Proposed Keystone XL Pipeline: Legal Issues

[Excerpt] In 2008, TransCanada Corp. applied for a presidential permit from the State Department to construct and operate an oil pipeline across the U.S.-Canada border in a project known as Keystone XL. The Keystone XL pipeline would transport oil produced from oil sands in Alberta,Canada, to Gulf Coast refineries. The permit application was subjected to review by the State Department pursuant to executive branch authority over cross-border pipeline facilities as articulated in Executive Order 13337. After several phases of review, on November 10, 2011, the State Department announced that it would seek additional information about alternative pipeline routes before it could move forward with a national interest determination. In response, several pieces of legislation were introduced, including Title V of the Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011. Title V dictated that President must grant the Keystone XL pipeline permit within 60 days of the law’s enactment, unless the President determined that the pipeline is not in the national interest. If the President did not make a national interest determination and took no action to grant the permit, then the law provided that the permit “shall be in effect by operation of law.” The Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011 (P.L. 112-78), including Title V addressing the Keystone XL permit, was enacted on December 23, 2011. Pursuant to the requirements of Title V, on January 18, 2012, the State Department recommended that “the presidential permit for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline be denied and, that at this time, the TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline be determined not to serve the national interest. ”The same day, the President stated his determination that the Keystone XL pipeline project“ would not serve the national interest. ”New legislative activity with respect to the permitting of border-crossing facilities, a subject previously handled exclusively by the executive branch, has triggered inquiries as to whether this raises constitutional issues related to the jurisdiction of the two branches over such facilities. Additionally, as states have begun to contemplate taking action with respect to the pipeline siting, some have questioned whether state siting of a pipeline is preempted by federal law. Others argue that states dictating the route of the pipeline violates the dormant Commerce Clause of the Constitution which, among other things, prohibits one state from acting to protect its own interests to the detriment of other states. This report reviews those legal issues. First, it suggests that legislation related to cross-border facility permitting is unlikely to raise significant constitutional questions, despite the fact that such permits have traditionally been handled by the executive branch alone pursuant to its constitutional “foreign affairs” authority. Next, it observes generally that state oversight of pipeline siting decisions does not appear to violate existing federal law or the Constitution. Finally, the report suggests that State Department’s implementation of the existing authority to issue presidential permits appears to allow for judicial review of its National Environmental Policy Act determinations

Klinisches Ergebnis und Nebenwirkungen der Ganzkörperbestrahlung im Rahmen einer Stammzelltransplantation bei Anwendung einer Teilrotationsbestrahlungstechnik

Zwischen den Jahren 2011 und 2015 erhielten 46 Patienten an der Klinik für Strahlentherapie und Radioonkologie der Universitätsmedizin Mannheim eine Kombination aus Ganzkörperbestrahlung und Chemotherapie zur Vorbereitung auf eine Stammzelltransplantation. Untersucht wurde das Gesamtkollektiv, bestehend aus insgesamt 46 Patienten, sowie zwei Untergruppen. Gruppe eins setzte sich aus Patienten mit der Grunderkrankung AML in erster kompletter Remission und 8 Gy Bestrahlung zusammen; Patienten, welche in Anbetracht eines Mantelzelllymphoms autolog transplantiert wurden, bildeten die zweite Subgruppe. Die zur Stammzelltransplantation führenden Grunderkrankungen waren mehrheitlich Leukämien (AML, ALL, CMML); aber auch MDS, MZL und Hodgkin-Lymphom stellten hierfür eine Indikation dar. Die Bestrahlungsdosis betrug bei der Mehrheit der Patienten 8 Gy, aber auch, in absteigender Häufigkeit, mit 12 Gy, 10 Gy, 2 Gy und 4 Gy war eine Konditionierung möglich. Insgesamt verstarben binnen des ersten Jahres 25 der 46 Patienten, zwölf Patienten konnten bis zum festgelegten Stichtag kein Jahr nachgesorgt werden. Ein Zusammenhang konnte weder zwischen der Grunderkrankung noch der Bestrahlungsdosis und des Ein-Jahres-Überlebens nachgewiesen werden. Bezüglich der Lungenfunktion anhand der DLCO stellte sich heraus, dass bereits vor TBI eine Verringerung dieser vorlag. Eine weitere Abnahme konnte zu den jeweiligen Nachbeobachtungszeitpunkten von drei, sechs und zwölf Monaten nach TBI dargestellt werden. Mittels der Verhältnisse zwischen DLCO nach Bestrahlung und der DLCO vor TBI und somit eines individuellen Ergebnisses konnte gezeigt werden, dass sich die Anzahl der Patienten mit einer eingeschränkten Lungenfunktion über das Jahr nach TBI reduzierte. Eine Abhängigkeit zwischen TBI- bzw. Lungendosis und der DLCO-Messungen ergab sich zu keinem der drei Nachbeobachtungszeitpunkte. Anhand der DLCO-Verhältnisse wurde lediglich nach einem Jahr eine statistische Signifikanz berechnet. Die Nierenfunktion anhand des Kreatinins sowie das Enzym ALAT als Korrelat der Leberfunktion zeigten ebenfalls keine statistische Abhängigkeit der jeweiligen Organfunktion mit der Bestrahlungsdosis. Zwischen dem eher unspezifischen Leberenzym ASAT und der TBI-Dosis ließ sich eine Abhängigkeit nach drei Monaten nachweisen. Insgesamt lässt sich anhand der Ergebnisse, die das gesamte Patientenkollektiv betreffen, schlussfolgern, dass sich die Funktion der exponierten Organe Lunge und Niere nicht relevant verschlechterte. Erhöhte Leberwerte zeigten sich bereits vor erfolgter Therapie. Eine Erhöhung der jeweiligen Parameter und somit eine Verschlechterung der Organfunktion kann letztlich nicht sicher der Ganzkörperbestrahlung zugeschrieben werden. Bezüglich der beiden Untergruppen wurde klar, dass die Gruppengröße für eine genaue Aussage zu gering war und ein weiterer Patientenverlust nicht zu kompensieren war. Anhand der geringen Anzahl an nachbeobachteten Patienten der Untergruppe lässt sich dennoch sagen, dass die jeweiligen Organfunktionen von Lunge, Niere und Leber sich ähnlich derer des Gesamtkollektivs verhielten. Weiterhin stellte sich durch die Beobachtungen heraus, dass die insgesamt gewählte Gruppengröße einen Nachteil bedeutet. Das bereits bei Beginn relativ kleine Gesamtkollektiv nahm durch Ausscheiden von Patienten während der Nachbeobachtung weiter ab. Dennoch zeigen die hier präsentierten Ergebnisse, dass die erneuerte Bestrahlungstechnik in Teilrotation keine über das Maß hinausgehenden Auswirkungen auf die Funktion der exponierten Risikoorgane Lunge, Niere und Leber hat

