Autoclave design for high pressure-high temperature corrosion studies

Acknowledgements The authors gratefully acknowledge the contribution of Steve Cawley of John Cardwell Limited and Jim Herrmann of Cortest Inc. for the manufacture of the autoclave and for the permission to use the vessel design schematic drawings (Figures 8 and 9) in the paper; these figures are not to be used for production without the express written permission of Cortest Inc. The assistance of the technical staff of the School of Engineering Central Workshop is much appreciated.Peer reviewedPostprin

Crack detection in a rotating shaft using artificial neural networks and PSD characterisation

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Local and Regional Aspects of Habitat Quality Jointly Affect the Biodiversity of Ephemeral Ponds

The biodiversity of local communities is likely affected by both local habitat quality and by the quality of the landscape surrounding the locality. In pond environments, habitat quality may be affected by the kind of leaf litter present because leaf species differ in the kind of habitat structure they provide and the rate at which they release nutrients into the water. Landscape quality could affect diversity as well; some landscapes provide a richer pool of potential colonists. In addition, the plant community surrounding ponds could alter the influence of habitat selection: animals may prefer to colonize ponds that have litter which matches that kind of litter typically produced by plants in the surrounding landscape (e.g. if organisms are adapted to the litter types in the habitats where they occur). We conducted a split-plot randomized block experiment to examine how both landscape and local scale properties, and their interaction, affect biodiversity within temporary pond communities in eastern NC. We manipulated both the kind of landscape in which artificial ponds were located (open-canopy grassland, pine forest, and hardwood forest) and the leaf species (sedge, pine, or maple) present in artificial ponds. Ponds were open to colonization by amphibians and aquatic insects during the summer of 2010. We surveyed organisms in the ponds on a monthly basis and did a complete census of each pond at summer's end.   The kind of plant community (landscape) had consistent, strong effects on biodiversity throughout the experiment: ponds in open-canopy landscapes supported more species and different kinds of species than ponds in forested systems. Litter type affected biodiversity in the monthly catch-and-release samples, with more species in sedge treatments than pine treatments. We also found evidence from the monthly samples to suggest biodiversity was enhanced to a greater extent in open canopy ponds when litter from open canopy environments was present but that biodiversity in closed canopy environments was affected less by the kind of litter present. Our results highlight the importance of the terrestrial matrix surrounding ponds on biodiversity within the ponds, and it could aid conservation efforts aimed at maintaining the unique biodiversity of temporary ponds.  M.S

A history of Bahamian education

The Bahamas were annexed by the Crown in 1629 but, for a century, there was no progressive settlement, Early in the eighteenth century the island s were abandoned to the nefarious activities of pirates. Government reverted t o the Crown in 1718 and ordered development began. Education of the children of the colonists was begun in 1734 by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel but State aid was given as early as 1746. Little progress was made for a century but the advent of loyalists from the American Colonies in 1784 had a beneficial influence. With the need f o r educating the liberated slaves a Board of Education was appointed in 1836. There ensued a denominational struggle for control which was resolved by removing the schools from the control of all the churches. At the same time an Inspector was appointed but progress was hindered by lack of teachers and money and by the geographical nature of the colony. Blockade-running during the American Civil war made more money available and a series of inspectors and teachers was appointed from England. Slow but steady progress was effected, the " British Schools" being adopted as a model, Compulsory attendance became universal in 1886 but the number of schools remained totally in sufficient until 1920. Income from boot-legging during American prohibition resulted in rapid expansion both in the number of primary schools and in the provision of secondary education for negroes. The last twenty years have witnessed improvement in teachers' qualifications and the provision of scholarships for higher education. The out islands are far behind Nassau in educational facilities which are uncoordinated in the colony as a whole. Introductory chapters furnish a background of general history and of conditions in the colony at present. Final chapter applies the lessons of history to educational policy for the future

No evidence of a significant role for CTLA-4 in multiple sclerosis

Variation in the cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) gene plays a significant role in determining susceptibility to autoimmune thyroid disease and type 1 diabetes. Its role in multiple sclerosis is more controversial. In order to explore this logical candidate more thoroughly, we genotyped 771 multiple sclerosis trio families from the United Kingdom for the 3? untranslated region variable number tandem repeat, the CT60 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and five haplotype-tagging SNPs. No individual marker or common haplotype showed evidence of association with disease. These data suggest that any effect of CTLA-4 on multiple sclerosis susceptibility is likely to be very small

Richard Rorty’s Social Hope and Community Literacy

This essay explores how the philosophical tradition of American pragmatism, especially Richard Rorty’s work on social hope late in his career, could be relevant to community literacy. Pragmatism does not prescribe a particular approach to community literacy but, unlike many kinds of critical pedagogy, affirms a role for patriotism and liberalism in social change movements. Pragmatists such as Rorty prefer cooperative participation and incremental reform to either idealism or ideological critique

Likelihood of aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage in patients with normal unenhanced CT, CSF xanthochromia on spectrophotometry and negative CT angiography

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