Human trafficking and violence: Findings from the largest global dataset of trafficking survivors

Background: Human trafficking is a recognized human rights violation, and a public health and global development issue. Violence is often a hallmark of human trafficking. This study aims to describe documented cases of violence amongst persons identified as victims of trafficking, examine associated factors throughout the trafficking cycle and explore prevalence of abuse in different labour sectors. Methods and findings: The IOM Victim of Trafficking Database (VoTD) is the largest database on human trafficking worldwide. This database is actively used across all IOM regional and country missions as a standardized anti-trafficking case-management tool. This analysis utilized the cases of 10,369 trafficked victims in the VoTD who had information on violence. Results: The prevalence of reported violence during human trafficking included: 54% physical and/or sexual violence; 50% physical violence; and 15% sexual violence, with 25% of women reporting sexual violence. Experiences of physical and sexual violence amongst trafficked victims were significantly higher amongst women and girls (AOR 2.48 (CI: 2.01,3.06)), individuals in sexual exploitation (AOR 2.08 (CI: 1.22,3.54)) and those experiencing other forms of abuse and deprivation, such as threats (AOR 2.89 (CI: 2.10,3.98)) and forced use of alcohol and drugs (AOR 2.37 (CI: 1.08,5.21)). Abuse was significantly lower amongst individuals trafficked internationally (AOR 0.36 (CI: 0.19,0.68)) and those using forged documents (AOR 0.64 (CI: 0.44,0.93)). Violence was frequently associated with trafficking into manufacturing, agriculture and begging (> 55%). Conclusions: An analysis of the world's largest data set on trafficking victims indicates that violence is indeed prevalent and gendered. While these results show that trafficking-related violence is common, findings suggest there are patterns of violence, which highlights that post-trafficking services must address the specific support needs of different survivors

An inexpensive nonlinear medium for intense ultrabroadband pulse characterization

The ability of pellets made up of compressed iron iodate nanocrystals to frequency-double the whole visible spectrum is demonstrated. We suggest their use for complete characterization of intense ultrabroadband laser pulse

Phase Decomposition and Chemical Inhomogeneity in Nd2-xCexCuO4

Extensive X-ray and neutron scattering experiments and additional transmission electron microscopy results reveal the partial decomposition of Nd2-xCexCuO4 (NCCO) in a low-oxygen-fugacity environment such as that typically realized during the annealing process required to create a superconducting state. Unlike a typical situation in which a disordered secondary phase results in diffuse powder scattering, a serendipitous match between the in-plane lattice constant of NCCO and the lattice constant of one of the decomposition products, (Nd,Ce)2O3, causes the secondary phase to form an oriented, quasi-two-dimensional epitaxial structure. Consequently, diffraction peaks from the secondary phase appear at rational positions (H,K,0) in the reciprocal space of NCCO. Additionally, because of neodymium paramagnetism, the application of a magnetic field increases the low-temperature intensity observed at these positions via neutron scattering. Such effects may mimic the formation of a structural superlattice or the strengthening of antiferromagnetic order of NCCO, but the intrinsic mechanism may be identified through careful and systematic experimentation. For typical reduction conditions, the (Nd,Ce)2O3 volume fraction is ~1%, and the secondary-phase layers exhibit long-range order parallel to the NCCO CuO2 sheets and are 50-100 angstromsthick. The presence of the secondary phase should also be taken into account in the analysis of other experiments on NCCO, such as transport measurements.Comment: 15 pages, 17 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

The Political Economy of Foreign Direct Investment and Foreign Aid in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Empirical Approach

Dataset used for our paper "The Political Economy of Foreign Direct Investment and Foreign Aid in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Empirical Approach". Abstract: Foreign financial flows to Sub-Saharan Africa have soared in the past decade, notably Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Official Development Assistance (ODA). The aim of this paper is to evaluate their impacts on the recipient economies' growth. To do so, a two-stage least square analysis is carried out on an unbalanced panel of 41 Sub-Saharan African countries observed from 1980 to 2012. The instrumental strategy is drawn from the political and economic relationships between donors and recipients. The identifying hypothesis is that certain characteristics of a country's main ODA donors, such as GDP per capita, can only affect growth in that country through ODA and FDI. FDI is found to have a positive and significant effect on GDP per capita growth, whereas ODA has no impact

The Political Economy of Foreign Direct Investment and Foreign Aid in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Empirical Approach

Dataset used for our paper "The Political Economy of Foreign Direct Investment and Foreign Aid in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Empirical Approach". Abstract: Foreign financial flows to Sub-Saharan Africa have soared in the past decade, notably Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Official Development Assistance (ODA). The aim of this paper is to evaluate their impacts on the recipient economies' growth. To do so, a two-stage least square analysis is carried out on an unbalanced panel of 41 Sub-Saharan African countries observed from 1980 to 2012. The instrumental strategy is drawn from the political and economic relationships between donors and recipients. The identifying hypothesis is that certain characteristics of a country's main ODA donors, such as GDP per capita, can only affect growth in that country through ODA and FDI. FDI is found to have a positive and significant effect on GDP per capita growth, whereas ODA has no impact.THIS DATASET IS ARCHIVED AT DANS/EASY, BUT NOT ACCESSIBLE HERE. TO VIEW A LIST OF FILES AND ACCESS THE FILES IN THIS DATASET CLICK ON THE DOI-LINK ABOV

