Ability, Disability, and the Question of Philosophy

This essay treats the field of philosophy and the study of disability such that each may be conceived of in terms of the other, perhaps to the extent that they may be thought of as one. First, it examines the bases and methods of various documents in the study of disability, finding that such study may be conceived of as essentially philosophical, even as the philosophical nature of disability studies threatens such studies’ practice. Then philosophy is depicted as that discourse which necessarily interrogates its bases and methods -that is, as discourse that engages its own ability. The two fields are presented as exemplary of the interrogation of ability, particularly of discursive ability. The essay’s primary influence is Emmanuel Levinas, mainly for the emphasis he places on the nature of language in his approach to philosophical critique. Developing the notion of im/possibility -the simultaneous emergence of a discourse’s conditions of possibility with those of its impossibility -the essay focuses on “dis/ability” as the central notion in the convergence of philosophy and disability studies

A low cost alternative to high performance PCM bit synchronizers

The Code Converter/Clock Regenerator (CCCR) provides a low-cost alternative to high-performance Pulse Code Modulation (PCM) bit synchronizers in environments with a large Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR). In many applications, the CCCR can be used in place of PCM bit synchronizers at about one fifth the cost. The CCCR operates at rates from 10 bps to 2.5 Mbps and performs PCM code conversion and clock regeneration. The CCCR has been integrated into a stand-alone system configurable from one to six channels and has also been designed for use in VMEbus compatible systems

Neuroticism as a Predictor of Rumination and Maladaptive Behaviors: A Prospective Approach

The Emotional Cascade Model suggests that rumination links emotional instability and engagement in maladaptive behaviors within Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). Specifically, when individuals experience a negative event, they experience negative emotions and then engage in a ruminative process about the event. This rumination increases the intensity of negative feelings. This cycle continues until individuals use a maladaptive behavior to distract themselves from the rumination and negative feelings. The current study expanded this model by including neuroticism, an underlying personality trait that is highly related to BPD. Additionally, the current study provided the first longitudinal study of the Emotional Cascade Model. A large sample of undergraduate students (N = 1026) completed Time 1 and a subset of these participants completed two follow up surveys four and eight weeks later (N = 285 and 163, respectively). The current study prospectively examined the role of neuroticism, maladaptive behaviors, and rumination using a cross-lagged panel design with data collected at three time points. Neuroticism predicted rumination and maladaptive behaviors four weeks later for five different rumination measures. Additionally, rumination was tested as a latent variable. Neuroticism predicted maladaptive behaviors but not rumination in this new model. The results indicated that neuroticism is highly related to the variables within the Emotional Cascade Model and that it should be considered an important underlying personality trait within the development and maintenance of rumination, maladaptive behaviors, and BPD.Psycholog

Putting uncertainty under the cultural lens of Traditional Owners from the Great Barrier Reef Catchments

Indigenous peoples in Australia, and globally, are situated in an unusual context of both significant vulnerability and unique resilience to climate change which influence their perceptions of climate risk and uncertainty. Their vulnerability to climate change arises in part from their contexts of living in many of the harshest and isolated environments. Their resilience originates from their accumulated knowledge of specific environments over millennia, mediated through sui generis cultural institutions. Our results illustrate that indigenous groups primarily perceive uncertainties related to volition of actors and institutions. When they are involved in climate adaptation planning in ways that mobilise their cultural institutions and knowledge, they can safely manage these uncertainties through their agency to determine and control key risks. We demonstrate that climate justice approaches can be strengthened for indigenous peoples by applying a linked vulnerability-resilience analytical framework. This enables stronger consideration of how unique cultural institutions and knowledge, which are not available to all vulnerable groups, affect indigenous perceptions of uncertainty in climate adaptation planning. We use this analytical approach in a case study with Yuibera and Koinmerburra Traditional Owner groups within the Great Barrier Reef Catchment. We conclude that a specific focus on sui generis indigenous knowledge and cultural institutions as a source of resilience can strengthen climate justice approaches and work more effectively with indigenous peoples in climate change contexts

Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission Products and Services at the NASA Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC)

