Test Excavations at the Spanish Governor\u27s Palace, San Antonio, Texas

Test excavations were carried out in October 1996 by the Center for Archaeological Research of The University of Texas at San Antonio in front of the Spanish Governor\u27s Palace in Military Plaza in downtown San Antonio. Planned for the retrieval of information on the depth and present condition of the foundations of the building, the excavations also recovered important information on previous occupation of the site and construction methods used when the palace was built

Bohr-Sommerfeld conditions for several commuting Hamiltonians

The goal of this paper is to find the quantization conditions of Bohr-Sommerfeld of k quantum Hamiltonians acting on the euclidian space of dimension n, depending on a small parameter h, and which commute to each other. That is we determine, around a regular energy level E of the euclidian space of dimension k the principal term of the asymptotics in h of the eigenvalues of the operators that are associated to a common eigenfunction. Thus we localize the so-called joint spectrum of the operators. Under the assumption that the classical Hamiltonian flow of the joint principal symbol is periodic with constant periods on the energy level of E(a submanifold of codimension k) we prove that the part of the joint spectrum lying in a small neighbourhood of E is localized near a lattice of size h determined in terms of actions and Maslov indices. The multiplicity of the spectrum is also determined.Comment: 18 pages, LaTe

Contracting out local government services: A comparative study of two New Zealand regional councils

Studies of New Zealand public sector reforms since the mid-1980s have tended to focus on the application of New Public Management principles to the central government. Yet local government in New Zealand too has experienced drastic restructuring with a view to ensuring greater rationalisation, efficiency and effectiveness. This article examines contracting out in New Zealand local government, focusing on the delivery of plant pest management by Environment Waikato(the Waikato Regional Council) and the Wellington Regional Council. The study reveals distinct differences in approach by the two councils, determined in each case by pragmatic responses to situational context rather than mere adherence to NPM principles

Predicting species abundance distributions by simultaneously using number and biomass as units of measurement

The universal observation that some species in an ecological community are common, but many more are rare, is neatly encapsulated in a species abundance distribution (SAD)1. However, the shape of the distribution can depend on the currency used to measure abundance 2. Here we show how the SADs for numerical abundance and biomass are related and how this relationship can be used to predict the form of the SAD. When plotted in log numerical abundance, log biomass space, species points lie within an approximately triangular area the limits of which are set by body size range, and the upper limit of abundance in both metrics. Under the simplifying, but reasonable, assumption that the observed scatter of species within this region is random, the shape of the SAD is immediately derived from simple geometrical considerations. For the SAD of numerical abundance this is a power curve. The biomass SAD can be either a power curve or, more frequently, a unimodal curve, which can approximate a log normal. This log triangular random placement model serves as a null hypothesis against which actual communities can be compared. Data from two intensively surveyed local communities indicate that it can give a good approximation, with species scattered within a triangle. Further, we can predict the consequences, for the SAD, of size-selective sampling protocols. We argue that mechanistic models of SADs must be able to account for the relative abundance of species in alternative currencies. Moreover, this approach will shed light on niche packing and may have application in environmental monitoring

Clinical features of varicella-zoster virus infection

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) is a pathogenic human herpes virus that causes varicella (chickenpox) as a primary infection, following which it becomes latent in peripheral ganglia. Decades later, the virus may reactivate either spontaneously or after a number of triggering factors to cause herpes zoster (shingles). Varicella and its complications are more severe in the immunosuppressed. The most frequent and important complication of VZV reactivation is postherpetic neuralgia, the cause of which is unknown and for which treatment is usually ineffective. Reactivation of VZV may also cause a wide variety of neurological syndromes, the most significant of which is a vasculitis, which is treated with corticosteroids and the antiviral drug acyclovir. Other VZV reactivation complications include an encephalitis, segmental motor weakness and myelopathy, cranial neuropathies, Guillain–Barré syndrome, enteric features, and zoster sine herpete, in which the viral reactivation occurs in the absence of the characteristic dermatomally distributed vesicular rash of herpes zoster. There has also been a recent association of VZV with giant cell arteritis and this interesting finding needs further corroboration. Vaccination is now available for the prevention of both varicella in children and herpes zoster in older individuals

Oxygen Activation by Mononuclear Mn, Co, and Ni Centers in Biology and Synthetic Complexes

The active sites of metalloenzymes that catalyze O2-dependent reactions generally contain iron or copper ions. However, several enzymes are capable of activating O2 at manganese or nickel centers instead, and a handful of dioxygenases exhibit activity when substituted with cobalt. This minireview summarizes the catalytic properties of oxygenases and oxidases with mononuclear Mn, Co, or Ni active sites, including oxalate-degrading oxidases, catechol dioxygenases, and quercetin dioxygenase. In addition, recent developments in the O2 reactivity of synthetic Mn, Co, or Ni complexes are described, with an emphasis on the nature of reactive intermediates featuring superoxo-, peroxo-, or oxo-ligands. Collectively, the biochemical and synthetic studies discussed herein reveal the possibilities and limitations of O2 activation at these three “overlooked” metals