Bush the transnationalist: a reappraisal of the unilateralist impulse in US foreign policy, 2001-2009

This article challenges the common characterisation of George W. Bush’s foreign policy as “unilateral.” It argues that the Bush administration developed a new post-9/11 understanding of terrorism as a transnational, networked phenomenon shaped by the forces of globalisation. This led to a new strategic emphasis on bi- and multilateral security co-operation and counterterrorism operations, especially outside of Afghanistan and Iraq, driven by the perceived need to counter a transnational security challenge present in multiple locations. This (flawed) attempt to engage with transnational security challenges supplemented the existing internationalist pillar of the Bush administration’s foreign policy. Highlighting the transnational realm of international relations and the ways in which the Bush administration was able to co-opt other states to tackle perceived transnational challenges also shows the high importance the administration attached to concerted action even as it frequented eschewed institutional multilateralism

Evaluation of Multi-frequency Power Electronic Converters: Concept, Architectures and Realization

There exists two well known types of power transfer ac or dc. Power transfer at multiple frequencies has not yet gained much attention. This paper aims at bringing out such topologies, which are capable of integrating different electrical power sources (ac or dc) irrespective of its frequency of generation, form a multi-frequency bus, transmit power over a single line and extract/convert them at the load side. This leads to the definition of unified utility/grid concept. For this, the paper presents more insight into three possible multi-frequency converter topologies with renewable energy sources (RESs)/battery integration. The proposed topologies work on the principle of orthogonal power transfer. Furthermore, power transfer at multiple frequencies shows an effective way of decoupling the individual sources of the system. Finally, the feasibility of transferring power at multiple frequencies is validated experimentally and the results are discussed herein along with its potential benefits

The efficacy of Arabian coffee (Coffea arabica) bean extract as an antifungal agent against opportunistic Fungi Candida albicans

This study aimed to determine the antifungal activity of Arabian coffee (Coffea arabica) bean extract as an antifungal agent against Candida Albicans. An analytical study that involved the treatment of Candida albicans with five different concentrations (1%, 5%, 10%, 20%) of Coffea arabica bean extract (intervention) and Fluconazole (standard treatment and positive control). Antifungal property was determined by comparing the zone of inhibition produced by the treatments. Anova (single factor) testing of the results showed that there was a statistically significant difference between Floconazole and the five different concentrations of Coffea arabica bean extract (1%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%). This was supported by the p-value = 0.00215 which was less than the 0.05 acceptance level. Based on this study, it was concluded that the extract of Coffea arabica was an ineffective antifungal agent against Candida albicans as it yielded negative inhibition on the fungal growth among the five tested concentrations