431 research outputs found
Sexing up the international
This thesis takes sexuality as its subject matter and uses a methodology informed by postcolonial studies to explore new possibilities for thinking about the international, its construction, and its contemporary politics. I argue that postcolonial readings of sexuality can impel us to rethink the meanings and politics of international theory and to challenge notions that have come to appear fixed and unchanging. The thesis canvasses how such an intervention might occur â calling especially for a focus on the local and the everyday â and considers both the utility and the limits of the contributions sexuality might make to a rethinking of international theory. My arguments are made with reference to a series of specific examples from contemporary East and Southeast Asia: the nationalistically imbued gendered and sexed figures of the national serviceman and the Singapore Girl in Singapore; the political and social repercussions of the trial of former Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on charges of sodomy; newly emerging homosexual identities in Hong Kong; and the connections between sexuality and disease that inform the Thai response to HIV/AIDS. These case studies exemplify some of the ways in which sexuality can work to recast traditional scholarly understandings of the international. They also illuminate a series of aspects that shape the encounter between sexuality and the international, encompassing issues of nationalism, globalization, metaphor, spatiality and knowledge politics. Through my analysis of these issues, I argue for a broadening out of the source materials that inform knowledge about the international and the pursuit of alternative modes of reading processes of international change and exchange. I contend that scholarship of the international needs to pay more attention to instances where the borders separating everyday, national and international spaces break down, and where we might detect new forms of knowledge about the nature, politics and functioning of the international realm
Efikasna metoda analize reflektorskih nizova
In this paper, we present an efficient technique based on the extension of the Adaptive Integral Method (AIM) that allows the full-wave analysis of microstrip reflectarrays. The reflectarray patches can have arbitrary shape and orientation and are modelled with subdomain triangular basis functions. The method makes use of a 2D-FTT/CG scheme, reducing the CPU time per iteration to O(N logN) and the memory requirement to O(N).U radu je opisana efikasna metoda analize zasnovana na proĆĄirenju adaptivne integralne metode (AIM) koja omoguÄuje punovalnu analizu mikrotrakastih reflektorskih nizova. PloÄice, elementi reflektorskih nizova, mogu imati proizvoljni oblik i orijentaciju pa su modelirane trokutasnim baznim funkcijama s domenom na dijelu ploÄice. Metoda rabi 2D-FTT/CG shemu, i pri tome smanjuje potrebno vrijeme rada raÄunala na O(N logN) i memorijske zahtjeve na O(N)
Toward fractioning of isomers through binding-induced acceleration of azobenzene switching
The E/Z isomerization process of a uracil-azobenzene derivative in which the nucleobase is conjugated to a phenyldiazene tail is studied in view of its ability to form triply-H-bonded complexes with a suitably complementary 2,6-diacetylamino-4-pyridine ligand. UV-Vis and 1H-NMR investigations of the photochemical and thermal isomerization kinetics show that the thermal ZâE interconversion is four-fold accelerated upon formation of the H-bonded complex. DFT calculations show that the formation of triple H-bonds triggers a significant elongation of the N=N double bond, caused by an increase of its Ïgâ antibonding character. This results in a reduction of the N=N torsional barrier and thus in accelerated thermal ZâE isomerization. Combined with light controlled EâZ isomerization this enables controllable fractional tuning of the two configurational isomers
Fast analysis of large finite arrays with a combined multiresolution-SM/AIM approach
We present a synthesis of the sparse matrix/adaptive
integral method (SM/AIM) and the multiresolution (MR)
approach for the analysis of electrically large finite arrays, with
planar or 3-D radiating elements; the two methods were separately
introduced previously. The use of the MR has the effect of a
preconditioner and speeds up the convergence rate of the SM/AIM
of almost two orders of magnitude, with a total reduction of the
numerical complexity with respect to the standard MoM of almost
three orders of magnitude
Vulnerability of demersal fish assemblages to trawling activities: a traits-based index
