Patentable Subject [Anti]matter

The statements, The laws of nature, the principles of nature, the fundamental truths, etc., are not patentable, have been oft repeated but seldom understandingly used. They have led to misunderstanding and much confusion, not limited to members of the bar. In fact, the words... are all words of broad and also elastic meaning and are frequently used carelessly and without any attempt at refined distinctions

Poland\u27s Ex--Communists: From Pariahs to Establishment Players

The Polish United Workers\u27 Party (Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza [PZPR]) suffered what seemed to be a terminal blow in 1989. In elections rigged so that the communists and their old allies were guaranteed 65 percent of the seats in the main house of parliament, the communists did so badly that their old allies deserted them. After what appeared to be a total defeat, all the communist reformers could do was turn the government over to the men and women of Solidarity they had interned and harassed for more than a decade. Then they had to disband themselves and form a new party to inherit the tattered remains of their mantle and resources. Less than four years after what looked like a complete rejection, in the 1993 free parliamentary elections, the successor party to the PZPR, the Social Democrats of Poland (Socjaldemokracja Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej [SdRP]), and its coalition, the Democratic Left Alliance (Sojusz Lewicy Demokratycznej [SLD]), did well enough to dominate the parliament and form a government. Two years later, in 1995, the leader of the SdRP and its coalition\u27s presidential candidate, Aleksander Kwasniewski (a junior member of that last communist government), soundly defeated the Solidarity leader and incumbent president, Lech Wałesa. By 1999, when the coalition turned itself into a party, the SLD was, by far, both the most popular and the most stable party in democratic Poland. As a result, it dominated the parliamentary elections of 2001, leaving Solidarity\u27s old parties so fragmented that they did not get enough of the votes to get seats. In the process, it raised the population\u27s hopes that it could solve Poland\u27s economic problems and bring the same economic boom Poles remembered from 1993 to 1997

Evolutionary biology and genetic techniques for insect control

The requirement to develop new techniques for insect control that minimize negative environmental impacts has never been more pressing. Here we discuss population suppression and population replacement technologies. These include sterile insect technique, genetic elimination methods such as the release of insects carrying a dominant lethal (RIDL), and gene driving mechanisms offered by intracellular bacteria and homing endonucleases. We also review the potential of newer or underutilized methods such as reproductive interference, CRISPR technology, RNA interference (RNAi), and genetic underdominance. We focus on understanding principles and potential effectiveness from the perspective of evolutionary biology. This offers useful insights into mechanisms through which potential problems may be minimized, in much the same way that an understanding of how resistance evolves is key to slowing the spread of antibiotic and insecticide resistance. We conclude that there is much to gain from applying principles from the study of resistance in these other scenarios – specifically, the adoption of combinatorial approaches to minimize the spread of resistance evolution. We conclude by discussing the focused use of GM for insect pest control in the context of modern conservation planning under land-sparing scenarios

Culture is an arche-fossil

The paper focuses on Quentin Meillassoux’s After Finitude. If presented there arguments (based on concepts of arche-fossil and ancestrality, contingency, factiality and unreason) are valid and refute the fundamental thesis of correlationism - impossibility to access the reality outside correlation between thinking and being - then we should be able to exceed it form the scientific ground it was formulated upon and to apply it to theory of culture. The paper considers that possibility and follows the consequences of such broadening. What is culture in speculative realism’s ontological paradigm? How to grasp cultural reality that is no longer a correlate of human subjectivity? Culture, its processes, objects, networks would not be human any more, ontologically. Rather, one might say, it emerged that culture is non-human. However, these questions and indications have now existed for long time in philosophy of culture, theory of culture, anthropology, cybernetics, media studies, ecology and many other disciplines. Issue that arises in regard of prior is the problem of theory of culture within speculative materialist perspective. If one acknowledges the arche-fossil argument, one cannot continue to approach culture in structuralist or phenomenological current. Meillassoux claims that mathematical ideation describes the objective structure of reality as it is in-itself. If mathematisation is the condition for theory, how can we theorise culture? The aim of the paper is to problematise the concept of culture and theory of culture in perspective of Meillassoux’s speculation

Evolving from Dominion to Communion: How Legal Rights for Nature Can Exist in Balance with Individual Property Rights in a Global Commons

Abstract coming soon

Assessing Hotel Employee Knowledge on Risk Factors and Risk Management Procedures for Microbial Contamination of Hotel Water Distribution Systems

