Reconsidering the value of covert research: the role of ambiguous consent in participant observation

In this article, we provide a nuanced perspective on the benefits and costs of covert research. In particular, we illustrate the value of such an approach by focusing on covert participant observation. We posit that all observational studies sit along a continuum of consent, with few research projects being either fully overt or fully covert due to practical constraints and the ambiguous nature of consent itself. With reference to illustrative examples, we demonstrate that the study of deviant behaviors, secretive organizations and socially important topics is often only possible through substantially covert participant observation. To support further consideration of this method, we discuss different ethical perspectives and explore techniques to address the practical challenges of covert participant observation, including; gaining access, collecting data surreptitiously, reducing harm to participants, leaving the site of study and addressing ethical issues

Compact valve actuation mechanism

A valve actuation device. The device may include a free floating valve bridge movably supported within a cavity in the engine housing. The bridge may be provided with a cavity and an orifice arrangement for pumping gases entrained with lubricating fluid toward the piston stems as the bridge reciprocates back and forth. The device may also include a rocker arm that has a U-shaped cross-sectional shape for receiving at least a portion of the valve bridge, valve stem valve spring and spring retainer therein. The rocker arm may be provided with lubrication passages for directing lubrication to the point wherein it is pivotally affixed to the engine housing

Engine balance apparatus and accessory drive device

A balancing mechanism for an engine that has a rotating crankshaft and reciprocating pistons such as those engines used in automobiles, aircrafts, boats, piston-driven compressors, piston-driven slider crank mechanisms, etc. The present balancing mechanism may comprise a first balance mass non-rotatably affixed to the crankshaft and a second balance mass rotatably supported on the crankshaft. A driver assembly is affixed to crankshaft to cause the second balance mass to rotate in a direction that is opposite to the direction in which the crank shaft is rotating. The driver assembly may include auxiliary gears configured to transport rotary power to auxiliary components

Airfoil-gust interactions in transonic flow

Leading edge noise is a significant broadband noise source in aircraft engines, and is the primary broadband noise mechanism in outlet guide vane noise in turbofans, and broadband rotor wake interaction noise in contra-rotating open rotor engines. Previous authors have studied the effects of various aspects relating to this noise source, including airfoil geometry effects, cascade effects, and Mach number effects. However, previous literature has not addressed the effects on the noise due to locally supersonic regions that might be present inthe mean flow around the rotor blades. The current work uses computational aeroacoustic methods to investigate the effects of locally supersonic regions on the noise due to airfoil-gust interactions. An established computational aeroacoustics code has been extended to give stable predictions in supersonic regions with a localized artificial diffusivity method.Initial results of a NACA 0012 airfoil in M = 0.8 flow interacting with oncoming vortical waves are shown, alongside results for a NACA 0006 airfoil in M = 0.5 flow at a 6 ? angle of attack. The changes to the noise and the underlying mechanisms are discussed for both cases, including additional noise sources caused by the supersonic region

A Hybrid Sequencing Approach Completes the Genome Sequence of Thermoanaerobacter ethanolicus JW 200

Thermoanaerobacter ethanolicus JW 200 has been identified as a potential sustainable biofuel producer due to its ability to readily ferment carbohydrates to ethanol. A hybrid sequencing approach, combining Oxford Nanopore and Illumina DNA sequence reads, was applied to produce a single contiguous genome sequence of 2,911,280 bp

Risk Assessment in Economic Feasibility Analysis: The Case of Ethanol Production in Texas

The objective of this study is to demonstrate the benefits of quantifying the economic viability of a proposed agribusiness under risk relative to a feasibility study which ignores risk. To achieve this objective, the economic viability of a 50 MMGPY ethanol facility in Texas is analyzed over a 10-year period in two ways: with no risk and with historical risk for prices and costs.Risk and Uncertainty,

Farm Level Comparison of H.R. 2646 and S. 1731

The provisions in the House (H.R. 2646) and Senate (S. 1731) farm bills are analyzed with respect to their impacts on 94 representative crop, livestock, and dairy farms. The analysis incorporates both historical price and production risk for the farms so the “safety net” aspects of the bills can be compared. Representative crop livestock and dairy farms for major production regions across the county are analyzed. Information to describe and simulate these farms comes from a panel of farmers in each local area. The farm panels are reconvened frequently to update their farm’s data. The representative farm data base has been used for policy analysis for more than 15 years. The simulation model used for the analysis was developed by AFPC scientists.Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy,

Report of the Grand Jury Committee, San Diego County Bar Association

A discussion of a study done determine four major issues: Should there be a Grand Jury? How should the Grand Jury be selected? What type of cases should be presented to the Grand Jury? How should the Grand Jury Proceedings be conducted? A history of Grand Juries and recommendations are also given by the author