A survey of estuarine oxygen concentrations in relation to the passage of migratory salmonids

This report presents the first attempt at a national assessment of an Environmental Quality Standard (EQS) for dissolved oxygen (DO) in estuaries with the objective of allowing the passage of migratory salmonids. Under the Control of Pollution Act, Water Authorities and River Purification Boards have powers to control discharges to estuaries and need to define an EQS for the calculation of consent conditions. The object of any such standards is to permit the existence of good quality salmonid fisheries with only very occasional restrictions to the passage of fish. The report gives brief summaries of the DO regime in estuaries, the oxygen requirements of salmonids, and of tentative standards proposed by various authorities. These standards are then compared with DO and fishery data from UK estuaries, provided by the appropriate regulatory authorities. It concludes that a minimum annual lower 95-percentile of 5.0 mg/1 will meet the objective in most estuaries, and that a lower value of 3.0 mg/1 will permit the establishment of a more restricted fishery. However, more stringent standards may be needed in estuaries containing high concentrations of toxic pollutants. containing high concentrations of toxic pollutants

Toward a New Ethical Standard Regulating the Private Practice of Former Government Lawyers

This comment advocates the elimination of the appearance of impropriety as a legal and ethical standard governing the disqualification of former government lawyers and urges the ABA to adopt Rule LIP of the proposed Model Rules of Professional Conduct. Model Rule 1.11, Successive Government and Private Employment, provides a comprehensible, precise ethical rule regulating the post-government practice of lawyers in conformity with federal statute and regulation

Toward a New Ethical Standard Regulating the Private Practice of Former Government Lawyers

This comment advocates the elimination of the appearance of impropriety as a legal and ethical standard governing the disqualification of former government lawyers and urges the ABA to adopt Rule LIP of the proposed Model Rules of Professional Conduct. Model Rule 1.11, Successive Government and Private Employment, provides a comprehensible, precise ethical rule regulating the post-government practice of lawyers in conformity with federal statute and regulation

100 kHz, 100 ms, 400 J burst-mode laser with dual-wavelength diode-pumped amplifiers

The burst duration of an all-diode-pumped burst-mode laser is extended to 100 ms and 100 kHz (10,000 pulses) by utilizing dual-wavelength diode pumping. Total energies of 225 J at 10 kHz and 400 J at 100 kHz are achieved during the 100 ms burst period at 1064 nm. This represents an order-of-magnitude increase in the number of pulses compared with prior work, while maintaining similar or higher pulse energies. Amplitude tailoring of each pulse is used to flatten the burst profile, reducing the standard deviation in pulse energy over the 100 ms burst from 3.7% to 2.1% with a burst-to-burst standard deviation of 0.8%

100-ps-pulse-duration, 100-J burst-mode laser for kHz–MHz flow diagnostics

A high-speed, master-oscillator power-amplifier burst-mode laser with ∼100 ps pulse duration is demonstrated with output energy up to 110 J per burst at 1064 nm and second-harmonic conversion efficiency up to 67% in a KD*P crystal. The output energy is distributed across 100 to 10,000 sequential laser pulses, with 10 kHz to 1 MHz repetition rate, respectively, over 10 ms burst duration. The performance of the 100 ps burst-mode laser is evaluated and been found to compare favorably with that of a similar design that employs a conventional ∼8 ns pulse duration. The nearly transform-limited spectral bandwidth of 0.15 cm−1 at 532 nm is ideal for a wide range of linear and nonlinear spectroscopic techniques, and the 100 picosecond pulse duration is optimal for fiber-coupled spectroscopic measurements in harsh reacting-flow environments

The Next Big Match: Convergence, Competition and Sports Media Rights

Using examples from a number of different European countries, this article analyses the increasingly prominent position of traditional telecommunications companies, such as British Telecom (UK), Deutsche Telekom (Germany), France Telecom/Orange (France) and Telefonica (Spain), in the contemporary sports media rights market. The first part of the article examines the commercial strategies of telecommunications operators and highlights how their acquisition of sports rights has been driven by the need to ensure a competitive position within an increasingly converged communications market. The second part of the article then moves on to consider the regulation of the sports media rights market. Most significantly, this section emphasises the need for further regulatory intervention to ensure that increased competition for sports rights leads to improved services and lower prices for consumers, rather than merely endlessly spiralling fees for the exclusive ownership of premium rights that are then passed on to sports channel and/or broadband subscribers

Sustained Reduction of Diversion and Abuse after Introduction of an Abuse Deterrent Formulation of Extended Release Oxycodone

Background: The development of abuse deterrent formulations is one strategy for reducing prescription opioid misuse and abuse. A putative abuse deterrent formulation of oxycodone extended release (OxyContin®) was introduced in 2010. Early reports demonstrated reduced abuse and diversion, however, an analysis of social media found 32 feasible methods to circumventthe abuse deterrent mechanism. We measured trends of diversion, abuse and street price of OxyContin to assess the durability ofthe initial reduction in abuse. Methods: Data from the Poison Center Program, Drug Diversion Program, Opioid Treatment Program, Survey of Key Informant Patients Program and StreetRx program of the Researched Abuse, Diversion, and Addiction-Related Surveillance (RADARS®) System were used. The average quarterly rates of abuse and diversion for OxyContin were compared from before reformulation to the rate in second quarter 2015. Rates were adjusted for population using US Census data and drug availability. Results: OxyContin abuse and diversion declined significantly each quarter after reformulation and persisted for 5 years. The rate of abuse of other opioid analgesics increased initially and then decreased, but to lesser extent than OxyContin. Abuse through both oral and non-oral routes of self-administration declined following the reformulation. The geometric mean difference in the street price of reformulated OxyContin was 36% lower than the reformulated product in the year after reformulation. Discussion: Despite methods to circumvent the abuse deterrent mechanism, abuse and diversion of OxyContin decreased promptly following the introduction of a crush- and solubility- resistant formulation and continued to decrease over the subsequent 5 years

State space modelling and data analysis exercises in LISA Pathfinder

LISA Pathfinder is a mission planned by the European Space Agency to test the key technologies that will allow the detection of gravitational waves in space. The instrument on-board, the LISA Technology package, will undergo an exhaustive campaign of calibrations and noise characterisation campaigns in order to fully describe the noise model. Data analysis plays an important role in the mission and for that reason the data analysis team has been developing a toolbox which contains all the functionalities required during operations. In this contribution we give an overview of recent activities, focusing on the improvements in the modelling of the instrument and in the data analysis campaigns performed both with real and simulated data.Comment: Plenary talk presented at the 9th International LISA Symposium, 21-25 May 2012, Pari