From the Borders of Normativity to the Normativity of Borders: Outline of the Conditions for a Realist Case for Free Movement

This thesis addresses three central questions. The first is: how should one approach ethics of immigration? My answer to this question involves arguing that a key - perhaps the key - element underpinning differences amongst approaches is the underlying account of practical normativity. Thus, a way of developing a fruitful approach involves exploring debates on practical normativity. The second question becomes how should practical normativity be understood? In answer to second question, I argue that practical normativity should be understood in a Humean fashion: practical normativity is underpinned by desires. I specify this further by defending Bernard Williams's reasons internalism. I argue that reasons internalism, in spite of much criticism, is a robust and accurate account of the way practical normativity works. This leads to the third and final question: how could reasons internalism inform political ethics and the problem of first-admissions in the ethics of immigration? In answer to this last question, I argue that reasons internalism should make us sceptical of cosmopolitanism, but it also gives reason to be sceptical of Rawlsian statism and similar moralising and legalistic approaches to political ethics. Given this, I characterise an internalist political theory as a form of political realism. I then develop an internationalist and internalist approach to political ethics by drawing on insights from the tradition of political realism, Rousseau scholarship, and virtue ethics. I argue that this approach need not undermine the case for free movement, for which several attractive arguments have been put forward by thinkers from a range of different traditions. Rather, it constrains the way the case should be made, lending much-needed direction and clarity to the case for free movement and suggesting a way for defenders to move the case beyond a primary focus on moral or ethical argument. The thesis culminates by outlining the conditions for a realist case for free movement in the form of five guiding principles for free movement advocates

WS9.3 Reduced physical activity participation is associated with increased need for hospitalisation in adults with cystic fibrosis

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Dendritic flux avalanches in superconducting Nb3Sn films

The penetration of magnetic flux into a thin superconducting film of Nb3Sn with critical temperature 17.8K and critical current density 6MA/cm^2 was visualized using magneto-optical imaging. Below 8 K an avalanche-like flux penetration in form of big and branching dendritic structures was observed in response to increasing perpendicular applied field. When a growing dendritic branch meets a linear defect in the film, several scenarios were observed: the branch can turn and propagate along the defect, continue propagation right through it, or "tunnel" along a flux-filled defect and continue growth from its other end. The avalanches manifest themselves in numerous small and random jumps found in the magnetization curve.Comment: 3 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Cryogenics. Revision: M(H) data adde

Pedestal evolution physics in low triangularity JET tokamak discharges with ITER-like wall

The pressure gradient of the high confinement pedestal region at the edge of tokamak plasmas rapidly collapses during plasma eruptions called edge localised modes (ELMs), and then re-builds over a longer time scale before the next ELM. The physics that controls the evolution of the JET pedestal between ELMs is analysed for 1.4 MA, 1.7 T, low triangularity, δ = 0.2, discharges with the ITER-like wall, finding that the pressure gradient typically tracks the ideal magneto-hydrodynamic ballooning limit, consistent with a role for the kinetic ballooning mode. Furthermore, the pedestal width is often influenced by the region of plasma that has second stability access to the ballooning mode, which can explain its sometimes complex evolution between ELMs. A local gyrokinetic analysis of a second stable flux surface reveals stability to kinetic ballooning modes; global effects are expected to provide a destabilising mechanism and need to be retained in such second stable situations. As well as an electronscale electron temperature gradient mode, ion scale instabilities associated with this flux surface include an electro-magnetic trapped electron branch and two electrostatic branches propagating in the ion direction, one with high radial wavenumber. In these second stability situations, the ELM is triggered by a peeling-ballooning mode; otherwise the pedestal is somewhat below the peeling-ballooning mode marginal stability boundary at ELM onset. In this latter situation, there is evidence that higher frequency ELMs are paced by an oscillation in the plasma, causing a crash in the pedestal before the peeling-ballooning boundary is reached. A model is proposed in which the oscillation is associated with hot plasma filaments that are pushed out towards the plasma edge by a ballooning mode, draining their free energy into the cooler plasma there, and then relaxing back to repeat the process. The results suggest that avoiding the oscillation and maximising the region of plasma that has second stability access will lead to the highest pedestal heights and, therefore, best confinement—a key result for optimising the fusion performance of JET and future tokamaks, such as ITER.EURATOM 633053EPSRC EP/K504178/1EPSRC EP/L01663X/1Plasma HEC Consortium EPSRCV EP/L000237/

