Erosion and deposition in interplain channels of the Maury channel system

Large turbidity currents originating on the insular margin of southern lceland have flowed clown a 2 500 km-long pathway comprising rise valleys, unchanneled plains and segments of erosional and depositional deep-sea channels that are collectively called the Maury Channel system. Two steep interplain reaches of the channel have been eut up to 100 m through volcanogenic turbidites of probable La te Pleistocene age. Near-bottom observations with side-scan sonars and profllers across the upper channels (at 59°24\u27N, 18°50\u27W, 2 750 m depth) and at the lower interplain channel (around 56°23\u27N, 24°25\u27W, 3 340 m depth) defmed their structure and morphology. The upper channels, and a tributary to the lower channel, start as broad, shallow depressions that deepen and narrow downstream. The lower channel bas a pattern of anastomosing branches that probably evolved by head ward extension of low-angle tribu taries to the original sinuous channel, and its branches are at different stages of development. Several hundred bottom photographs show well-indurated rocks on channel walls and floors, with such flysch-like characteristics as cyclic graded bedding, clastic dikes, and syndepositional deformation. The lower-channel branches have been eut by turbidity currents with speeds of 5- 12 rn/sec., and combined discharges exceeding 1 x 106 m3 /sec. Bedrock erosion in and around the channels bas proceeded by intense corrasion and fluid stressing, and is marked by such small-scale effects as rock polishing, fluting, pot-holing and ledge recession. Rockfalls have caused retreat of steep channel walls, and conglomerate or pcbbly mudstone deposits suggest that debris flows have been locally active. Sorne coarse debris delivered by these processes and clay halls torn from semi-lithifled outcrops remain in the channels, but the channel f1ll is generally thin, with a patch y veneer of pelagie mud that bas accumulated since the last major turbidity current event. The surfaces of the unconsolidated s~diment have been smoothed and lineated, or moulded into seo ur moats and occasional fields of ripples, by thermohaline currents

Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS): Cockpit Display of Traffic Information (CDTI) investigation. Phase 1: Feasibility study

The possibility of the Threat Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) traffic sensor and display being used for meaningful Cockpit Display of Traffic Information (CDTI) applications has resulted in the Federal Aviation Administration initiating a project to establish the technical and operational requirements to realize this potential. Phase 1 of the project is presented here. Phase 1 was organized to define specific CDTI applications for the terminal area, to determine what has already been learned about CDTI technology relevant to these applications, and to define the engineering required to supply the remaining TCAS-CDTI technology for capacity benefit realization. The CDTI applications examined have been limited to those appropriate to the final approach and departure phases of flight

Broadening campus threat assessment beyond mass shootings

Record reviews of public figure, primary/secondary school, and workplace threateners and attackers displayed the importance of noticing pre-incident behaviors and intervening to prevent violence. General crime prevention strategies did not appear applicable. Similarly, campus threat assessment research has considered targeted violence as distinctive and unable to be reviewed within general collegiate samples, which has related to questions about the prevalence, predictiveness, applicability, and reporting of pre-incident behaviors. This article applies general criminological and crime prevention findings to these questions and presents campus threat assessment methodologies informed by these fields. With college student surveys, pre-incident behaviors have appeared predictive of general physical assault, which promotes investigation of the generalizability of campus threat assessment across collegiate bullying, intimate partner, stalking, and workplace violence concerns. In college student surveys, the majority of observed pre-incident behavior has not been reported to campus authorities and has been impacted by students’ personal victimization, assessment of dangerousness, and relationship with the perpetrator. Efforts to enhance reporting in general criminological and crime prevention fields could be applied to improving pre-incident authority notification. Thus, viewing campus threat assessment within the broader violence prevention framework can advance the efficiency, effectiveness, and applicability of the approach

Scald risk in social housing can be reduced through thermostatic control system without increasing Legionella risk: a cluster randomised trial.

OBJECTIVE: To quantify the effects of a thermostatic control system in social (public) housing on the prevalence of dangerous (>60°C) water temperatures and on fuel consumption. DESIGN: Pair-matched double-blind cluster randomised controlled trial. SETTING: Social housing in a deprived inner-London borough. PARTICIPANTS: 150 households recruited as clusters from 22 social housing estates. Four small estates were combined into two clusters (resulting in a total of 10 pairs of clusters). INTERVENTION: Social housing estate boiler houses were randomised to a thermostatic control sterilisation programme (heating water to 65°C during 00:00-06:00 h and to 50°C from 06:00 to 00:00 h daily) or to standard control (constant temperature 65°C). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Water temperature over 60°C ('dangerous') after running taps for 1 min and daily fuel consumption (cubic feet of gas). RESULTS: 10 clusters (80 households) were allocated to the sterilisation programme and 10 clusters (70 households) to control, of which 73 and 67 households, respectively, were analysed. Prevalence of dangerous (>60°C) hot water temperatures at 1 min was significantly reduced with the sterilisation programme (mean of cluster prevalence 1% in sterilisation programme group vs 34% in control group; absolute difference 33%, 95% CI 12% to 54%; p=0.006). Prevalence of high (>55°C) hot water temperatures at 1 min was significantly reduced (31% sterilisation vs 59% control; absolute difference 28%, 95% CI 9% to 47%; p=0.009). Gas consumption per day reduced more in the control group than in the sterilisation programme group, although not statistically significantly (p=0.125). CONCLUSIONS: The thermostatic control with daily sterilisation was effective in capping hot water temperatures and therefore reduced scald risk. Although expected to save energy, fuel consumption was increased relative to the control group. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT00874692

