Fuel economy and exhaust emissions characteristics of diesel vehicles: Test results of a prototype Fiat 131 NA 2.4 liter automobile

The vehicle was tested on a chassis dynamometer over selected drive cycles and steady-state conditions. Two fuels were used, a U.S. no. 2 diesel and a European diesel fuel. The vehicle was tested with retarded timing and with and without an oxidation catalyst. Particulate emission rates were calculated from dilution tunnel measurements and large volume particulate samples were collected for biological and chemical analysis. It was determined that while the catalyst was generally effective in reducing hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide levels, it was also a factor in increasing particulate emissions. Increased particulate emission rates were particularly evident when the vehicle was operated on the European fuel which has a high sulfur content

The consumption of Internet child pornography and violent and sex offending

Background: There is an ongoing debate on whether consumers of child pornography pose a risk for hands-on sex offenses. Up until now, there have been very few studies which have analyzed the association between the consumption of child pornography and the subsequent perpetration of hands-on sex offenses. The aim of this study was to examine the recidivism rates for hands-on and hands-off sex offenses in a sample of child pornography users using a 6 year follow-up design.Methods: The current study population consisted of 231 men, who were subsequently charged with consumption of illegal pornographic material after being detected by a special operation against Internet child pornography, conducted by the Swiss police in 2002. Criminal history, as well as recidivism, was assessed using the criminal records from 2008.Results: 4.8% (n = 11) of the study sample had a prior conviction for a sexual and/or violent offense, 1% (n = 2) for a hands-on sex offense, involving child sexual abuse, 3.3% (n = 8) for a handsoff sex offense and one for a nonsexual violent offense. When applying a broad definition of recidivism, which included ongoing investigations, charges and convictions, 3% (n = 7) of the study sample recidivated with a violent and/or sex offense, 3.9% (n = 9) with a hands-off sex offense and 0.8% (n = 2) with a hands-on sex offense.Conclusion: Consuming child pornography alone is not a risk factor for committing hands-on sex offenses at least not for those subjects who had never committed a hands-on sex offense. The majority of the investigated consumers had no previous convictions for hands-on sex offenses. For those offenders, the prognosis for hands-on sex offenses, as well as for recidivism with child pornography, is favorable

Corrigendum to "Discrimination of biomass burning smoke and clouds in MAIAC algorithm" published in Atmos. Chem. Phys., 12, 9679–9686, 2012

No abstract available

Discrimination of Biomass Burning Smoke and Clouds in MAIAC Algorithm

The multi-angle implementation of atmospheric correction (MAIAC) algorithm makes aerosol retrievals from MODIS data at 1 km resolution providing information about the fine scale aerosol variability. This information is required in different applications such as urban air quality analysis, aerosol source identification etc. The quality of high resolution aerosol data is directly linked to the quality of cloud mask, in particular detection of small (sub-pixel) and low clouds. This work continues research in this direction, describing a technique to detect small clouds and introducing the smoke test to discriminate the biomass burning smoke from the clouds. The smoke test relies on a relative increase of aerosol absorption at MODIS wavelength 0.412 micrometers as compared to 0.47-0.67 micrometers due to multiple scattering and enhanced absorption by organic carbon released during combustion. This general principle has been successfully used in the OMI detection of absorbing aerosols based on UV measurements. This paper provides the algorithm detail and illustrates its performance on two examples of wildfires in US Pacific North-West and in Georgia/Florida of 2007

‘Think Aloud’: Towards a framework to facilitate reflective practice amongst rugby league coaches.

This study aimed to design, implement and evaluate a protocol encompassing Think Aloud (TA) as a technique to facilitate reflection-in-action and delayed reflection-on-action to aid coach learning. Six British, male rugby league coaches, who reported little previous exposure to reflective practice, consented to participate. Participants were: (a) instructed on how to engage in TA; (b) observed in practice using TA; (c) provided with individual support on delayed reflective practice on their first coaching session and use of TA; (d) observed in practice using TA a second time; and (e) engaged in a social validation interview regarding their experiences of TA. Analysis of in-action verbalizations revealed a shift from descriptive verbalizations to a deeper level of reflection. Both immediate and post eight week social validation interviews revealed that coaches developed an increased awareness, enhanced communication, and pedagogical development. The participants also recommended that TA can be a valuable tool for: (a) collecting in-event data during a coaching session; and (b) developing and evidencing reflection for coaches. Future recommendations were also provided by the participants and consequently, this study offers a unique technique to reflective practice that has the potential to meet the learning development needs of coaches

The dynamic emergence of cooperative norms in a social dilemma

This paper addresses the formation of social norms of cooperation through interaction in repeated Public Goods Games, using novel multilevel techniques. Cooperation has traditionally been understood as the interplay of static factors such as shared social identity and pre-existing norms. This study investigates the dynamic emergence of cooperative norms in the presence or absence of social categorization. A small effect of categorization was found: Categorization helps initiate and maintain higher levels of cooperation. However, the differences in emergent cooperation between small groups were much stronger than the differences between the Categorization and Non-Categorization conditions. Using explorative analyses, three distinct classes of groups were found. Within groups, group members follow nearly identical rules for their choice of cooperative behavior. We argue that individual behavior converged because of the social interactions within these groups. Overall, the development of cooperation is best predicted by the process of norm formation that occurs when social identities emerge.</p

Solvent effects in gold-catalysed A3-coupling reactions

AbstractGold-catalysed A3-reactions proceed efficiently when conducted in 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol as solvent. The rates of these reactions are accelerated considerably when conducted in a microwave reactor