Latent lifestyle preferences and household location decisions

Lifestyle, indicating preferences towards a particular way of living, is a key driver of the decision of where to live. We employ latent class choice models to represent this behavior, where the latent classes are the lifestyles and the choice model is the choice of residential location. Thus, we simultaneously estimate lifestyle groups and how lifestyle impacts location decisions. Empirical results indicate three latent lifestyle segments: suburban dwellers, urban dwellers, and transit-riders. The suggested lifestyle segments have intriguing policy implications. Lifecycle characteristics are used to predict lifestyle preferences, although there remain significant aspects that cannot be explained by observable variables.

Chromophoric Dissolved Organic Matter (CDOM) In Rainwater,Southeastern North Carolina,USA

The abundance and optical characteristics of dissolved organic matter (DOM) were determined in 120 rain samples collected in Wilmington, North Carolina, USA, between February 21, 2002 and August 11, 2003. All rainwater samples contained chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) as well as fluorescent compounds. The absorbance spectra of CDOM in the samples decreased exponentially with wavelength with little or no measurable absorbance past 550 nm. Fluorescence excitation emission spectra (EEMS) of the precipitation revealed the presence of four major peaks indicating both terrestrial and marine influences. There was a strong positive correlation between total integrated fluorescence and the absorbance coefficient at 300 nm in rainwater samples, suggesting that these optical properties are directly interrelated and that the compounds responsible for absorbance may be the same as those responsible for fluorescence. Air-mass back-trajectory analysis indicated elevated CDOM levels in continentally influenced rainwater relative to marine dominated events implying that anthropogenic and/or terrestrial sources are important contributors to CDOM levels in precipitation. The presence of highly absorbing and fluorescing CDOM in rainwater has significant ramifications in atmospheric chemistry and may play a previously unrecognized role in the wavelength dependent spectral attenuation of solar radiation by atmospheric waters.     

Phase distribution of hydrocarbons in the water column after a pelagic deep ocean oil spill

Spills from wrecks are a potential major source of pollution in the deep ocean. However, not much is known about the fate of a spill at several kilometers depth, beyond the oceans continental shelves. Here, we report the phase distribution of hydrocarbons released from the wrecks of the Prestige tanker, several years after it sank in November 2002 to depths between 3500 and 3800 m. The released oil reached the surface waters above the wrecks without any signs of weathering and leaving an homogenous signature throughout the water column. At depths of several kilometers below the sea surface, the occurrence and spread of the deep sea oil spill could be evaluated better by quantifying and characterizing the dissolved hydrocarbon signature, rather than just the investigation of hydrocarbons in the suspended particulate matter.