Relative seismic velocity variations correlate with deformation at Kilauea volcano.

Seismic noise interferometry allows the continuous and real-time measurement of relative seismic velocity through a volcanic edifice. Because seismic velocity is sensitive to the pressurization state of the system, this method is an exciting new monitoring tool at active volcanoes. Despite the potential of this tool, no studies have yet comprehensively compared velocity to other geophysical observables on a short-term time scale at a volcano over a significant length of time. We use volcanic tremor (~0.3 to 1.0 Hz) at Kilauea as a passive source for interferometry to measure relative velocity changes with time. By cross-correlating the vertical component of day-long seismic records between ~230 station pairs, we extract coherent and temporally consistent coda wave signals with time lags of up to 120 s. Our resulting time series of relative velocity shows a remarkable correlation between relative velocity and the radial tilt record measured at Kilauea summit, consistently correlating on a time scale of days to weeks for almost the entire study period (June 2011 to November 2015). As the summit continually deforms in deflation-inflation events, the velocity decreases and increases, respectively. Modeling of strain at Kilauea suggests that, during inflation of the shallow magma reservoir (1 to 2 km below the surface), most of the edifice is dominated by compression-hence closing cracks and producing faster velocities-and vice versa. The excellent correlation between relative velocity and deformation in this study provides an opportunity to understand better the mechanisms causing seismic velocity changes at volcanoes, and therefore realize the potential of passive interferometry as a monitoring tool.

Segmented lateral dyke growth in a rifting event at Bárðarbunga volcanic system, Iceland.

Crust at many divergent plate boundaries forms primarily by the injection of vertical sheet-like dykes, some tens of kilometres long. Previous models of rifting events indicate either lateral dyke growth away from a feeding source, with propagation rates decreasing as the dyke lengthens, or magma flowing vertically into dykes from an underlying source, with the role of topography on the evolution of lateral dykes not clear. Here we show how a recent segmented dyke intrusion in the Bárðarbunga volcanic system grew laterally for more than 45 kilometres at a variable rate, with topography influencing the direction of propagation. Barriers at the ends of each segment were overcome by the build-up of pressure in the dyke end; then a new segment formed and dyke lengthening temporarily peaked. The dyke evolution, which occurred primarily over 14 days, was revealed by propagating seismicity, ground deformation mapped by Global Positioning System (GPS), interferometric analysis of satellite radar images (InSAR), and graben formation. The strike of the dyke segments varies from an initially radial direction away from the Bárðarbunga caldera, towards alignment with that expected from regional stress at the distal end. A model minimizing the combined strain and gravitational potential energy explains the propagation path. Dyke opening and seismicity focused at the most distal segment at any given time, and were simultaneous with magma source deflation and slow collapse at the Bárðarbunga caldera, accompanied by a series of magnitude M > 5 earthquakes. Dyke growth was slowed down by an effusive fissure eruption near the end of the dyke. Lateral dyke growth with segment barrier breaking by pressure build-up in the dyke distal end explains how focused upwelling of magma under central volcanoes is effectively redistributed over long distances to create new upper crust at divergent plate boundaries.

Professional education and private practice: is there a disconnect?

This article summarizes results of a national study conducted to evaluate the private practice career intentions of MSW graduate student members of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) (n = 271), the extent to which these students are being prepared for private practice by the graduate schools, and the views of the graduate deans (n = 104) and macro practice (n = 152) and clinical (n = 278) members of NASW about private practice and social work education. An analysis of mailed questionnaire responses from these stakeholding groups suggests a striking disconnect between practice and education. Although a majority of graduate students plan to enter private practice, most on a full-time basis, graduate schools do not teach content specific to private practice careers, and many faculty even discourage the discussion of private practice career aspirations. On the other hand, a majority of NASW members, whether clinical or macro social workers, expected graduate schools to begin educating students for private practice. It is proposed that the labor force transition from the public to the private sector has resulted in the bifurcation of social work education. Implications for social work practice are discussed; short- and long-term initiatives for matching social work education to social work practice are proposed.

The validity of the 2004 U.S. News & World Report's rankings of schools of social work.

The exceedingly influential U.S. News & World Report's rankings of the educational quality of graduate schools of social work are based on responses of a small group of deans and faculty members to a single item on a mailed survey. This study evaluated the validity of these "quick and dirty" commercial ratings by comparing the 2004 USNWR results to three more objective measures of overall program quality--admissions selectivity, faculty publications, and program longevity--and by conducting a replication study of 1516 deans, faculty members, students, and practitioners. Results revealed USNWR rankings are consistent with objective indicators of program success and representative of the views of a larger sample of deans, faculty members, and to a lesser degree, of practitioners and students. In spite of this empirical support, the authors recommend strategies for eliminating the reliance on commercial ratings and developing professionally driven and disseminated systems of evaluating graduate schools.

The paradox of faculty publications in professional journals.

The author reviews the companion papers about bibliometrics prepared for this special issue of Health and Social Work and concludes that each makes a unique contribution to the growth of scholarship within the profession. However, a major practical limitation of the system advocated by the authors of these papers for faculty in schools of social work is also identified. Because only a limited number of social work faculty members produce the volume of articles required by the proposed system, the proposed system can be used currently by only a small number of schools and departments of social work.

Some normative data on mental health professionals' attitudes about racial minorities and women.

Although codes of ethics of the mental health professions and the recently developed race- and gender-specific models of counseling and psychotherapy stipulate positive and accepting attitudes toward racial minorities and women, formal assessment of these attitudes has been hindered by the absence of appropriate measurement tools and generalizable data. This study provides some normative data by reporting responses of 705 psychologists and social workers to the Quick Discrimination Index, a psychometrically sound 23-item self-report measure previously administered to several different professional groups. Analysis indicated psychologists and social workers reported particularly positive attitudes toward racial minorities and women but expressed the same racial and sex contradictions, ambivalences, and vulnerabilities reported by the general public.

The kinetics of radiation damage to the protein luciferase and recovery of enzyme activity after irradiation.

Experimental observations are reported which follow the bioluminescence intensity of luciferase during irradiation by a 5 MeV proton beam. Bioluminescence is a measure of the protein enzyme activity and provides an assay of the enzyme rate of reaction in real time. Transient responses after a pulse of protons show recovery of the reaction rate with two time constants of 0.3 s(-1) and 0.01 s(-1). Changes in the reaction rate are due to radiation damage to the active form of the protein luciferase. Quantitative analysis of the radiation damage and recovery of the protein shows that products of the radiolysis of water play major part in the process of enzyme damage at room temperature. A few minutes after the pulse of protons, most of the enzyme activity has recovered. We attribute the fast recovery to the removal of charged ions, while the slow recovery involves refolding of denatured protein.