Antonio Bresciani and the Sects: conspiracy myths in an intransigent Catholic response to the Risorgimento

Antonio Bresciani's notorious trilogy of novels about the revolutions of 1848, starting with L'Ebreo di Verona, first appeared in the earliest issues of the Jesuit periodical La Civiltà Cattolica from 1850. They constitute an intransigentist attack on the Risorgimento, and portray the events of 1848-9 as the result of a satanically inspired conspiracy by secret societies. This article re-analyses those novels by placing Bresciani in the context of the 'culture war' between lay and religious world views across Europe from the middle of the nineteenth century. The article argues that Bresciani represents a significant case study in the intransigent Catholic response to the kind of patriotic motifs identified by the recent cultural historiography on the Risorgimento. The 'paranoid style' of Bresciani's conspiracy myth is analysed, as is Bresciani's portrayal of Garibaldi, female fighters, and Jews--in particular the tale of Christian conversion presented in L'Ebreo di Verona. The article argues that, despite its polarising, reactionary intentions, Bresciani's fiction betrayed many influences from the Romantic culture of the Risorgimento that he claimed to despise

A 2009 perspective of HR practices in Australian mining

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the idea of how HR professionals undertake strategic, management and operational roles in mining organisations during varying economic cycles. The discussion is primarily set in the Western Australian context. Design/Methodology/Approach - A review of the relevant literature, an overview of mining industry trends in Australia and an examination of HR issues in the mining industry, provide the background for developing a case for a strategic approach using HR practices to address challenges. Findings - A 5-point model for effective delivery of HR in the mining industry is proposed as a means of overcoming environmental discontinuities. Research limitations/implications - Whilst an extensive list of research in the mining industry, is not cited, given that the mining industry tends to operate globally and HR departments source and deploy professional staff on a global basis, the implications for future research are more extensive than limiting. Practical implications - Contrary to many current practices used in mining organisations, suggestions are made regarding specific approaches that can be promulgated to change HR policies and procedures to assist overcoming, or mitigating, bust cycle issues in the industry. Originality/value - Mining companies need a well organised plan if they are to balance out the extremes of the industry's boom/bust cycles. The model in this paper, establishing strategic implementation strategies for HR policies and procedures, provides a direct approach to business improvement and a direct link between corporate and mine-site HR issues

Eco-geomorphological processes within grasslands, shrublands and badlands in the semi-arid Karoo, South Africa

Vegetation type and cover play an important role in the operation of geomorphological processes by controlling runoff and sediment dynamics. In drylands, land degradation is particularly sensitive to these eco-geomorphic interactions. Although many geomorphological studies of land degradation focus on the change in hydrological response as a function of vegetation cover, few have investigated how the autogenic response of plants may influence the susceptibility of soil to erosion through a change of soil resources. This study investigates the hypothesis that shrub communities possess greater soil parameter heterogeneity compared with grasslands and assesses how these different scales of heterogeneity can influence the susceptibility of soil to erosion.  Soil samples were taken from seven 60 m × 60 m plots within grasslands, shrublands and badlands situated in the Sneeuberg uplands of the central Karoo. One hundred and eight samples per plot were analysed for bulk density, organic matter, pH, conductivity and available sodium, calcium, magnesium, potassium and phosphorus. Geostatistical analyses determined that the grassland landscape was largely homogenous in its distribution of soil parameters, whereas shrublands demonstrated an increase in heterogeneity. Periodicity in the semi-variograms indicated that regular patterns across the landscape were evident for all parameters and thus likely to represent the differences between shrub and intershrub regions, areas of high and low erodibility. More pronounced patterns were identified in the badlands. This indicates that, if the conditions are right, changes in plant-soil interactions caused by soil parameter redistribution in shrubland landscapes can exacerbate erosion, leading to further degradation in the form of badlands

Estimación de rendimientos de soja y maíz a partir de variables edafoclimáticas

Estimación de rendimientos de soja y maíz a partir de variables edafoclimáticasFil: Coronel, Alejandra. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; Argentin

Periodic fever syndrome and autoinflammatory diseases

The concept of autoinflammatory disease as a new disease classification has resulted in a paradigm shift in our understanding of the the broad spectrum of immunological diseases. The effectiveness of interleukin-1 blockade in a variety of disorders has resulted in a marked reduction in suffering for many of these patients

Carbon Nanotube Bonding Strength Enhancement Using Metal "Wicking" Process

Carbon nanotubes grown from a surface typically have poor bonding strength at the interface. A process has been developed for adding a metal coat to the surface of carbon nano tubes (CNTs) through a wicking process, which could lead to an enhanced bonding strength at the interface. This process involves merging CNTs with indium as a bump-bonding enhancement. Classical capillary theory would not normally allow materials that do not wet carbon or graphite to be drawn into the spacings by capillary action because the contact angle is greater than 90 degrees. However, capillary action can be induced through JPL's ability to fabricate oriented CNT bundles to desired spacings, and through the use of deposition techniques and temperature to control the size and mobility of the liquid metal streams and associated reservoirs. A reflow and plasma cleaning process has also been developed and demonstrated to remove indium oxide, and to obtain smooth coatings on the CNT bundles