The export of national varieties of capitalism: the cases of Wal-Mart and Ikea

Using the cases of Wal-Mart and IKEA, this paper takes a productive systems approach to examine ‘varieties of capitalism’ from the perspective of the ways by which production and market relations are structured and prioritised. It considers the nature of these relations and their interaction within the domestic economy and the ways that firms and national systems interact with each other in the global economy. It examines the processes by which trading standards are transported via supply chain relationships, which ultimately become embedded in products and recognized by consumers at various stages. In this analysis, the cases of Wal-Mart and IKEA provide insight into the ways by which national systems extend themselves globally, their contrasting effects on the business environments in host localities, and the impact of the resulting supply chain relations on organizational performance

Study of radiation hazards to man on extended near earth missions

Radiation hazards to man on extended near earth mission

Oxygen Moment Formation and Canting in Li2CuO2

The possibilities of oxygen moment formation and canting in the quasi-1D cuprate Li2CuO2 are investigated using single crystal neutron diffraction at 2 K. The observed magnetic intensities could not be explained without the inclusion of a large ordered oxygen moment of 0.11(1) Bohr magnetons. Least-squares refinement of the magnetic structure of Li2CuO2 in combination with a spin-density Patterson analysis shows that the magnetization densities of the Cu and O atoms are highly aspherical, forming quasi-1D ribbons of localised Cu and O moments. Magnetic structure refinements and low-field magnetization measurements both suggest that the magnetic structure of Li2CuO2 at 2 K may be canted. A possible model for the canted configuration is proposed.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures (screen resolution

“I wish I’d told them”: a qualitative study examining the unmet psychosexual needs of prostate cancer patients during follow-up after treatment

<b>Objective</b> To gain insight into patients' experiences of follow-up care after treatment for prostate cancer and identify unmet psychosexual needs.<p></p> <b>Methods</b> Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 35 patients aged 59-82 from three UK regions. Partners were included in 18 interviews. Data were analyzed using constant comparison. <p></p> <b>Results</b> (1) Psychosexual problems gained importance over time, (2) men felt they were rarely invited to discuss psychosexual side effects within follow-up appointments and lack of rapport with health care professionals made it difficult to raise problems themselves, (3) problems were sometimes concealed or accepted and professionals' attempts to explore potential difficulties were resisted by some, and (4) older patients were too embarrassed to raise psychosexual concerns as they felt they would be considered 'too old' to be worried about the loss of sexual function.<p></p> <b>Conclusion</b> Men with prostate cancer, even the very elderly, have psychosexual issues for variable times after diagnosis. These are not currently always addressed at the appropriate time for the patient.Practice implications Assessments of psychosexual problems should take place throughout the follow-up period, and not only at the time of initial treatment. Further research examining greater willingness or reluctance to engage with psychosexual interventions may be particularly helpful in designing future intervention

Does Virtual Haptic Dissection Improve Student Learning? A Multi-Year Comparative Study.

This study investigated the haptic 'dissection' of a digital model of the hand and wrist in anatomy education at both undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate (PG) levels. The study ran over five successive years and was split into three discreet phases. Phase one compared the results of PG students across control, non-haptic and haptic groups. Phase two compared the results of UG students between control and haptic groups. Phase three compared the results of UG students across control, non-haptic and haptic groups. Results for all phases indicate that use of the model, both through haptic and non-haptic interfaces produced some significantly improved test results. The non-haptic group performing the strongest overall indicating that the addition of haptic feedback may not be beneficial to student learning

CBI limits on 31 GHz excess emission in southern HII regions

We have mapped four regions of the southern Galactic plane at 31 GHz with the Cosmic Background Imager. From the maps, we have extracted the flux densities for six of the brightest \hii regions in the southern sky and compared them with multi-frequency data from the literature. The fitted spectral index for each source was found to be close to the theoretical value expected for optically thin free-free emission, thus confirming that the majority of flux at 31 GHz is due to free-free emission from ionised gas with an electron temperature of $\approx 7000-8000$ K. We also found that, for all six sources, the 31 GHz flux density was slightly higher than the predicted value from data in the literature. This excess emission could be due to spinning dust or another emission mechanism. Comparisons with $100 \mu$m data indicate an average dust emissivity of $3.3\pm1.7 \mu$K (MJy/sr)$^{-1}$, or a 95 per cent confidence limit of $<6.1 \mu$K (MJy/sr)$^{-1}$. This is lower than that found in diffuse clouds at high Galactic latitudes by a factor of $\sim 3-4$. The most significant detection ($3.3\sigma$) was found in $G284.3-0.3$ (RCW49) and may account for up to $\approx 30$ per cent of the total flux density observed at 31 GHz. Here, the dust emissivity of the excess emission is $13.6\pm4.2 \mu$K (MJy/sr)$^{-1}$ and is within the range observed at high Galactic latitudes. Low level polarised emission was observed in all six sources with polarisation fractions in the range $0.3-0.6$ per cent. This is likely to be mainly due to instrumental leakage and is therefore upper an upper limit to the free-free polarisation. It corresponds to an upper limit of $\sim1$ per cent for the polarisation of anomalous emission.Comment: Accepted in MNRAS. 12 pages, 10 figures, 5 table

The Planetary Nebula System and Dynamics in the Outer Halo of NGC 5128

The halos of elliptical galaxies are faint and difficult to explore, but they contain vital clues to both structure and formation. We present the results of an imaging and spectroscopic survey for planetary nebulae (PNe) in the nearby elliptical NGC 5128. We extend the work of Hui et al.(1995) well into the halo of the galaxy--out to distances of 100 and 50 kpc along the major and minor axes. We now know of 1141 PNe in NGC 5128, 780 of which are confirmed. Of these 780 PNe, 349 are new from this survey, and 148 are at radii beyond 20 kpc. PNe exist at distances up to 80 kpc (~15 r_e), showing that the stellar halo extends to the limit of our data. This study represents by far the largest kinematic study of an elliptical galaxy to date, both in the number of velocity tracers and in radial extent. We confirm the large rotation of the PNe along the major axis, and show that it extends in a disk-like feature into the halo. The rotation curve of the stars flattens at ~100 km/s with V/sigma between 1 and 1.5, and with the velocity dispersion of the PNe falling gradually at larger radii. The two-dimensional velocity field exhibits a zero-velocity contour with a pronounced twist, showing that the galaxy potential is likely triaxial in shape, tending toward prolate. The total dynamical mass of the galaxy within 80 kpc is ~5 x 10^{11} M_sun, with M/L_B ~ 13. This mass-to-light ratio is much lower than what is typically expected for elliptical galaxies.Comment: 21 pages, 13 figures (figures 3-8 best viewed in color), accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa

The properties of the gamma-ray blazars in the CJ-F VLBI sample

We present first results from the analysis of multi-epoch VLBI observations of the EGRET detected sources [9] in the CJ-F sample (Caltech Jodrell-Flat-spectrum, [10]). These objects form a subsample of 14 sources within the 293 AGN of the full CJ-F sample. 5 GHz VLBI snapshot observations of the CJ-F sources are continuously being performed in order to create a valid database for thorough statistical tests of pc-scale jet motion in AGN. All gamma-bright CJ-F AGN have been observed at least twice with the VLBA, which enables us to investigate jet component motions and paths. In particular, we concentrate on the analysis of those properties supposed to be essential for gamma-ray production, i.e., superluminal motion and bending. A paper discussing the possible relation between morphological changes and gamma-ray flaring/production is in preparation