An evaluation of the utilization of remote sensing in resource and environmental management of the Chesapeake Bay region

A nine-month study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of the NASA Wallops Chesapeake Bay Ecological Program in remote sensing. The study consisted of a follow-up investigation and information analysis of actual cases in which remote sensing was utilized by management and research personnel in the Chesapeake Bay region. The study concludes that the NASA Wallops Chesapeake Bay Ecological Program is effective, both in terms of costs and performance

Contending with animal bones (Editorial)

[FIRST PARAGRAPH] This issue has been assembled in order to focus on some of the current directions in animal remains research. Since serious study of ancient animal remains began in the nineteenth century, this field and its specific areas of inquiry have evolved and diversified, and this collection of papers highlights that diversity, by including contributions that address issues from excavation and field recording methods and preservational conditions, to the use of bone for understanding past animal populations, as well as bones as proxy indicators for human activities. This volume is not meant only for the attention of the faunal remains specialist, and only a couple of these papers have actually been contributed by "archaeozoologists". Rather we hope to demonstrate the importance of faunal remains studies, on a par with lithic or pottery research. It should be acknowledged that animal bones do not relate simply to the “economic” aspects of a culture but to all areas of the life world

The late time evolution of Gamma-Ray Bursts: ending hyperaccretion and producing flares

We consider the properties of a hyperaccretion model for gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) at the late time when the mass supply rate is expected to decrease with time. We point out that the region in the vicinity of the accretor and the accretor itself can play an important role in determining the rate and time behavior of the accretion and ultimately the energy output. Motivated by numerical simulations and theoretical results, we conjecture that the energy release can be repeatedly stopped and then restarted by the magnetic flux accumulated around the accretor. We propose that the episode or episodes when the accretion resumes correspond to X-ray flares discovered recently in a number of GRBs.Comment: to appear in MNRAS Letters, revised versio

Supplanting crystallography or supplementing microscopy? A combined approach to the study of an enveloped virus

The recent advances in the resolution obtained by single-particle reconstructions from cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) have led to an increase in studies that combine X-ray crystallographic results with those of electron microscopy (EM). Here, such a combination is described in the determination of the structure of an enveloped animal virus, Semliki Forest virus, at 9 Å resolution. The issues of model bias in determination of the structure, the definition of resolution in a single-particle reconstruction, the effect of the correction of the contrast-transfer function on the structure determined and the use of a high-resolution structure of a subunit in the interpretation of the structure of the complex are addressed

A clinical informaticist to support primary care decision making

Objectives—To develop and evaluate an information service in which a "clinical informaticist" (a GP with training in evidence-based medicine) provided evidence-based answers to questions posed by GPs and nurse practitioners. Design—Descriptive pilot study with systematic recording of the process involved in searching for and critically appraising literature. Evaluation by questionnaire and semi-structured interview. Setting—General practice. Participants—34 clinicians from two London primary care groups (Fulham and Hammersmith). Main outcome measures—Number and origin of questions; process and time involved in producing summaries; satisfaction with the service. Results—All 100 clinicians in two primary care groups were approached. Thirty four agreed to participate, of whom 22 asked 60 questions over 10 months. Participants were highly satisfied with the summaries they received. For one third of questions the clinicians stated they would change practice in the index patient, and for 55% the participants stated they would change practice in other patients. Answering questions thoroughly was time consuming (median 130 minutes). The median turnaround time was 9 days; 82% of questions were answered within the timeframe specified by the questioner. Without the informaticist, one third of questions would not have been pursued. Conclusion—The clinical informaticist service increased access to evidence for busy clinicians. Satisfaction was high among users and clinicians stated that changes in practice would occur. However, uptake of the service was lower than expected (22% of those offered the service). Further research is needed into how this method of increasing access to evidence compares with other strategies, and whether it results in improved health outcomes for patients

The genealogy of judgement: towards a deep history of academic freedom

The classical conception of academic freedom associated with Wilhelm von Humboldt and the rise of the modern university has a quite specific cultural foundation that centres on the controversial mental faculty of 'judgement'. This article traces the roots of 'judgement' back to the Protestant Reformation, through its heyday as the signature feature of German idealism, and to its gradual loss of salience as both a philosophical and a psychological concept. This trajectory has been accompanied by a general shrinking in the scope of academic freedom from the promulgation of world-views to the offering of expert opinion

An experimental investigation of the interior noise control effects of propeller synchrophasing

A simplified cylindrical model of an aircraft fuselage is used to investigate the mechanisms of interior noise suppression using synchrophasing techniques. This investigation allows isolation of important parameters to define the characteristics of synchrophasing. The optimum synchrophase angle for maximum noise reduction is found for several interior microphone positions with pure tone source excitation. Noise reductions of up to 30 dB are shown for some microphone positions, however, overall reductions are less. A computer algorithm is developed to decompose the cylinder vibration into modal components over a wide range of synchrophase angles. The circumferential modal response of the shell vibration is shown to govern the transmission of sound into the cylinder rather than localized transmission. As well as investigating synchrophasing, the interior sound field due to sources typical of propellers has been measured and discussed