The King of Rockingham County and the Original Bridge to Nowhere

This chapter, reveals the story -- the clash of personalities, the economic tensions, and the political significance -- behind Rockingham County v. Luten Bridge Co. Since its publication in 1929, the opinion has proceeded to leave an impression on generations of law students. Luten Bridge, a staple in most contracts casebooks, is known today as the paradigmatic case that demonstrates the duty to mitigate damages in contract law, whereby a nonbreaching party is not compensated for performance that occurs after the other party announces an intention to breach. This chapter takes on three objectives: it identifies the case\u27s original importance, uncovers the opinion\u27s political and jurisprudential significance, and tells a remarkable story, one that arose within a heated tax revolt pitting the county\u27s farmers against its most celebrated industrialist. Much more than a crisp illustration of the duty to mitigate, Rockingham County v. The Luten Bridge Co. offers a window into a southern community\u27s struggles with a divided social order, the introduction of wealth into local politics, and a changing economy

Template-stripped gold surfaces with 0.4-nm rms roughness suitable for force measurements: Application to the Casimir force in the 20–100-nm range. Phys

Using a template-stripping method, macroscopic gold surfaces with root-mean-square roughness р0.4 nm have been prepared, making them useful for studies of surface interactions in the nanometer range. The utility of such substrates is demonstrated by measurements of the Casimir force at surface separations between 20 and 100 nm, resulting in good agreement with theory. The significance and quantification of this agreement are addressed, as well as some methodological aspects regarding the measurement of the Casimir force with high accuracy

Template-stripped gold surfaces with 0.4 nm rms roughness suitable for force measurements. Application to the Casimir force in the 20-100 nm range

Using a template-stripping method, macroscopic gold surfaces with root-mean-square (rms) roughness less than 0.4 nm have been prepared, making them useful for studies of surface interactions in the nanometer range. The utility of such substrates is demonstrated by measurements of the Casimir force at surface separations between 20 and 100 nm, resulting in good agreement with theory. The significance and quantification of this agreement is addressed, as well as some methodological aspects regarding the measurement of the Casimir force with high accuracy.Comment: 7 figure

Prevalence of chronic HCV infection in EU/EEA countries in 2019 using multiparameter evidence synthesis

Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Author(s)Background: Epidemiological data are crucial to monitoring progress towards the 2030 Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) elimination targets. Our aim was to estimate the prevalence of chronic HCV infection (cHCV) in the European Union (EU)/European Economic Area (EEA) countries in 2019. Methods: Multi-parameter evidence synthesis (MPES) was used to produce national estimates of cHCV defined as: π = πrecρrec + πexρex + πnonρnon; πrec, πex, and πnon represent cHCV prevalence among recent people who inject drugs (PWID), ex-PWID, and non-PWID, respectively, while ρrec, ρex, and ρnon represent the proportions of these groups in the population. Information sources included the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) national operational contact points (NCPs) and prevalence database, the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction databases, and the published literature. Findings: The cHCV prevalence in 29 of 30 EU/EEA countries in 2019 was 0.50% [95% Credible Interval (CrI): 0.46%, 0.55%]. The highest cHCV prevalence was observed in the eastern EU/EEA (0.88%; 95% CrI: 0.81%, 0.94%). At least 35.76% (95% CrI: 33.07%, 38.60%) of the overall cHCV prevalence in EU/EEA countries was associated with injecting drugs. Interpretation: Using MPES and collaborating with ECDC NCPs, we estimated the prevalence of cHCV in the EU/EEA to be low. Some areas experience higher cHCV prevalence while a third of prevalent cHCV infections was attributed to PWID. Further efforts are needed to scale up prevention measures and the diagnosis and treatment of infected individuals, especially in the east of the EU/EEA and among PWID. Funding: ECDC.Peer reviewe

Neutrons for scattering : What they are, where to get them, and how to deal with them

In neutron scattering studies of soft matter, a diverse array of methods and instruments are used, providing information on structure and dynamics on various length and energy scales. However, much of the infrastructure needed for neutron scattering is common for many instruments. After a brief historical retrospect of neutron scattering, this chapter introduces the basic infrastructure needed to conduct scattering experiments. This includes equipment that is used to produce, spectrally adjust and purify, and to deliver neutrons to the instruments where scattering experiments are conducted. The basics of the interaction of neutrons with matter is also introduced, as a preparation for the final sections on the different means at hand for neutron detection

Novel surfaces for force measurements

NR 2014080