Not Just Cyberwarfare

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2015Bringsjord and Licato provide a general meta-argument that cyberwarfare is so different from traditional kinetic warfare that no argument from analogy can allow the just war theory of Augustine and Aquinas (hereinafter called JWT) to be pulled over from traditional (modern) warfare to cyberwarfare. I believe that this meta- argument is sound and that it applies not just to cyberwarfare: in particular, on my reading of the meta-argument, argument from analogy has never been adequate to allow JWT to be applied to the kind of warfare that we are familiar with now.Peer reviewedSubmitted Versio

Predation on juvenile blue crabs, Callinectes sapidus Rathbun, in lower Chesapeake Bay: Patterns, predators, and potential impacts

Various investigations of the population dynamics of blue crabs in Chesapeake Bay indicate that predator-induced mortality in the juvenile phase may determine year-class strength. In a tethering study, which spanned three seasons in shallow-water habitats of the lower York River, daily mortality rates of juvenile crabs were measured across three variables: crab size (30-70 mm carapace width), habitat type (seagrass, mud, and sand), and month (May-November). Vulnerability to predation was consistently lower for larger crabs, approaching a size refuge from predation at approximately 90 mm carapace width. Predation was most intense in unvegetated sand habitats, and significantly lower in seagrass and unvegetated mud. The data also reflected a strong seasonal pattern in predation potential which was correlated with water temperature. Predators contributing to this pattern were identified and assessed using an underwater video-recording system to monitor tethered crabs. While a variety of potential predators appeared and attacked crabs frequently, only two species had a measurable impact on crab survival, adult conspecifics and northern puffers, Sphoeroides maculatus. These results were confirmed in large laboratory tanks using untethered crabs as prey. These studies indicate that the mechanisms behind seasonal variation in predation pressure may include both physiologically-linked activity rhythms and seasonal migration of predators. The potential impact of seasonally-varying predation pressure on the life history of blue crabs was explored in a modeling exercise, using concepts of dynamic optimization. The results suggest that the blue crab may exhibit behavioral adaptations which are reflected in optimal biological timing of recruitment and growth, thereby enhancing survival through the juvenile phase

The application of amino acid racemization in the acid soluble fraction of enamel to the estimation of the age of human teeth

Estimation of age-at-death for skeletonised forensic remains is one of the most significant problems in forensic anthropology. The majority of existing morphological and histological techniques are highly inaccurate, and show a bias towards underestimating the age of older individuals. One technique which has been successful in forensic age estimation is amino acid racemization in dentine. However, this method cannot be used on remains where the post-mortem interval is greater than 20 years. An alternative approach is to measure amino acid racemization in dental enamel, which is believed to be more resistant to change post-mortem. The extent of amino acid racemization in the acid soluble fraction of the enamel proteins was determined for modem known age teeth. A strong correlation was observed between the age of the tooth and the extent of racemization. No systematic bias in the direction of age estimation errors was detected. For the majority of teeth analyzed, the presence of dental caries did not affect the results obtained. In a minority of cases, carious teeth showed a higher level of racemization than would be expected given the age of the individual. These results indicate that amino acid racemization in enamel has the potential to be used in age estimation of skeletal remains. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved

Analysis of intrapulse chirp in CO2 oscillators

Pulsed single-frequency CO2 laser oscillators are often used as transmitters for coherent lidar applications. These oscillators suffer from intrapulse chirp, or dynamic frequency shifting. If excessive, such chirp can limit the signal-to-noise ratio of the lidar (by generating excess bandwidth), or limit the velocity resolution if the lidar is of the Doppler type. This paper describes a detailed numerical model that considers all known sources of intrapulse chirp. Some typical predictions of the model are shown, and simple design rules to minimize chirp are proposed