A Safe House for Orphan Parts an Architectural Proposal for a US Center for Illicit Antiquities

Though very different institutions, the Met, the Getty, and US Immigration and Customs have a striking similarity in one regard. Each holds unmatched collections of antiquities. They focus efforts on study, acquisition, and object transfer. However, the Met and the Getty are renowned museums and ICE recovers and repatriates black market goods, keeping their collection in several top-secret warehouses. One such warehouse in Queens houses over 2,500 seized artifacts including “a huge stone Buddha from India, terra-cotta horsemen from China, reliefs from Iraq, Syria, and Yemen” Unlike the carefully curated collections at institutions like the Met, these pieces are a wildly varying group of rescues. These looted “parts” become displaced from their site or museum context and either disappear into private collections or spend years in government facilities awaiting repatriation. In parallel globally and in the United States, the means and methods of war have greatly evolved leaving a vast aging building stock of military orphans. Traditional building typologies including munitions storage, forts, and bunkers have been superseded but are expensive or difficult to demolish. In addition, these spaces are crafted around defensive, introverted narratives. A Safe House for Orphan Parts posits the role of architecture in repatriation and speculates on the proposed relationship between the orphan part and the orphaned building. The project seeks to explore the architectural opportunities to tell the story of looting in relation to terrorism

Clamp Fixture for Computer Navigated Total Hip Arthroplasty

During total hip arthroplasty, surgeons insert a prosthetic femur head onto the femur bone, as well as inserting a prosthetic acetabular cup so both prosthetic components can cope with one other. Surgeons also insert pins onto the hip and femur bones to track the movement of those bones via infrared arrays, using computer navigated software, in order to mitigate surgical error. In the US there is more than 310,000 total hip replacement surgeries conducted per year, most of which are over the age of 45. Hip replacement surgery is needed for individuals who have osteoarthritis, avascular necrosis, and/or trauma. The average stay after total hip replacement for patients aged 45 and over is 4 days. The average cost of the surgery is about $31,000. Decreasing recovery time in the hospital by just one day can decrease the cost between 10-20%. The greatest risks of this procedure would be misalignment of the hip bones or impairment of the femur bones. The objective is to design a surgical clamp fixture which will replace the current pins being used. Instead of penetrating a hole of 10 mm in diameter onto the hip, the design will clamp onto the iliac crest horizontally, along with the attached infrared arrays and provide proper fixation with no more than 0.5 mm of deviation from the clamping axis. By performing specific testing protocols the resulting outcome will be more beneficial than the current pins. The clamp fixture will be applied to synthetic material and then subjected to surgical forces, including application of excess forces along all axis’, torsional forces and rotational forces to ensure stability and rigidity. The surgical clamp will be used to improve the clinical outcomes of the procedure by introducing a less invasive attachment for the infrared detection without compromising the current rigidity and effectiveness

A Dyadic Perspective On Speech Accommodation and Social Connection: Both Partners\u27 Rejection Sensitivity Matters

Findings from confederate paradigms predict that mimicry is an adaptive route to social connection for rejection-sensitive individuals (Lakin, Chartrand, & Arkin, 2008). However, dyadic perspectives predict that whether mimicry leads to perceived connection depends on the rejection sensitivity (RS) of both partners in an interaction. We investigated these predictions in 50 college women who completed a dyadic cooperative task in which members were matched or mismatched in being dispositionally high or low in RS. We used a psycholinguistics paradigm to assess, through independent listeners\u27 judgments (N=162), how much interacting individuals accommodate phonetic aspects of their speech toward each other. Results confirmed predictions from confederate paradigms in matched RS dyads. However, mismatched dyads showed an asymmetry in levels of accommodation and perceived connection: Those high in RS accommodated more than their low-RS partner but emerged feeling less connected. Mediational analyses indicated that low-RS individuals\u27 nonaccommodation in mismatched dyads helped explain their high-RS partners\u27 relatively low perceived connection to them. Establishing whether mimicry is an adaptive route to social connection requires analyzing mimicry as a dyadic process influenced by the needs of each dyad member

Investigating the Impact of Asymptomatic Carriers on COVID-19 Transmission [preprint]