Leveraging fan\u27s global football allegiances to build domestic league support

Purpose &ndash; It is not uncommon for sports fans to follow multiple sports teams across different sports and even several teams across different leagues of the same sport. Whereas this might be considered a competitive situation, the purpose of this paper is to examine how interest in overseas football (soccer) leagues played a symbiotic role in the successful development of an Australian national soccer league.Design/methodology/approach &ndash; Results of survey data are presented from two clubs in Australia&rsquo;s newly formed A-League. Three surveys were conducted over a two year period with over 3,700 season ticket holders. Specific attention is paid to fans&rsquo; previous interest and exposure to football, which is then related to attitudes and behaviour associated with the new clubs.Findings &ndash; Interest in overseas clubs and leagues is found to be a major antecedent of interest in the Australian league. Those who follow teams in overseas leagues are more likely to be heavy consumers of the new local league than those who follow local leagues or had no prior experience. They also exhibit stronger attitudinal and behavioural loyalty, such as higher attendance and renewal rates of season tickets.Practical implications &ndash; Recognising fan interest in multiple teams/leagues as positive involves a shift in management thinking away from a competitive to a collaborative stance. In this case, rapid adoption of new teams is encouraged by capitalising on strong interest in overseas leagues. This requires careful structuring and branding of the competition that mimicks familiar foreign leagues, while minimising unfavourable comparisons in areas like quality of play.Originality/value &ndash; This study capitalises on the rare opportunity to examine foundation teams in a new national league. The findings highlight the importance and value of taking a &lsquo;&lsquo;global&rsquo;&rsquo; perspective to the marketing of sports, and of carefully leveraging the interest in other elite competitions to build interest in new leagues.<br /

Do intercontraction intervals predict when a woman at term should seek evaluation of labor?

A reduction in the intercontraction interval is associated with active labor (strength of recommendation [SOR]: B, cohort study). Most primigravidas who have had regular contractions for 2 hours and multigravidas who have had regular contractions for 1 hour haven't transitioned into the active phase of labor (SOR: B, cohort study)

Modular Organization of Engulfment Receptors and Proximal Signaling Networks: Avenues to Reprogram Phagocytosis

Transmembrane protein engulfment receptors expressed on the surface of phagocytes engage ligands on apoptotic cells and debris to initiate a sequence of events culminating in material internalization and immunologically beneficial outcomes. Engulfment receptors are modular, comprised of functionally independent extracellular ligation domains and cytosolic signaling motifs. Cognate kinases, adaptors, and phosphatases regulate engulfment by controlling the degree of receptor activation in phagocyte plasma membranes, thus acting as receptor-proximal signaling modules. Here, we review recent efforts to reprogram phagocytes using modular synthetic receptors composed of antibody-based extracellular domains fused to engulfment receptor signaling domains. To aid the development of new phagocyte reprogramming methods, we then define the kinases, adaptors, and phosphatases that regulate a conserved family of engulfment receptors. Finally, we discuss current challenges and opportunities for the field

Challenging Industry to Innovate! How the Government Can Apply Transparency, Collaboration, Unencumbered Communication, and Dynamic Engagement Through Challenge-Based Acquisition

Symposium PresentationApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Challenging Industry to Innovate! How the Government Can Apply Transparency, Collaboration, Unencumbered Communication, and Dynamic Engagement Through Challenge-Based Acquisition

Excerpt from the Proceedings of the Nineteenth Annual Acquisition Research SymposiumThe Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Telecommunications Advanced Research and Dynamic Spectrum Sharing Systems (TARDyS3) program demanded new ideas and novel approaches for sharing electromagnetic spectrum between the Department of Defense and commercial industry. To solve this problem, DISA created an acquisition structure that focused on building transparency, collaborating, and actively communicating with industry across the entire acquisition. This focus on dynamically engaging vendors and encouraging innovation allowed DISA to rapidly deploy high-quality and user-approved capabilities. Dynamic engagement involves a two-way exchange of ideas, listening to industry by seeking input, and conveying the government’s ideas and motivations to potential vendors, while innovation centricity consists of encouraging vendors to solve problems with unique solutions, providing a framework for future acquisitions. Dynamic engagement, coupled with innovation centricity, powerfully engages the vendor community to solve hard problems. Combining innovation with communication creates a vendor community that is motivated to meet the government’s needs, and it accelerates risk mitigation. Furthermore, it can improve product quality and shortens delivery time lines at a reasonable price. For these reasons, future programs should consider incorporating dynamic engagement and innovation-centric approaches at the core of their acquisition strategies.Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited