A Comparative Analysis Of Judicial Selection Methods In Tennessee And Kentucky: Appointed V. Elected

This thesis explores the relationship between judicial independence and judicial accountability by investigating the question of how selection methods shape state appellate court decisions. I conducted a case study using the states of Tennessee and Kentucky and the judicial selection methods of appointments and elections. I then conducted a sample of cases and did a comparative quantitative analysis of reversal records between the two states in the hopes of finding a statistical difference from my research. The debate between judicial selection methods is not a simple question and this thesis alone cannot provide the answer, but I hope that my research can provide useful data for future research so that state policy makers can make a responsible decision and resolve the conflict

Barack Obama: The Inevitable Nominee

The 2008 Democratic primary is often regarded as a once-in-a-lifetime political event. Democratic frontrunner and former first lady Hillary Clinton faced off against Illinois junior Senator Barack Obama. Despite a commanding position in national polling that led many pundits to declare the race Clinton\u27s to lose, her campaign faltered during the primary, allowing Obama to find himself in a commanding position to be the Democratic Party\u27s nominee for president. An exploration of the two campaigns, however, reveals stark differences in strategy, messaging, fundraising, and the use of technology. In terms of strategy, Hillary Clinton\u27s campaign was unprepared to contest the Obama campaign\u27s masterful plan for victory. The Obama campaign focused intensely on Iowa, the first state to cast votes in 2008. After Obama\u27s eventual victory in Iowa, his campaign was able to survive a defeat five days later in New Hampshire. Even before voters in the four early-voting states (which also includes Nevada and South Carolina) cast ballots, the Obama campaign was preparing for a long contest, and began organizing in later states, paying close attention to caucus states that the Clinton campaign largely left uncontested. Obama was then able to open up a large lead in pledged delegate totals, which he would keep until the end of the primary season. This paper reveals how Obama was able to defeat Clinton, despite her campaign\u27s many advantages. Aside from the aforementioned strategic decisions of both campaigns, I research how the race was impacted by management decisions, respect for voters, arrogance, and entitlement. Using comparative case studies of the two campaigns, I find that Obama, and not Clinton, much better prepared for victory. I also discuss the 3 electability argument, finding that despite Clinton\u27s claims, Obama proved to be just as electable in the general election against John McCain than she may have been. I also discuss how my research fits in with previous scholarly literature on primary elections. While the 2008 Democratic primary was very unique, my research attempts to contribute to the existing knowledge of primary races. In many respects, the Obama campaign followed a traditional long-shot approach, with an intense focus on delegate allocation and fundraising. Other long-held findings about primary campaigns did not come to fruition. Momentum was not much of a factor for either candidate in 2008. Plus, research positing that national poll standings are in important predictor of primary did not withstand the events of 2008

The Perception of Motherhood through the Smiles and the Spit-up

This research examines how motherhood is viewed by women, particularly mothers, in the southeast of the United States today. The treatment of women compared to men in women\u27s studies has been a popular topic, but there is less research on mothers. This qualitative study is designed to hear personal stories from mothers and potential mothers, both employed and unemployed, describing how they feel mothers are perceived in the southeast of the United States. Facing the overwhelming literature that describes motherhood as associated with numerous negative impacts on women’s lives, this study explores the weight of joy or the paucity of it relative to the negative impacts. This study explores what joys mothers have from having children, how they struggle to balance the pros and cons of having children, and how they make sense of motherhood. This research finds that many mothers share the idea that while motherhood is not easy and is often viewed as a burden by many members of society, the joys far outweigh the challenges for them

Barack Obama: The Inevitable Nominee

The 2008 Democratic primary is often regarded as a once-in-a-lifetime political event. Democratic frontrunner and former first lady Hillary Clinton faced off against Illinois junior Senator Barack Obama. Despite a commanding position in national polling that led many pundits to declare the race Clinton\u27s to lose, her campaign faltered during the primary, allowing Obama to find himself in a commanding position to be the Democratic Party\u27s nominee for president. An exploration of the two campaigns, however, reveals stark differences in strategy, messaging, fundraising, and the use of technology. In terms of strategy, Hillary Clinton\u27s campaign was unprepared to contest the Obama campaign\u27s masterful plan for victory. The Obama campaign focused intensely on Iowa, the first state to cast votes in 2008. After Obama\u27s eventual victory in Iowa, his campaign was able to survive a defeat five days later in New Hampshire. Even before voters in the four early-voting states (which also includes Nevada and South Carolina) cast ballots, the Obama campaign was preparing for a long contest, and began organizing in later states, paying close attention to caucus states that the Clinton campaign largely left uncontested. Obama was then able to open up a large lead in pledged delegate totals, which he would keep until the end of the primary season. This paper reveals how Obama was able to defeat Clinton, despite her campaign\u27s many advantages. Aside from the aforementioned strategic decisions of both campaigns, I research how the race was impacted by management decisions, respect for voters, arrogance, and entitlement. Using comparative case studies of the two campaigns, I find that Obama, and not Clinton, much better prepared for victory. I also discuss the 3 electability argument, finding that despite Clinton\u27s claims, Obama proved to be just as electable in the general election against John McCain than she may have been. I also discuss how my research fits in with previous scholarly literature on primary elections. While the 2008 Democratic primary was very unique, my research attempts to contribute to the existing knowledge of primary races. In many respects, the Obama campaign followed a traditional long-shot approach, with an intense focus on delegate allocation and fundraising. Other long-held findings about primary campaigns did not come to fruition. Momentum was not much of a factor for either candidate in 2008. Plus, research positing that national poll standings are in important predictor of primary did not withstand the events of 2008

