A study into the mobility of iron in podzolized Sarawak upland soils by means of selective iron extractions.

The presence of relatively large amounts of crystalline free iron oxides gradually increasing with depth, a virtual absence of new iron accumulations in the amorphous form and a great activity of organic acids in complexing iron in surface horizons were observed. Additional field information provides evidence of large accumulations of iron oxides at great depth in cracks and joints of sedimentary rocks. These characteristics suggest that there has been a relative accumulation of crystalline iron oxides through desilication during an early stage in soil formation. This was followed by a loss of iron in varying degree from the upper horizons, which can most likely be attributed to fossil argilluviation and weathering of iron-rich clay, or possibly to fossil reduction with transport in ferrous form. The latter would presuppose the existence of poorly drained conditions prior to strong dissection resulting in the present landscape. The strong and extensive accumulation of iron oxides at great depth in cracks and joints may be attributed to the oxidation and precipitation of ferrous and ferric iron mobilized upon initial oxidation of pyrites in the weathering front of the sedimentary rocks. Lateral movements of soil water may play a role in this. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission

Laos: a state coordinated frontier economy

This paper assesses the current variety of capitalism in Laos using Hall and Soskice’s (2001) comparative approach and the emerging body of knowledge on Varieties of Asian Capitalism. In addition to a systematic discussion of the traditional capitalist elements proposed by Hall and Soskice (the financial system, industrial relations, internal structure of the firm, education and skills formation and inter-company relations), this paper also takes into account foreign direct investments, social and environmental sustainability. The available evidence suggests that Laos can be categorised as a State Coordinated Frontier Economy in which elites and foreign investors accumulate wealth at the expense of small firms, villagers and the natural environment. The government is particularly present in the spheres of finance and inter-company relations. A continuation of this variety of capitalism is likely to result in excessive inequality and severe environmental degradation. The task for Laos is now to foster more inclusive forms of state coordination and balance economic growth with ameliorative policy initiatives catering to the natural environment, displaced villagers, ordinary employees and small business owners. This will be a difficult endeavour as there is still a profound mismatch between prevailing economic institutional complementarities and historically informed cultural institutions

Context factors in general practitioner - patient encounters and their impact on assessing communication skills - an exploratory study

BACKGROUND Assessment of medical communication performance usually focuses on rating generically applicable, well-defined communication skills. However, in daily practice, communication is determined by (specific) context factors, such as acquaintance with the patient, or the presented problem. Merely valuing the presence of generic skills may not do justice to the doctor's proficiency.Our aim was to perform an exploratory study on how assessment of general practitioner (GP) communication performance changes if context factors are explicitly taken into account. METHODS We used a mixed method design to explore how ratings would change. A random sample of 40 everyday GP consultations was used to see if previously identified context factors could be observed again. The sample was rated twice using a widely used assessment instrument (the MAAS-Global), first in the standard way and secondly after context factors were explicitly taken into account, by using a context-specific rating protocol to assess communication performance in the workplace. In between first and second rating, the presence of context factors was established. Item score differences were calculated using paired sample t-tests. RESULTS In 38 out of 40 consultations, context factors prompted application of the context-specific rating protocol. Mean overall score on the 7-point MAAS-Global scale increased from 2.98 in standard to 3.66 in the context-specific rating (p<0.00); the effect size for the total mean score was 0.84. In earlier research the minimum standard score for adequate communication was set at 3.17. CONCLUSIONS Applying the protocol, the mean overall score rose above the level set in an earlier study for the MAAS-Global scores to represent 'adequate GP communication behaviour'. Our findings indicate that incorporating context factors in communication assessment thus makes a meaningful difference and shows that context factors should be considered as 'signal' instead of 'noise' in GP communication assessment. Explicating context factors leads to a more deliberate and transparent rating of GP communication performance.The study was funded by the SBOH Foundation, employer of Dutch Family Medicine Residents and funder of the national residency program for GPs in the Netherlands

The Girl I Love Won\u27t Love Me

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-vp/5939/thumbnail.jp

Droughts and debts: The domestic tea value chain and vulnerable livelihoods in Girimukti village, West Java, Indonesia

This article is concerned with the linkages between the livelihoods of tea smallholders and domestic value chains in Indonesia. Theoretically, our empirical inquiry is informed by an integration of the sustainable livelihoods approach and value chain analyses. This enables a better investigation of micro (livelihoods) — meso (industry) — macro (national and international trends and political economy) interdependencies and interactions. In addition to value chains and socioeconomic challenges, tea smallholders in Indonesia are also confronted with droughts due to climate change and the 2015–2016 El Niño. The empirical work consisted of 36 semi-structured interviews in Girimukti village in West Java; a remote village relatively far from urban markets. Overall, our analysis demonstrates that tea smallholders are not poor, but are in a vulnerable position and remain far below the level of a stable lower-middle class. The smallholders lack human and financial capital and growing tea is not supported by horizontal coordination/social capital. In contrast, a few wealthy tea agripreneurs have established themselves as providers of inputs, intermediaries, tea drying factories, informal rural banks and village philanthropists. In other words, Girimukti is host to a process of increasing rural inequality driven by endogenous actors who are able to accumulate and concentrate tea assets and position themselves as essential nodes within the domestic tea value chain. The adaptive strategy of rural-urban migration from Girimukti to escape rural marginalisation is unattractive because of relatively low human capital levels

Massive Quiescent Cores in Orion. -- II. Core Mass Function

We have surveyed submillimeter continuum emission from relatively quiescent regions in the Orion molecular cloud to determine how the core mass function in a high mass star forming region compares to the stellar initial mass function. Such studies are important for understanding the evolution of cores to stars, and for comparison to formation processes in high and low mass star forming regions. We used the SHARC II camera on the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory telescope to obtain 350 \micron data having angular resolution of about 9 arcsec, which corresponds to 0.02 pc at the distance of Orion. Our analysis combining dust continuum and spectral line data defines a sample of 51 Orion molecular cores with masses ranging from 0.1 \Ms to 46 \Ms and a mean mass of 9.8 \Ms, which is one order of magnitude higher than the value found in typical low mass star forming regions, such as Taurus. The majority of these cores cannot be supported by thermal pressure or turbulence, and are probably supercritical.They are thus likely precursors of protostars. The core mass function for the Orion quiescent cores can be fitted by a power law with an index equal to -0.85$\pm$0.21. This is significantly flatter than the Salpeter initial mass function and is also flatter than the core mass function found in low and intermediate star forming regions. Thus, it is likely that environmental processes play a role in shaping the stellar IMF later in the evolution of dense cores and the formation of stars in such regions.Comment: 30 pages, 10 figures, accepted by Ap

Comparative study of Cl₂, Cl₂/O₂, and Cl₂/N₂ inductively coupled plasma processes for etching of high-aspect-ratio photonic-crystal holes in InP

An extensive investigation has been performed on inductively coupled plasmaetching of InP. An important motivation for this work is the fabrication of high-aspect-ratio holes for photonic crystals. The essential chemistry is based on Cl₂ with the addition of N₂ or O₂ for sidewall passivation. The influence of different process parameters such as gas flows, temperature,pressure, ion energy, and inductively coupled plasma power on the hole geometry is presented. It is concluded that photonic crystals can be etched with Cl₂ only; however, temperature and pressure control is critical. Adding passivation gases largely broadens the window in the parameter space for hole etching. Most importantly, etching of narrow holes can be carried out at higher temperatures where the etching is mass limited and spontaneous etching of InP by Cl₂ occurs.Part of this research is supported by NanoNed, a technology program of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs