulae with very different dust-to-gas mass ratios exist, so that the dust content is a primordial parameter for the interpretation of far infrared data of planetary nebulae. In contrast with previous studies, we find no evidence for a decrease in the dust-to-gas mass ratio as the planetary nebulae evolve. We also show that the decrease in grain size advocated by Natta and Panagia (1981, ApJ 248,189) and Lenzuni et al. (1989, ApJ 345, 306) is an artefact of their method of analysis. Our results suggest that the timescale for destruction of dust grains in planetary nebulae is larger than their lifetime. Footnote: Table 1 is also accessible in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html, Comment: aa-latex, 12 pages with 15 figures, to be published in AA Main Journal

U.S.-Saudi relations are warming after years of conflict with the Obama administration. Citing mutual opposition to the Sunni kingdom's Shiite arch-enemy, Iran, President Trump and the Saudi king struck a $350 billion arms deal last year aimed at fighting terrorism and creating American jobs. But critics warn that Trump's unflinching support for the kingdom could pull the United States into one of the regional proxy conflicts between the Saudis and Iran. Meanwhile, the Saudis are seeking U.S. investors for high-tech and renewable energy ventures to help diversify the oil-dependent economy. They also are considering selling part of the massive, state-owned Aramco oil company to outside investors, which would open a window on the kingdom's secretive finances. To lure international support and investments, a new, 32-year-old crown prince is pushing social and economic reforms in the religiously conservative society. But human rights groups say the Saudis oppress dissidents at home and continue to fund extremist groups that share their hatred of Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report, commissioned by The Norwegian Fishermen's Association, has a twofold purpose: First, to give an outline of the bilateral Russian-Norwegian management regime for the fish resources in the Barents Sea, and second, to describe how the fisheries sector is organized at the national level in Russia and Norway respectively. The part focusing on the bilateral regime consists of a chronological description of developments in the joint Russian-Norwegian Fisheries Commission, as well as a short presentation of two adjacent co-operative mechanisms: the co-operation between Russian and Norwegian fisheries researchers and the co-operation between Russian and Norwegian interest organizations in the fisheries sector. The part of the report that focuses on the national level gives a detailed description of the fisheries management systems in the two countries, as well as of the fishing industry itself. This part of the report also identifies the main challenges facing the sector today, with particular focus on recent proposals of new legislation that might lead to significant changes in the the current framework conditions for the fishing industry. Finally, the report discusses how various external factors, including climate change and the deteriorating east-west relations, may affect the bilateral co-operative arrangement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, the author deplores the Texas practice of prosecuting truancy as a Class C misdemeanor in criminal courts and role of Texas Appleseed in promoting social and economic justice for all Texans. Topics discussed include use of the skills and resources of volunteer lawyers in identifying practical solutions for difficult problems, role of the Supreme Court decisions and progress in deincarceration into juvenile justice reform, and creation of specialized truancy courts.

Although not an EU member state, Norway has been part of the EU's internal market since 1994 through the EEA Agreement. As a result, Norway has implemented EU climate and energy legislation. While not bound by the headline climate and energy targets for 2020, Norway has had to implement the EEA-relevant legal acts stemming from the EU's climate and energy package. The package was based on synergy effects and side-payments that were challenging to reproduce in Norway, whose situation differed radically from an EU concerned about import dependency and low shares of renewable energy. Norwegian implementation varied across the different package components. This report enquires into the causes behind the mixed implementation performance, and analyses the long-term impact of the package on Norwegian climate and energy policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The believability of a technical expert, their credibility, is a judgment by an audience about two questions: [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the publications and funding information of academic departments of the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) in 2010 including the department of engineering physics, the department of mathematics and statistics, and the department of operational sciences.

The number of women holding political office in the United States has grown substantially over the past two decades. But even with a near-record number of 86 women in Congress today, men still outnumber women by more than 5-to-1. Historically, women faced significant disadvantages in running for office and winning voter approval. Experts say those barriers are lower today, but perhaps not completely gone. Within Congress, female lawmakers have helped bring greater attention to some issues affecting women, families and children, but partisan divisions have thwarted some of their initiatives. Meanwhile, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, the former first lady, is waging the most formidable presidential campaign by a female candidate in U.S. history. But many of her supporters say her campaign has been hurt by still prevalent sexism in media coverage of the race. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Persons suspected of criminal or terrorist activity may be transferred from one State (i.e., country) to another for arrest, detention, and/or interrogation. Commonly, this is done through extradition, by which one State surrenders a person within its jurisdiction to a requesting State via a formal legal process, typically established by treaty. Far less often, such transfers are effectuated through a process known as "extraordinary rendition" or "irregular rendition." These terms have often been used to refer to the extrajudicial transfer of a person from one State to another. In this report, "rendition" refers to extraordinary or irregular renditions unless otherwise specified. Although the particularities regarding the usage of extraordinary renditions and the legal authority behind such renditions are not publicly available, various U.S. officials have acknowledged the practice's existence. Recently, there has been some controversy as to the usage of renditions by the United States, particularly with regard to the alleged transfer of suspected terrorists to countries known to employ harsh interrogation techniques that may rise to the level of torture, purportedly with the knowledge or acquiescence of the United States. This report discusses relevant international and domestic law restricting the transfer of persons to foreign states for the purpose of torture. The U.N. Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), and its domestic implementing legislation (the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998) impose the primary legal restrictions on the transfer of persons to countries where they would face torture. Both CAT and U.S. implementing legislation generally prohibit the rendition of persons to countries in most cases where they would more likely than not be tortured, though there are arguably limited exceptions to this prohibition. The State Department has taken the position that CAT's provisions concerning the transfer of persons do not apply extraterritorially, though as a matter of policy the United States does not transfer persons in its custody to countries where they would face torture (U.S. regulations and statutes implementing CAT, however, arguably limit the extraterritorial transfer of individuals nonetheless). Under U.S. regulations implementing CAT, a person may be transferred to a country that provides credible assurances that the rendered person will not be tortured. Neither CAT nor implementing legislation prohibits the rendition of persons to countries where they would be subject to harsh interrogation techniques not rising to the level of torture. Besides CAT, additional obligations may be imposed upon U.S. rendition practice via the Geneva Conventions, the War Crimes Act (as amended by the Military Commissions Act (P.L. 109-366)), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the Universal Declaration on Human Rights. This report also discusses legislation introduced in the 110th Congress to limit or bar U.S. participation in renditions, including S. 1876, the National Security with Justice Act of 2007, and H.R. 1352, the Torture Outsourcing Prevention Act. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses extraordinary renditions used by the U.S. government for the transfer of suspected terrorists to countries that employ harsh interrogation techniques that lead to torture and the laws that prevent it. Topics discussed include the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), U.S. Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998, and the legislation that prohibit use of renditions by the U.S. Government.

Americans and their political leaders have long resisted the idea of a national ID card. But after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, finding out who was in the country illegally took on new urgency. Two years ago, Congress passed a law to toughen standards for issuing driver's licenses — the main form of national identification. But practical problems and philosophical objections are dogging the Real ID Act. Seven state legislatures have already voted against putting it into effect in its present form, and 25 others are considering opposition. Critics argue Real ID licenses will create red-tape nightmares for millions of citizens — without making them safer. Proponents say the new law is needed because in some states current license standards have weaknesses terrorists can exploit. Meanwhile, another debate is under way on whether to raise standards for issuing Social Security cards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]