Toward True Security: A U.S. Nuclear Posture for the Next Decade

This report proposes a nuclear weapons policy for the United States for the next decade that reflects today’s political and strategic realities. By contrast, the official policies and doctrines of both the United States and Russia are mired in Cold War patterns of thought. Eleven years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, both countries still maintain massive nuclear arsenals ready for nearly instant use. Although nuclear war plans differ in size and detail from those drawn up 20 or more years ago, their basic structure remains unchanged. The US nuclear arsenal and doctrine were designed to deter a deliberate large-scale Soviet nuclear attack on the United States and a massive Soviet conventional attack on US European allies, as well as to preserve the option of a disarming first strike against Soviet nuclear forces. This force structure and doctrine are obsolete and jeopardize American national security.Federation of American Scientists, Natural Resources Defense Council, Union of Concerned Scientist

Root aquaporins contribute to whole plant water fluxes under drought stress in rice (Oryza sativaL.)

Aquaporin activity and root anatomy may affect root hydraulic properties under drought stress. To better understand the function of aquaporins in rice root water fluxes under drought, we studied the root hydraulic conductivity (Lpr) and root sap exudation rate (Sr) in the presence or absence of an aquaporin inhibitor (azide) under well-watered conditions and following drought stress in six diverse rice varieties. Varieties varied in Lpr and Sr under both conditions. The contribution of aquaporins to Lpr was generally high (up to 79% under well-watered conditions and 85% under drought stress) and differentially regulated under drought. Aquaporin contribution to Sr increased in most varieties after drought, suggesting a crucial role for aquaporins in osmotic water fluxes during drought and recovery. Furthermore, root plasma membrane aquaporin (PIP) expression and root anatomical properties were correlated with hydraulic traits. Three chromosome regions highly correlated with hydraulic traits of the OryzaSNP panel were identified, but did not co-locate with known aquaporins. These results therefore highlight the importance of aquaporins in the rice root radial water pathway, but emphasize the complex range of additional mechanisms related to root water fluxes and drought response

Racial Fault-lines in “Baseball’s Great Experiment:” Black Perceptions, White Reactions

This paper examines three facets of the breaking of major league baseball’s color line by Jackie Robinson of the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947: the perception of blacks, the response of white players (whether teammates or opponents), and the reaction of baseball fans. By so doing, the paper will illuminate the fault-lines that characterized race relations within both the sport of baseball and the larger society as each was confronted with new challenges to long established policies and practices in the years after the Second World War