The Nonprofit Health Care Corporation Reform Act of 1980

In recent years, Blue Cross/Blue Shield has been the subject of considerable controversy. Its critics charge the non-profit, tax-exempt corporation with being unduly secretive, arrogantly unresponsive to consumer interest and not vigorous in its cost containment efforts. These criticisms, along with a variety of other factors, led to the legislative reform I am here to talk to you about this evening

Thermal Kinetic Inductance Detectors for Millimeter-Wave Astrophysics

Thermal Kinetic Inductance Detectors (TKIDs) combine the excellent noise performance of traditional bolometers with a radio frequency (RF) multiplexing architecture that enables the large detector counts needed for the next generation of millimeter-wave instruments. Here we present dark prototype TKID pixels that demonstrate a noise equivalent power NEP = 2×10⁻¹⁷√W/Hz with a 1/f knee at 0.1 Hz, suitable for background-limited noise performance at 150 GHz from a ground-based site. We discuss the optimizations in the device design and fabrication techniques to realize optimal electrical performance and high quality factors at a bath temperature of 250 mK

Local-scale patterns of genetic variability, outcrossing, and spatial structure in natural stands of Arabidopsis thaliana

As Arabidopsis thaliana is increasingly employed in evolutionary and ecological studies, it is essential to understand patterns of natural genetic variation and the forces that shape them. Previous work focusing mostly on global and regional scales has demonstrated the importance of historical events such as long-distance migration and colonization. Far less is known about the role of contemporary factors or environmental heterogeneity in generating diversity patterns at local scales. We sampled 1,005 individuals from 77 closely spaced stands in diverse settings around Tübingen, Germany. A set of 436 SNP markers was used to characterize genome-wide patterns of relatedness and recombination. Neighboring genotypes often shared mosaic blocks of alternating marker identity and divergence. We detected recent outcrossing as well as stretches of residual heterozygosity in largely homozygous recombinants. As has been observed for several other selfing species, there was considerable heterogeneity among sites in diversity and outcrossing, with rural stands exhibiting greater diversity and heterozygosity than urban stands. Fine-scale spatial structure was evident as well. Within stands, spatial structure correlated negatively with observed heterozygosity, suggesting that the high homozygosity of natural A. thaliana may be partially attributable to nearest-neighbor mating of related individuals. The large number of markers and extensive local sampling employed here afforded unusual power to characterize local genetic patterns. Contemporary processes such as ongoing outcrossing play an important role in determining distribution of genetic diversity at this scale. Local "outcrossing hotspots" appear to reshuffle genetic information at surprising rates, while other stands contribute comparatively little. Our findings have important implications for sampling and interpreting diversity among A. thaliana accessions.Financial support came from an NIH Ruth Kirschstein NRSA Postdoctoral Fellowship (KB), a Human Frontiers Science Program Postdoctoral Fellowship (RAL), grants DFG ERA-PG ARelatives and FP6 IP AGRON-OMICS (contract LSHG-CT-2006-037704), from a Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Award of the DFG, and the Max Planck Society (DW)

Exposure to Pre-Incident Behavior and Reporting in College Students

Campus targeted violence is preceded by noticeable, alarming behavior, and reporting improvement efforts have been suggested to increase students’ willingness to inform campus authorities of forewarning actions. Reporting improvement techniques have been most successful with material appealing to the perceptions of high-risk students (i.e., those likely to observe and not report). The current study examined the characteristics of students that view threatening behavior and lack willingness to report with a large, Midwestern, undergraduate sample (n 450). Approximately 35% of the sample (i.e., n 157) indicated observing pre-incident behavior on campus, and 65% of these individuals (i.e., n 101) described unwillingness to inform police in the majority of hypothetical threatening situations. Males and students with self-reported delinquency exhibited greater unwillingness to report. Negative feelings toward campus police and high feelings of safety on campus corresponded with unwillingness to report. Students observing pre-incident behavior had more campus connectedness, negative views of campus police, and fewer feelings of safety on campus. Thus, reporting improvement efforts appears highly important to advancing the violence prevention abilities of campus threat assessment teams. Peer education could generate lasting attitudinal and behavioral change for high-risk students. These strategies could involve highly connected student leaders respected by males and students endorsing delinquency and material formatted in a nonconfrontational manner

What do children who stutter and their parents expect from therapy and are their hopes aligned?

Currently there are few published reports exploring what it is that children and their parents wish to see change or happen as part of therapy. A process of eliciting hopes or expectations for therapy using Solution Focused Brief Therapy (de Shazer, 1985) is routinely used at the Michael Palin Centre (MPC) with children who stutter and their parents. This qualitative study aimed to explore what children who stutter and their parents expect from therapy and whether their hopes are aligned

GPA as a Product, Not a Measure, of Success in Honors

Defining success is challenging. Yet schools and colleges across the country, indeed, around the world, seek to do it in order to demonstrate value. While we know that success depends upon a variety of skills that individuals develop into competencies, these can be difficult to measure in an academic setting. For example, as educators, we hope that success is an outcome of lifelong learning, but the measurement of lifelong learning requires sophisticated approaches that can be difficult to deploy across a broad population (Riley and Claris 2008). As a result, administrators and instructors will often gravitate toward more readily available measures of success such as individual grades, grade point averages (GPAs), or standardized test scores. While these measures can provide insight into performance in a particular setting, commonly a didactic instructional environment, they do not account for the variety of experiences that mold and shape an individual’s capacity for success. In fact, some educators might argue that these limited measures ignore some of the most important aspects of potential for success, such as, for example, resilience