Satellite microwave observations of polar lows

Includes bibliographical references

Multi-physics ensemble snow modelling in the western Himalaya

Combining multiple data sources with multi-physics simulation frameworks offers new potential to extend snow model inter-comparison efforts to the Himalaya. As such, this study evaluates the sensitivity of simulated regional snow cover and runoff dynamics to different snowpack process representations. The evaluation is based on a spatially distributed version of the Factorial Snowpack Model (FSM) set up for the Astore catchment in the upper Indus basin. The FSM multi-physics model was driven by climate fields from the High Asia Refined Analysis (HAR) dynamical downscaling product. Ensemble performance was evaluated primarily using MODIS remote sensing of snow-covered area, albedo and land surface temperature. In line with previous snow model inter-comparisons, no single FSM configuration performs best in all of the years simulated. However, the results demonstrate that performance variation in this case is at least partly related to inaccuracies in the sequencing of inter-annual variation in HAR climate inputs, not just FSM model limitations. Ensemble spread is dominated by interactions between parameterisations of albedo, snowpack hydrology and atmospheric stability effects on turbulent heat fluxes. The resulting ensemble structure is similar in different years, which leads to systematic divergence in ablation and mass balance at high elevations. While ensemble spread and errors are notably lower when viewed as anomalies, FSM configurations show important differences in their absolute sensitivity to climate variation. Comparison with observations suggests that a subset of the ensemble should be retained for climate change projections, namely those members including prognostic albedo and liquid water retention, refreezing and drainage processes

Screening forCronobacterSpecies in Powdered and Reconstituted Infant Formulas and from Equipment Used in Formula Preparation in Maternity Hospitals

Background/Aims: Cronobacter spp. have been identified as being of considerable risk to neonates. The occurrence of organism in infant formulas is therefore of considerable interest. Methods: The occurrence of Cronobacter spp. in infant feeds (formulas and fortified cow’s milk) was determined using most probable number (MPN) analysis, and from formula preparation utensils. Ninety nine samples were analyzed, of which 42 were unopened cans of powdered infant formula (PIF), 25 reconstituted infant formulas in feeding bottles, 27 utensils used from the preparation of infant formula, and 5 samples of fortified cow’s milk. Presumptive Cronobacter spp. isolates were identified using the 7 allele multilocus sequence typing (MLST) scheme. Results: C. sakazakii, C. malonaticus and C. muytjensii were recovered from PIF. Although the incidence of Cronobacter in PIF was 29% (12/42), the level was low with an average of 0.54 MPN/100g. According to MLST profiling, C. sakazakii was the most frequently isolated Cronobacter species, and C. sakazakii ST4 (associated with neonatal meningitis) was recovered from 2/42 PIF samples at 0.51 and 0.92 MPN/100g. Conclusions: Cronobacter spp. can be isolated from PIF and therefore strict hygienic practices during PIF preparation are important to minimize neonate exposure and reduce the risk of severe infections

A 94/183 GHz multichannel radiometer for Convair flights

A multichannel 94/183 GHz radiometer was designed, built, and installed on the NASA Convair 990 research aircraft to take data for hurricane penetration flights, SEASAT-A underflights for measuring rain and water vapor, and Nimbus-G underflights for new sea ice signatures and sea surface temperature data (94 GHz only). The radiometer utilized IF frequencies of 1, 5, and 8.75 GHz about the peak of the atmospheric water vapor absorption line, centered at 183.3 GHz, to gather data needed to determine the shape of the water molecule line. Another portion of the radiometer operated at 94 GHz and obtained data on the sea brightness temperature, sea ice signatures, and on areas of rain near the ocean surface. The radiometer used a multiple lens antenna/temperature calibration technique using 3 lenses and corrugated feed horns at 94 GHz and 183 GHz. Alignment of the feed beams at 94 GHz and 183 GHz was accomplished using a 45 deg oriented reflecting surface which permitted simultaneous viewing of the feeds on alternate cycles of the chopping intervals

Diversity of O Antigens within the Genus Cronobacter: from Disorder to Order

Cronobacter species are Gram-negative opportunistic pathogens that can cause serious infections in neonates. The lipopolysaccharides (LPSs) that form part of the outer membrane of such bacteria are possibly related to the virulence of particular bacterial strains. However, currently there is no clear overview of O-antigen diversity within the various Cronobacter strains and links with virulence. In this study, we tested a total of 82 strains, covering each of the Cronobacter species. The nucleotide variability of the O-antigen gene cluster was determined by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis. As a result, the 82 strains were distributed into 11 previously published serotypes and 6 new serotypes, each defined by its characteristic restriction profile. These new serotypes were confirmed using genomic analysis of strains available in public databases: GenBank and PubMLST Cronobacter. Laboratory strains were then tested using the current serotype-specific PCR probes. The results show that the current PCR probes did not always correspond to genomic O-antigen gene cluster variation. In addition, we analyzed the LPS phenotype of the reference strains of all distinguishable serotypes. The identified serotypes were compared with data from the literature and the MLST database (www.pubmlst.org/cronobacter/). Based on the findings, we systematically classified a total of 24 serotypes for the Cronobacter genus. Moreover, we evaluated the clinical history of these strains and show that Cronobacter sakazakii O2, O1, and O4, C. turicensis O1, and C. malonaticus O2 serotypes are particularly predominant in clinical cases