Background: Compromised hotel water supply lines by neglect or by physical and structural damage can lead to exposure of harmful pathogens to guests and staff. To reduce the risk of having contaminated water in a hotel plumbing system, some facilities may incorporate a water safety plan (WSP). WSPs are not mandatory for hotels in many US states, including the state of Georgia. As such, many hotel personnel are uninformed of WSPs and the precautions to take if their hotel water system is compromised. The purpose of this study was to identify hotel personnel’s knowledge and practices of WSPs through a survey incorporating the Health Belief Model (HBM). Methods: Data were collected from 59 hotels within Fulton County, Georgia, through a questionnaire, and questions were developed tailored to the HBM. Results: Significant associations were found between the perceived susceptibility of contracting a waterborne illness and WMP for hotel personnel as well as between cues to action and having a WMP in general linear models (pConclusions: Our study concluded that many key personnel are not aware of WSPs. Many hotel facilities do not have a plan in place, and some facilities are unaware of a current plan is in place. This study provides insight into the importance of WSP and the risk factors associated with microbial contamination in a hotel building’s plumbing system. Future research and potential law change should be emphasized due to employees’ and owners’ lack of knowledge and for the continuation of waterborne outbreaks in hotel facilities

Which Way is Right?

LEFT, Right, But Always Forward was this year\u27s election slogan for the Freedom Union, whose leaders went from anti-communist opposition to head the first noncommunist government in Poland in 1989. Today\u27s Polish party leaders show the same lack of concern with traditional political definitions. Back when the Communist Party was voted out, the meaning of the election seemed clear to most voters: the choice was for or against continued communist control. Now, left and right have blurred and compromised. Parties focus on political theory rather than on voters\u27 legitimate concerns about the economy. As a result, last month\u27s elections in Poland presented no clear options for voters

Male reproductive success and population control in the Mediterranean fruit fly, ceratitis capitata

The traits that determine male reproductive success in Ceratitis capitata (medfly) are largely unknown. This comes despite decades of research into the reproductive behaviour of this agricultural pest. An understanding of what makes a successful male is of great importance in this lekking species, as one male has the ability to dominate access to females. In addition species-specific pest control techniques such as the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) and Release of Insects carrying a Dominant Lethal (RIDL) rely on the mating competitiveness of mass-reared ‘sterile’ males to disrupt natural mating systems and reduce population numbers. However, it is well known that the mass-rearing process required to generate these individuals produces less competitive males, despite this an understanding of the sexual selection processes that are involved is severely lacking. In this thesis I used the medfly as a model organism to investigate the context-dependent nature of male reproductive success. In Chapters 2 and 3 I investigate the effect of manipulating the adult sex ratio on pre- and post-mating reproductive traits. Chapter 2 uses proximate manipulation of the adult sex ratio to show how the relationship between pre- and post-mating success is affected by the levels of male competition. Chapter 3 shows that selection lines are unable to select for the traits that predict male reproductive success under altered levels of male competition. Chapter 4 describes the attempts to produce RIDL genetic constructs with embryonic lethality. Chapter 5 demonstrates that RIDL lines of medfly display characteristics that make them suitable for wild population control and may exceed the performance of existing SIT lines. Chapter 6 shows that manipulation of the larval diet can alter the gut microbiota of adults; however these manipulations have no effect on reproductive behaviour. Instead there was a significant effect of high-sugar larval rearing on mating success and body mass. This effect persisted for a single generation in offspring of these flies, even when they were reared on an inferior starch-based larval diet. Finally Chapter 7 summarises the thesis and discusses the implications of this work and future directions for both research in the reproductive behaviour of the medfly, and the future of RIDL technology in medfly population control

Lightning Round B: Redefining the Wellness Wheel for Librarians of Color

A well-rounded work life for librarians of color can seem (like) an impossibility. The struggle between identity, microaggressions, and culture in the field are constants. Therefore, the needs of librarians of color in terms of wellness cannot just include Hettler’s Six Dimensions of Wellness (1976), but must also address the emotional challenges of being a diverse person in librarianship. Creating a wellness wheel of this nature for librarians and paraprofessionals of color can connect the bridge between employee and employer. These specialized aspects are intended to provide recommendations and initiatives for diverse peoples well-being and wellness: Stop, Think, Breathe, Report, Reflect, Time, and Forward. In-depth explorations of these topics in poster format will give librarians of color stepping stone on which to build their mindful practices and paths of wellness