Sticking and making: technology as glue for families separated by prison

This is the final version of the article. Available from the AIS Electronic Library (AISeL) via the link in this record.Everydayness links the histories and crescendos of our lives. Once we lose this "glue", many of our reference points for linking these histories are lost and the structure and patterns of our lives start to unravel. For families separated by prison, telephone calls and letters offer a form of glue, but punitive structures place many constraints on this type of communication. These constraints result in a transformation of technology, often resulting in re-configuration to the point where it plays a different role in the prison context. The analysis presented in this paper points to the need for developing both technologies that support the sharing of everyday experiences and that have functionality to help families re-establish and adjust family relationships and roles. In this analysis we consider how the punitive climate impacts on communication technology design and how to balance this climate with the objective of strengthening family ties.We thank all the participants in both studies. Without their engagement and patience this paper would not have been possible. The second author also thanks the Sir Halley Stewart Trust for funding the research project. All opinions expressed in this paper are of the authors alone and not necessarily those of the Trust. We thank Trish Williams for her constructive feedback and patient proof reading

Non-ideal artificial phase discontinuity in long Josephson 0-kappa-junctions

We investigate the creation of an arbitrary $\kappa$-discontinuity of the Josephson phase in a long Nb-AlO_x-Nb Josephson junction (LJJ) using a pair of tiny current injectors, and study the formation of fractional vortices formed at this discontinuity. The current I_inj, flowing from one injector to the other, creates a phase discontinuity kappa ~ I_inj. The calibration of injectors is discussed in detail. The small but finite size of injectors leads to some deviations of the properties of such a 0-kappa-LJJ from the properties of a LJJ with an ideal kappa-discontinuity. These experimentally observed deviations in the dependence of the critical current on I_inj$ and magnetic field can be well reproduced by numerical simulation assuming a finite injector size. The physical origin of these deviations is discussed.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev. B (12 figures). v 2: refs updated, long eqs fixed v 3: major changes, fractional vortex dynamics exclude

miR-786 Regulation of a Fatty-Acid Elongase Contributes to Rhythmic Calcium-Wave Initiation in \u3cem\u3eC. elegans\u3c/em\u3e

Background: Rhythmic behaviors are ubiquitous phenomena in animals. In C. elegans, defecation is an ultradian rhythmic behavior: every ∼50 s a calcium wave initiating in the posterior intestinal cells triggers the defecation motor program that comprises three sequential muscle contractions. Oscillatory calcium signaling is central to the periodicity of defecation. The posteriormost intestinal cells function as the pacemaker for this rhythmic behavior, although it is unclear how the supremacy of these cells for calcium-wave initiation is controlled. Results: We describe how the loss of the mir-240/786 microRNA cluster, which results in arrhythmic defecation, causes ectopic intestinal calcium-wave initiation. mir-240/786 expression in the intestine is restricted to the posterior cells that function as the defecation pacemaker. Genetic data indicate that mir-240/786 functions upstream of the inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) receptor. Through rescue analysis, it was determined that miR-786 functions to regulate defecation. Furthermore, we identified elo-2, a fatty-acid elongase with a known role in defecation cycling, as a direct target for miR-786. We propose that the regulation of palmitate levels through repression of elo-2 activity is the likely mechanistic link to defecation. Conclusions: Together, these data indicate that miR-786 confers pacemaker status on posterior intestinal cells for the control of calcium-wave initiation through the regulation of elo-2 and, subsequently, palmitate levels. We propose that a difference in fatty-acid composition in the posterior intestinal cells may alter the activities of membrane proteins, such as IP3-receptor or TRPM channels, that control pacemaker activity in the C. elegans intestine

Two Galaxy Clusters: A3565 and A3560

We report 102 new redshifts and magnitudes for a sample of galaxies to RF ~ 15.5 mag in a 2.17 deg x 2.17 deg region centered on the galaxy IC 4296, the most luminous member of the A3565 cluster. Up to the limiting magnitude we find 29 cluster members, and measure a velocity dispersion of 228 km/s. The estimated total mass for this system is ~ 3.0 x h**-1 10**13 Msun (where h = H0/100 km/s/Mpc), and its dynamical properties are quite typical of poor clusters presenting X-ray emission. We also find that galaxies with absorption lines are more concentrated towards the center of the cluster, while systems with emission lines are mainly located in the outer parts. The small velocity dispersion of the cluster, coupled to the known presence of an interacting pair of galaxies, and the large extent of the brightest cluster galaxy, could indicate that galaxy formation through mergers may still be underway in this system. The surveyed region also contains galaxies belonging to the Shapley Concentration cluster A3560. Within 30 arc min of the cluster center, we detect 32 galaxies, for which we measure a velocity dispersion of 588 km/s and a mass of ~2 x h**-1 10**14 Msun. However, because our sample is restricted to galaxies brighter than M*, these values should be considered only as rough estimates.Comment: 33 pages, including 6 tables and 9 postscript figures. Uses AAS Latex macros. Postscript file and ASCII versions of Tables 4 and 6 are available at http://www.dan.on.br/other_surveys/a3565.html. Scheduled for September 1999 issue of The Astronomical Journa

Focusing of Intense Subpicosecond Laser Pulses in Wedge Targets

Two dimensional particle-in-cell simulations characterizing the interaction of ultraintense short pulse lasers in the range 10^{18} \leq I \leq 10^{20} W/cm^{2} with converging target geometries are presented. Seeking to examine intensity amplification in high-power laser systems, where focal spots are typically non-diffraction limited, we describe key dynamical features as the injected laser intensity and convergence angle of the target are systematically varied. We find that laser pulses are focused down to a wavelength with the peak intensity amplified by an order of magnitude beyond its vacuum value, and develop a simple model for how the peak location moves back towards the injection plane over time. This performance is sustained over hundreds of femtoseconds and scales to laser intensities beyond 10^{20} W/cm^{2} at 1 \mu m wavelength.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in Physics of Plasma

Selecting children for head CT following head injury

OBJECTIVE: Indicators for head CT scan defined by the 2007 National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines were analysed to identify CT uptake, influential variables and yield. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Hospital inpatient units: England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands. PATIENTS: Children (3 years were much more likely to have CT than those <3 years (OR 2.35 (95% CI 2.08 to 2.65)). CONCLUSION: Compliance with guidelines and diagnostic yield was variable across age groups, the type of hospital and region where children were admitted. With this pattern of clinical practice the risks of both missing intracranial injury and overuse of CT are considerable