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a novel human respiratory disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Asymptomatic carriers of the virus display no clinical symptoms but are known to be contagious. Recent evidence reveals that this sub-population, as well as persons with mild, represent a major contributor in the propagation of COVID-19. The asymptomatic sub-population frequently escapes detection by public health surveillance systems. Because of this, the currently accepted estimates of the basic reproduction number (Ro) of the virus are inaccurate. It is unlikely that a pathogen can blanket the planet in three months with an Ro in the vicinity of 3, as reported in the literature. In this manuscript, we present a mathematical model taking into account asymptomatic carriers. Our results indicate that an initial value of the effective reproduction number could range from 5.5 to 25.4, with a point estimate of 15.4, assuming mean parameters. The first three weeks of the model exhibit exponential growth, which is in agreement with average case data collected from thirteen countries with universal health care and robust communicable disease surveillance systems; the average rate of growth in the number of reported cases is 23.3% per day during this period

Análise de estrutura, conduta e desempenho do subsetor da confeitaria na área metropolitana de Cali 2002 - 2010

This article provides a descriptive analysis of the confectionery industry in Cali during the time period from 2002 to 2010. It is aimed at identifying the existence of market power on the part of manufacturers. It follows a structure-behaviorperformance (SBP) approach and turns to the further developments of the New Empirical Industrial Organization (NEIO), both of which are part of the microeconomic theory of industrial organization. Three qualitative surveys were conducted among SMEs in the sector, using statistical information of various samples of manufacturing companies from the DANE (National Administrative Department of Statistics), and public information available from the mercantile registry records at the Cali Chamber of Commerce. It provides an estimate of the extent of market concentration and a comparison of the price variations and the quantities manufactured of different confectionery products against relevant indicators of the behavior of supplies and relevant macroeconomic variables. The purpose of this article is also to determine whether or not the proximity of sugar cane mills poses a competitive advantage for companies. The highlights of the findings reveal that there is a strong concentration of the sector which is dominated by a few companies. Although sugar is the primary raw material for all products, there is no evidence of any cost advantage associated with the geographic location. The most stable price patterns and quantities are found in the product category of traditional candy.En este artículo se efectúa un análisis descriptivo del subsector de la confitería en Cali para el periodo 2002-2010, se busca identificar la existencia de poder de mercado por parte de los productores. Se utiliza el enfoque Estructura-Conducta-Desempeño (ECD) y los posteriores desarrollos de la Nueva Organización Industrial Empírica (NOIE), ambos pertenecientes a la teoría microeconómica de la Organización Industrial. Se utilizan trece encuestas cualitativas a pymes del sector, estadísticas de las diferentes Muestras Manufactureras del Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadística (DANE) y la información pública del Registro Mercantil de la Cámara de Comercio de Cali. Se estima el grado de concentración del mercado, se contrastan las variaciones en los precios y las cantidades producidas de diferentes productos de confitería, con indicadores del comportamiento de insumos y de variables macroeconómicas relevantes; se busca además determinar si la proximidad de los ingenios azucareros significa una ventaja competitiva para las firmas. Entre los resultados se destaca la fuerte concentración del sector, dominado por unas pocas firmas; el azúcar constituye la materia prima principal para todos los productos, sin embargo no hay evidencia de una ventaja en el costo de este insumo relacionado con la ubicación geográfica. Los patrones de precios y cantidades más estables pertenecen al grupo de los dulces tradicionales.Neste artigo se efetua uma análise descritiva do subsetor da confeitaria em Cali para o período 2002- 2010, se tenta identificar a existência do poder de mercado pela parte dos produtores. Se usa o enfoque Estrutura-Conduta-Desempenho (ECD) e os posteriores desenvolvimentos da Nova Organização Industrial Empírica (NOIE), ambos pertencentes a teoria microeconômica da Organização Industrial. São usadas treze pesquisas qualitativas a PMEs do setor, estatísticas das diferentes Mostras de Produção do Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estatística (DANE) e a informação pública do Registro Mercantil da Câmara de Comércio de Cali. É calculado o grau de concentração do mercado, se contrastam as variações de preços e as quantidades produzidas de diferentes produtos de confeitaria com indicadores do comportamento de consumos e de variáveis macroeconômicas relevantes; se procura também determinar se a proximidade das usinas de açúcar constitui uma vantagem competitiva para as empresas. Entre os resultados se destaca a forte concentração do setor, dominado por umas poucas empresas. O açúcar constitui a matéria prima principal para todos os produtos, contudo não há evidência de uma vantagem para o custo deste consumo relacionado com a localização geográfica. Os padrões de preços e quantidades mais estáveis pertencem ao grupo dos doces tradicionais