The NASA Goddard Earth Sciences (GES) Data and Information Services Center (DISC) hosts and distributes GPM data within the NASA Earth Observation System Data Information System (EOSDIS). The GES DISC is also home to the data archive for the GPM predecessor, the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM). Over the past 17 years, the GES DISC has served the scientific as well as other communities with TRMM data and user-friendly services. During the GPM era, the GES DISC will continue to provide user-friendly data services and customer support to users around the world. GPM products currently and to-be available: -Level-1 GPM Microwave Imager (GMI) and partner radiometer products, DPR products -Level-2 Goddard Profiling Algorithm (GPROF) GMI and partner products, DPR products -Level-3 daily and monthly products, DPR products -Integrated Multi-satellitE Retrievals for GPM (IMERG) products (early, late, and final) A dedicated Web portal (including user guides, etc.) has been developed for GPM data (http://disc.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gpm). Data services that are currently and to-be available include Google-like Mirador (http://mirador.gsfc.nasa.gov/) for data search and access; data access through various Web services (e.g., OPeNDAP, GDS, WMS, WCS); conversion into various formats (e.g., netCDF, HDF, KML (for Google Earth), ASCII); exploration, visualization, and statistical online analysis through Giovanni (http://giovanni.gsfc.nasa.gov); generation of value-added products; parameter and spatial subsetting; time aggregation; regridding; data version control and provenance; documentation; science support for proper data usage, FAQ, help desk; monitoring services (e.g. Current Conditions) for applications. The United User Interface (UUI) is the next step in the evolution of the GES DISC web site. It attempts to provide seamless access to data, information and services through a single interface without sending the user to different applications or URLs (e.g., search, access, subset, Giovanni, documents)

Global Precipitation Measurement Mission Products and Services at the NASA GES DISC

This article describes NASA/JAXA Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission products and services at the NASA Goddard Earth Sciences (GES) Data and Information Services Center (DISC). Built on the success of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), the next-generation GPM mission consists of new precipitation measurement instruments and a constellation of international research and operational satellites to provide improved measurements of precipitation globally. To facilitate data access, research, applications, and scientific discovery, the GES DISC has developed a variety of data services for GPM. This article is intended to guide users in choosing GPM datasets and services at the GES DISC

Data Preservation: Final Step in the Life Cycle of a Mission

Many NASA Earth Observing System (EOS) have either already reached the end of their active life or are nearing it. Preservmissionsation of data products is a fairly well defined task for the NASA EOS Data Centers or DAACs.The Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES-DISC) has implemented a repository system, which is capable of long-term archive of documentation artifacts and other associated digital content. The existing GES-DISC Repository System is based on Fedora Commons, an open-source repository management software, for cost savings and flexibility.The first mission to utilize the GES-DISC Repository System was the High Resolution Dynamics Limb Sounder (HIRDLS) on the Aura spacecraft. Since then, the GES DISC has gathered documentation from the UARS and TOMS into the Repository. The Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) team has begun delivering some early pre-launch documents to the GES-DISC Repository System as well. Other missions in planning or progress include AIRS, OMI, SORCE, SNPP Sounder, and TRMM

Data Preservation, Information Preservation, and Lifecyle of Information Management at NASA GES DISC

Data lifecycle management awareness is common today; planners are more likely to consider lifecycle issues at mission start. NASA remote sensing missions are typically subject to life cycle management plans of the Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC), and NASA invests in these national centers for the long-term safeguarding and benefit of future generations. As stewards of older missions, it is incumbent upon us to ensure that a comprehensive enough set of information is being preserved to prevent the risk for information loss. This risk is greater when the original data experts have moved on or are no longer available. Preservation of items like documentation related to processing algorithms, pre-flight calibration data, or input-output configuration parameters used in product generation, are examples of digital artifacts that are sometimes not fully preserved. This is the grey area of information preservation; the importance of these items is not always clear and requires careful consideration. Missing important metadata about intermediate steps used to derive a product could lead to serious challenges in the reproducibility of results or conclusions. Organizations are rapidly recognizing that the focus of life-cycle preservation needs to be enlarged from the strict raw data to the more encompassing arena of information lifecycle management. By understanding what constitutes information, and the complexities involved, we are better equipped to deliver longer lasting value about the original data and derived knowledge (information) from them. The NASA Earth Science Data Preservation Content Specification is an attempt to define the content necessary for long-term preservation. It requires new lifecycle infrastructure approach along with content repositories to accommodate artifacts other than just raw data. The NASA Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) setup an open-source Preservation System capable of long-term archive of digital content to augment its raw data holding. This repository is being used for such missions as HIRDLS, UARS, TOMS, OMI, among others. We will provide a status of this implementation; report on challenges, lessons learned, and detail our plans for future evolution to include other missions and services

National First Peoples Gathering on Climate Change

Our purpose in hosting the National First Peoples Gathering on Climate Change (the Gathering) was to celebrate, learn from and enhance First Peoples-led climate action. We set out to strengthen kinships, cultural identity and well-being, and to strengthen caring for Country by using both Indigenous and scientific knowledge. The Gathering supported this overall purpose through five aims:• Bring Traditional Owners together to share with one another about climate change • Share scientific information in a form useful for Traditional Owners• Identify options for policy to respond to climate change • Provide tangible information to take back to communities• Highlight First Peoples’ climate change actions. 110 Traditional Owners from across Australia attended the Gathering