UK-based, multisite, prospective cohort study of small bowel obstruction in acute surgical services: National Audit of Small Bowel Obstruction (NASBO) protocol

Introduction Small bowel obstruction (SBO) is a common indication for emergency laparotomy in the UK, which is associated with a 90-day mortality rate of 13%. There are currently no UK clinical guidelines for the management of this condition. The aim of this multicentre prospective cohort study is to describe the burden, variation in management and associated outcomes of SBO in the UK adult population. Methods and analysis UK hospitals providing emergency general surgery are eligible to participate. This study has three components: (1) a clinical preference questionnaire to be completed by consultants providing emergency general surgical care to assesses preferences in diagnostics and therapeutic approaches, including laparoscopy and nutritional interventions; (2) site resource profile questionnaire to indicate ease of access to diagnostic services, operating theatres, nutritional support teams and postoperative support including intensive care; (3) prospective cohort study of all cases of SBO admitted during an 8-week period at participating trusts. Data on diagnostics, operative and nutritional interventions, and in-hospital mortality and morbidity will be captured, followed by data validation. Ethics and dissemination This will be conducted as a national audit of practice in conjunction with trainee research collaboratives, with support from patient representatives, surgeons, anaesthetists, gastroenterologists and a clinical trials unit. Site-specific reports will be provided to each participant site as well as an overall report to be disseminated through specialist societies. Results will be published in a formal project report endorsed by stakeholders, and in peer-reviewed scientific reports. Key findings will be debated at a focused national meeting with a view to quality improvement initiatives

Ultraviolet Fixed Points in Gauge and SUSY Field Theories in Extra Dimensions

We consider gauge field theories in $D>4$ following the Wilson RG approach and show that they possess the ultraviolet fixed points where the gauge coupling is dimensionless in any space-time dimension. At the fixed point the anomalous dimensions of the field and vertex operators are known exactly. These fixed points are nonperturbative and correspond to conformal invariant theories. The same phenomenon also happens in supersymmetric theories with the Yukawa type interactions.Comment: LaTeX, 10pp. v2: Comments and references adde

Comparing future patterns of energy system change in 2 °C scenarios to expert projections

Integrated assessment models (IAMs) are computer-based instruments used to assess the implications of human activity on the human and earth system. They are simultaneously also used to explore possible response strategies to climate change. As IAMs operate simplified representations of real-world processes within their model structures, they have been frequently criticised to insufficiently represent the opportunities and challenges in future energy systems over time. To test whether projections by IAMs diverge in systematic ways from projections made by technology experts we elicited expert opinion on prospective change for two indicators and compared these with the outcomes of IAM studies. We specifically focused on five (energy) technology families (solar, wind, biomass, nuclear, and carbon capture and storage or CCS) and compared the considered implications of the presence or absence of climate policy on the growth and diffusion of these technologies over the short (2030) to medium (2050) term. IAMs and experts were found to be in relatively high agreement on system change in a business-as-usual scenario, albeit with significant differences in the estimated magnitude of technology deployment over time. Under stringent climate policy assumptions, such as the internationally agreed upon objective to limit global mean temperature increase to no more than 2 °C, we found that the differences in estimated magnitudes became smaller for some technologies and larger for others. Compared to experts, IAM simulations projected a greater reliance on nuclear power and CCS to meet a 2 °C climate target. In contrast, experts projected a stronger growth in renewable energy technologies, particularly solar power. We close by discussing several factors that are considered influential to the alignment of the IAM and expert perspectives in this study

Perturbed angular correlations for Gd in gadolinium: in-beam comparisons of relative magnetizations

Perturbed angular correlations were measured for Gd ions implanted into gadolinium foils following Coulomb excitation with 40 MeV O-16 beams. A technique for measuring the relative magnetizations of ferromagnetic gadolinium hosts under in-beam conditions is described and discussed. The combined electric-quadrupole and magnetic-dipole interaction is evaluated. The effect of nuclei implanted onto damaged or non-substitutional sites is assessed, as is the effect of misalignment between the internal hyperfine field and the external polarizing field. Thermal effects due to beam heating are discussed.Comment: 37 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in NIM