An ill-judged piece of business : The failure of slave trade suppression in a slaveholding republic

This dissertation examines the U.S. suppression of the slave trade from the ratification of the Constitution in 1789 to the onset of the Civil War in 1861. Instead of studying the slave trade in isolation, this dissertation evaluates U.S. slave trade policy within the context of the development of federal power during the early republic and antebellum period. This work assesses the disconnect between the harsh laws against the slave trade and the United States\u27 ineffectiveness at suppressing the trade, especially since, at its founding, U.S. involvement in the African slave trade seemed to have a looming expiration date. By separating the importation of slaves into the United States from the U.S. participation in the foreign slave trade, this study evaluates why the federal government was much more effective at suppressing the former, rather than the latter. U.S. slave trade suppression always remained subordinate to higher federal priorities, namely preserving the union through the protection of U.S. commerce, its own borders, and slavery itself. In fact, this dissertation argues that anti-slave trade laws were enforced generally only as a tool through which the U.S. could assert its federal authority against other national powers. Disputes with Great Britain rendered the foreign slave trade suppression increasingly ineffective for all nations as slave trading under the American flag increased exponentially after 1830. This dissertation addresses the many barriers that affected U.S. anti-slave trade policy and examine how the shifting national priorities directly impacted the trajectory of American participation in the slave trade and in its extirpation. Only the abolition of slavery would effectively end the slave trade to the Americas, a full seventy years after the first U.S. law against the inhuman traffic.

A Horde of Foreign Freebooters

Tra il 1808 e il 1820, il Congresso degli Stati Uniti d’America varò una serie di leggi, progressivamente più severe, contro il commercio degli schiavi. Questo articolo ipotizza che questi atti furono usati per proteggere il commercio e sostenere la sovranità statunitense contro altri Stati: durante questo lasso di tempo, infatti, la linea che divideva pirata, contrabbandiere e mercante era spesso invisibile e metteva in pericolo il commercio legale nazionale. Mentre alcune aree su cui le nuove leggi furono estese non erano parte del territorio statunitense, reti informali di contrabbandieri importavano illegalmente schiavi e merci negli Stati Uniti. Non è una coincidenza che gli Slave Trade Acts fossero approvati, dato che furono creati per aumentare la protezione federale del commercio, specialmente dopo numerose e reali minacce agli interessi commerciali statunitensi. Questo articolo illustra come gli Stati Uniti impiegarono le leggi contro il commercio degli schiavi per dimostrare la loro forza in questi scontri di confine.Between 1808 and 1820, the U.S. Congress enacted increasingly punitive laws against slave trading. This paper argues that these acts were used to protect U.S. commerce and assert national sovereignty against other nations since, during this time period, the lines between pirate and legal merchant often blurred and threatened legitimate trade. It is no coincidence that the Slave Trade Acts were passed to increase the federal protection of commerce, especially after several real threats to U.S. commercial interests. While the territories in question were not on U.S. soil, informal smuggling networks caused the illegal import of commodities and slaves into the United States. This article illustrates how the U.S. employed laws against the slave trade to demonstrate its national strength in these border conflicts