Reducing the impact on vulnerable species through changes in fishing practices, such as the spatial or temporal avoidance of certain areas, is key to increase the ecological sustainability of fisheries. However, it is often hampered by the availability of sufficiently detailed data and robust indicators. Existing trawl surveys are a cost-effective data source to assess the vulnerability of fishing areas based on the quantities of vulnerable species caught. We developed a biological traits-based approach to the vulnerability of demersal assemblages using commercial trawl catch data. An expert-based approach identified a set of biological traits that are expected to condition the species' response to trawling impact and are combined to produce the vulnerability index ranked into four levels (low, moderate, high, and very high vulnerability). The approach was tested in four southern European fishing grounds showing evidence of over-exploitation, through catches being dominated by species of relatively low vulnerability to fishing impacts. The general distribution of species' biomass amongst vulnerability groups was highly homogenous across case studies, despite local differences in fishing fleet structure, target species and fishing depths. Within all areas the species with moderate vulnerability dominated and, in most instances, species of "very high" vulnerability were not recorded. Nevertheless, differences emerged when comparing the proportions of highly vulnerable species in the catches. Variability in vulnerability level of the catch was also observed at small spatial scales, which was principally explained by differences in habitat type and depth and, secondarily, by fishing effort. In fine mud in the shallower areas there was a higher presence of low vulnerable fauna. Furthermore, vulnerable organisms decreased in their presence in sandier substrates on the continental shelf. The spatial heterogeneity in assemblage vulnerability composition encourages the potential for adoption of this index in the spatial management of fishing grounds aiming at ensuring a sustainable exploitation by mitigating trawl impacts on the most vulnerable components of the demersal assemblages.MINOUW Horizon 2020 (Project ID: 634495); H2020-Marie SkĆodowska-Curie Action MSCA-IF-2016 (Project ID: 743545)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Statistical techniques applied to the automatic diagnosis of dermoscopic images
An image based system implementing a wellâknown diagnostic method is disclosed for the automatic detection of melanomas as
support to clinicians. The software procedure is able to recognize automatically the skin lesion within the digital image, measure
morphological and chromatic parameters, carry out a suitable classification for the detection of structural dermoscopic criteria
provided by the 7âPoint Check. Original contribution is referred to advanced statistical techniques, which are introduced at different
stages of the image processing, including the border detection, the extraction of lowâlevel features and scoring of high order features
(namely dermoscopic criteria). The proposed approach is experimentally tested with reference to a large image set of pigmented
lesions
Influence of bird faeces in the behaviour of the root rot of Quercus suber caused by Phytophthora cinnamomi at Doñana Biological Reserve (SW Spain)
2 pages, 1 reference. Presentado a The Sixth Meeting of the IUFRO Working Party 7â02â09, celebrado en CĂłrdoba (España) del 9-14 de septiembre de 2012. Enlazamos con http://hdl.handle.net/10261/57038; http://hdl.handle.net/10261/57047Centennial cork oaks are considered keystone structures in the ecosystem of the stabilised sands of the
Doñana Biological Reserve. These remnant big trees are currently threatened by nesting of colonial
waterbirds, whose debris induced deep soil chemical changes.Peer reviewe
Theatre is a valid add-on therapeutic intervention for emotional rehabilitation of parkinson's disease patients
Conventional medical treatments of Parkinson's disease (PD) are effective on motor disturbances but may have little impact on nonmotor symptoms, especially psychiatric ones. Thus, even when motor symptomatology improves, patients might experience deterioration in their quality of life. We have shown that 3 years of active theatre is a valid complementary intervention for PD as it significantly improves the well-being of patients in comparison to patients undergoing conventional physiotherapy. Our aim was to replicate these findings while improving the efficacy of the treatment. We ran a single-blinded pilot study lasting 15 months on 24 subjects with moderate idiopathic PD. 12 were assigned to a theatre program in which patients underwent "emotional" training. The other 12 underwent group physiotherapy. Patients were evaluated at the beginning and at the end of their treatments, using a battery of eight clinical and five neuropsychological scales. We found that the emotional theatre training improved the emotional well-being of patients, whereas physiotherapy did not. Interestingly, neither of the groups showed improvements in either motor symptoms or cognitive abilities tested by the neuropsychological battery. We confirmed that theatre therapy might be helpful in improving emotional well-being in PD
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Design of a Stealthy Antenna Using COMSOL MultiphysicsÂź
Abstract: This paper will describe some applications of COMSOL MultiphysicsÂź to the analysis of Frequency Selective surface structures. In particular attention will be focused to the possibility of designing a stealthy antenna using the FSS structure. In fact, since it possesses a dual filter concept of frequency and polarization for electromagnetic wave, the Radar Cross Section (RCS) of the antenna is reduced
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