James Anderson's Political Economy--His Influence on Smith and Malthus

James Anderson's powerful critique of Adam Smith's position on the corn export bounty was published in 1777. It focuse d on Smith's proposition that the bounty could not lead to increased corn production because it could not increase corn's real price. Smit h's response to the critique is traced in later editions of Wealth of Nations. While Anderson's critique of Smith influenced Thomas Malthu s's writings from 1803 onwards, his theory of differential rent did n ot influence Malthus at this stage. An examination of the evolution o f Malthus's ideas on rent between 1803 and 1815, however, indicates t hat Malthus knew and used Anderson's work on rent.

"Irish Perspectives on EC Law by Mary Catherine Lucey and Cathrina Keville (eds.), Dublin, Thomson Round Hall, 2003 (ISBN 1-85800-280-X)"

Book Review

Optical Thomson scatter from a laser-ablated magnesium plume

We have carried out an optical Thomson scatter study of a KrF laser-ablated Mg plume. The evolution of the electron temperature and density at distances 2-5 mm from the target surface has been studied. We have observed that the electron density falls more rapidly than the atomic density and believe that this is a result of rapid dielectronic recombination. A comparison of the electron density profile and evolution with simple hydrodynamic modeling indicates that there is a strong absorption of the laser in the plasma vapor above the target, probably due to photoionization. We also conclude that an isothermal model of expansion better fits the data than an isentropic expansion model. Finally, we compared data obtained from Thomson scatter with those obtained by emission spectroscopy under similar conditions. The two sets of data have differences but are broadly consistent.

James Croll, metaphysical geologist

James Croll (1821–90) occupies a prominent position in the history of physical geology, and his pioneering work on the causes of long-term climate change has been widely discussed. During his life he benefited from the patronage of leading men of science; his participation in scientific debates was widely acknowledged, not least through his election as a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1876. For all that, the intellectual contribution that Croll himself considered to be of most significance—his articles and two books on metaphysics—has attracted very little attention. In addressing this neglect, it is argued here that Croll's interest in metaphysics, grounded in his commitment to a Calvinist form of Christianity, was central to his life and thought. Examining together Croll's geophysical and metaphysical writings offers a different and fruitful way of understanding his scientific career and points to the wider significance of metaphysics in late-Victorian scientific culture.

Comparison of the electron density measurements using Thomson scattering and emission spectroscopy for laser induced breakdown in one atmosphere of helium

Thomson scattering from laser-induced plasma in atmospheric helium was used to obtain temporally and spatially resolved electron temperature and density profiles. Electron density measurements at 5 s after breakdown are compared with those derived from the separation of the allowed and forbidden components of the 447.1 nm He I line. Plasma is created using 9 ns, 140 mJ pulses from Nd:YAG laser at 1064 nm. Electron densities of ~5 × 10 cm are in good agreement with Thomson scattering measurements, benchmarking this emission line as a useful diagnostic for high density plasmas. © 2011 American Institute of Physics.

Thomson Scattering as a Diagnostic of Second-Harmonic Nd:YAG-Laser-Ablated Mg Plasma Plume

Thomson scattering is one of the most powerful diagnostic tools for plasma characterization, and it has been applied to a variety of plasmas. It is a nonintrusive technique, and the interpretation of the signal is relatively simple. However, this method has not been widely applied to low-temperature laser-ablated plasmas. Raman satellites have been observed in the scattering spectrum from a Mg laser-ablated plasma, giving this diagnostic the potential to be also used in density quantification of metastable states in plasmas.