Process Optimization of Bismaleimide (BMI) Resin Infused Carbon Fiber Composite

Engineers today are presented with the opportunity to design and build the next generation of space vehicles out of the lightest, strongest, and most durable materials available. Composites offer excellent structural characteristics and outstanding reliability in many forms that will be utilized in future aerospace applications including the Commercial Crew and Cargo Program and the Orion space capsule. NASA's Composites for Exploration (CoEx) project researches the various methods of manufacturing composite materials of different fiber characteristics while using proven infusion methods of different resin compositions. Development and testing on these different material combinations will provide engineers the opportunity to produce optimal material compounds for multidisciplinary applications. Through the CoEx project, engineers pursue the opportunity to research and develop repair patch procedures for damaged spacecraft. Working in conjunction with Raptor Resins Inc., NASA engineers are utilizing high flow liquid infusion molding practices to manufacture high-temperature composite parts comprised of intermediate modulus 7 (IM7) carbon fiber material. IM7 is a continuous, high-tensile strength composite with outstanding structural qualities such as high shear strength, tensile strength and modulus as well as excellent corrosion, creep, and fatigue resistance. IM7 carbon fiber, combined with existing thermoset and thermoplastic resin systems, can provide improvements in material strength reinforcement and deformation-resistant properties for high-temperature applications. Void analysis of the different layups of the IM7 material discovered the largest total void composition within the [ +45 , 90 , 90 , -45 ] composite panel. Tensile and compressional testing proved the highest mechanical strength was found in the [0 4] layup. This paper further investigates the infusion procedure of a low-cost/high-performance BMI resin into an IM7 carbon fiber material and the optical, chemical, and mechanical analyses performed

Mitochondrial physiology

As the knowledge base and importance of mitochondrial physiology to evolution, health and disease expands, the necessity for harmonizing the terminology concerning mitochondrial respiratory states and rates has become increasingly apparent. The chemiosmotic theory establishes the mechanism of energy transformation and coupling in oxidative phosphorylation. The unifying concept of the protonmotive force provides the framework for developing a consistent theoretical foundation of mitochondrial physiology and bioenergetics. We follow the latest SI guidelines and those of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) on terminology in physical chemistry, extended by considerations of open systems and thermodynamics of irreversible processes. The concept-driven constructive terminology incorporates the meaning of each quantity and aligns concepts and symbols with the nomenclature of classical bioenergetics. We endeavour to provide a balanced view of mitochondrial respiratory control and a critical discussion on reporting data of mitochondrial respiration in terms of metabolic flows and fluxes. Uniform standards for evaluation of respiratory states and rates will ultimately contribute to reproducibility between laboratories and thus support the development of data repositories of mitochondrial respiratory function in species, tissues, and cells. Clarity of concept and consistency of nomenclature facilitate effective transdisciplinary communication, education, and ultimately further discovery

Mitochondrial physiology

As the knowledge base and importance of mitochondrial physiology to evolution, health and disease expands, the necessity for harmonizing the terminology concerning mitochondrial respiratory states and rates has become increasingly apparent. The chemiosmotic theory establishes the mechanism of energy transformation and coupling in oxidative phosphorylation. The unifying concept of the protonmotive force provides the framework for developing a consistent theoretical foundation of mitochondrial physiology and bioenergetics. We follow the latest SI guidelines and those of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) on terminology in physical chemistry, extended by considerations of open systems and thermodynamics of irreversible processes. The concept-driven constructive terminology incorporates the meaning of each quantity and aligns concepts and symbols with the nomenclature of classical bioenergetics. We endeavour to provide a balanced view of mitochondrial respiratory control and a critical discussion on reporting data of mitochondrial respiration in terms of metabolic flows and fluxes. Uniform standards for evaluation of respiratory states and rates will ultimately contribute to reproducibility between laboratories and thus support the development of data repositories of mitochondrial respiratory function in species, tissues, and cells. Clarity of concept and consistency of nomenclature facilitate effective transdisciplinary communication, education, and ultimately further discovery

A Horde of Foreign Freebooters: the U.S. and the Suppression of the Slave Trade

Between 1808 and 1820, the U.S. Congress enacted increasingly punitive laws against slave trading. This paper argues that these acts were used to protect U.S. commerce and assert national sovereignty against other nations since, during this time period, the lines between pirate and legal merchant often blurred and threatened legitimate trade. It is no coincidence that the Slave Trade Acts were passed to increase the federal protection of commerce, especially after several real threats to U.S. commercial interests. While the territories in question were not on U.S. soil, informal smuggling networks caused the illegal import of commodities and slaves into the United States. I illustrate how the U.S. employed laws against the slave trade to demonstrate its national strength in these border conflicts