Safe probe for high electric field measurements

The present study concerns an optical electric field measuring device using a lithium niobate (LiNbO/sub 3/) crystal as sensing medium, without any contacting electrode. Such a device has the advantage of providing a good galvanic insulation of materials and persons. A likely application is electric field measurement near electric power installations (frequency 50-60 Hz). The principle of measurement implements the electro-optical effect in the crystals and results from the way in which polarized light is analyzed after going through the crystal. Experimental setups have been developed in order to both validate the physical principle, and calibrate the probe. Simulations of this device with the finite element method being in good agreement with experiment, the implementation of the probe in the foreseen environment are studied. Then, a probe prototype, for which measurement can be realized far away with optical fibers, is performed. Simulated and experimental results near electric power installations are discussed. The results obtained using the prototype are very promising so far

On the ternary compounds of the BaO-CaO-CuO system

The crystal structure and the stability of the two ternary compounds Ba$_4$CaCu$_3$O8+$\delta$ and Ba$_6$CaCu$_3$O$_{\rm 10+vardelta}$ have been investigated by means of X-ray diffraction, differential thermal analysis and thermogravimetry analysis. We find that the Ba$_4$CaCu$_3$O$_{\rm 8+vardelta}$ phase has a cubic structure (Im-3m, a = 8.1515(1) Å for $\delta$ = + 0.8) for an oxygen content in the range 8.7-9.3 as reported in the literature but undergoes a transformation into a tetragonal structure (I4/mmm, a = 8.1888(1) Å, c = 8.0634(1) Å for $\delta$ = - 0.3) when the oxygen content is lowered (7.7-8.7). Both Ba$_4$CaCu$_3$O8+$\delta$ and Ba$_6$CaCu$_3$O$_{\rm 10+vardelta}$ phases are metastable at low temperature in p(O$_2$) = 1 bar. The DTA/TGA curves indicate an equilibrium recovery between 300°C and 400°C corresponding to the decomposition into BaO$_2$, CaO and Ba$_2$Cu$_3$O$_6$.La structure cristallographique et la stabilité des deux composés ternaires Ba$_4$CaCu$_3$O$_{\rm 8+vardelta}$ et Ba$_6$CaCu$_3$O$_{\rm 10+vardelta}$ ont été étudiées par diffraction des rayons X, analyse thermique différentielle et analyse thermogravimétrique. Nous trouvons que la phase Ba$_4$CaCu$_3$O$_{\rm 8+vardelta}$ a une structure cubique (Im-3m, a = 8.1515(1) Å, $\delta$ = + 0.8) pour des contenus en oxygène élevés (8.7-9.3) comme cela est reporté dans la littérature mais subit une transition vers une structure tétragonale (I4/mmm, a = 8.1888(1) Å, c = 8.0634(1) Å, $\delta$ = - 0.3) lorsque ce contenu est diminué (7.7-8.7). Ces deux composés ternaires sont métastables à basse température sous p(O$_2$) = 1 bar. Les courbes d'ATD/TG indiquent en effet un retour à l'équilibre entre 300°C et 400°C qui correspond à une décomposition en BaO$_2$, CaO et Ba$_2$Cu$_3$O$_6$

Sprayed Tl-1223 films: formation kinetics and superconducting properties

International audienceTlBa/sub 2/Ca/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub 9/ superconducting films, 0.5 to 1 /spl mu/m in thickness, have been prepared in a two step process. Using a nitrate solution, a precursor layer with composition Ba/sub 2/Ca/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub x/ is first sprayed on a LaAlO/sub 3/ heated substrate and then thallinated, following a procedure established for bulk samples. The critical temperature of the films ranges from 108 to 113 K, and the critical current density of the best samples reaches 0.7 MA/cm/sup 2/. The reaction kinetics for the formation of the Tl-1223 phase between 880 /spl deg/C and 910 /spl deg/C has been studied for a better control of the grain growth and texture. The effect of fluorine addition on both the microstructure and superconducting properties have been also analyzed

Polarization sensitive two-photon microscopy of nanometric Fe(IO3)3 crystals

International audienceWe have investigated the nonlinear optical properties of nanosized grains of Fe(l03)3, recently synthesized with a simple and inexpensive process. The measurements have been carried out using a TkSapphire femtosecond oscillator coupled to an inverse microscope modified to detect the polarization dependence of the signal. We show that Fe(l03)3 crystals (20-70 nm) can be efficiently employed as local probes for second-harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy, owing to their high non-linear coefficients. Contrary to fluorescent dye molecules, which need resonant excitation, Fe(l03)3 crystals double the frequency of incident light in a large spectral range, they do not undergo photo-bleaching, and they possess a permanent dipole moment that bears information about the orientation of each nanocrystal. In this respect, we are currently investigating their possible use as sensors of local electric field in biological samples. The dependence of SHG for different polarizations of the excitation light and of the detection has been numerically simulated and fitted to the data, using a physical model which takes into account the crystal symmetry, the spatial orientation of the crystals, and the polarization response of the optical set-up [2]. This way, we have been able to derive quantitative information about the second-order susceptibility tensor of this novel material, and retrieve the orientation of individual crystals. Moreover, the recently assessed possibility to detect an NMR signal opens the way to employ Fe(l03)3 crystals as dual SHG-NMR probes