Local governance under austerity : hybrid organisations and hybrid officers

Using the case of Cardiff, Wales, we argue that the hybridisation of local governance forms is exacerbated by the downscaling and offloading of austerity politics. Conceptualising hybridity as a process which operates across governmental scales, at the organisational and at the individual level helps understand the growing complexities of local governance under austerity and the tensions which arise in seeking to assemble locally appropriate ideas and practices. Conceptualising hybridity as practice, we consider how 'hybrid officers' at the frontline experience austerity, their situated agency, and the implications for higher levels of governance

The everyday local state? Opening up and closing down informality in local governance

Seeking to understand local governance under austerity localism raises questions about changing state-civil society relations. Polarised debates have resulted in different disciplines that can be bridged by considering the practice. We use the case of Cardiff, Wales, to consider how the practice is reshaping local governance, focusing on community service delivery and the role of the Council and of third sector organisations in creating new ways of coping, doing and working together and apart. Drawing from understandings of informality as a top-down as well as bottom-up process, we argue that both sides of (local) state-society relations got better at opening up informality and navigating its contradictions as austerity localism rolled out, underlining the mutually constitutive nature of the ‘everyday local state’. But over time we find that the ongoing strictures of funding cuts have closed down informality, constraining the creativity engendered, as the local state centralises in response

In silicoAnalysis of the Structural Properties of PSMA and its Energetic Relationship with Zn as Cofactor

The prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) is a 100 kDa type II transmembrane glycoprotein with enzymatic activity similar to the family of zinc-dependent exopeptidases. This protein is of great medical and pharmacological interest as overexpression in prostate cells is related to the progression of prostate cancer; therefore, it represents an important target for the design of radiopharmaceuticals. The presence of two Zn2+ ions in the active site is crucial to the enzymatic activity and the design of high-affinity inhibitors. The amino acid residues coordinating these ions are highly conserved in PSMA orthologs from plants to mammals, and site-mutagenesis assays of these residues show a loss of enzymatic function or reduction of the kinetic parameters. In the present work, we performed molecular dynamics simulation of PSMA with the purpose of characterizing it energetically and structurally. We elucidated the differences of PSMA with its two Zn+2 ions as cofactors and without them in the free energy profile, and in four structural parameters: root mean square deviations and root mean square fluctuations by atom and amino acid residue, radius of gyration, and solvent accessible surface area

The TechEdSat-N Series: A Collaborative Technology Development Platform in the Nano-Satellite Form Factor

The TechEdSat-1 (TES-1) was the first U.S. CubeSat to be deployed from the ISS (International Space Station). This permitted the initiation of a flight series that has recently de-orbited the 6th nano-satellite with subsequent numbers 7-10 under development. The nano-satellites range from 1U (1 unit) to 6U (TechEdSat-8) but have the critical ISS Safety design features standardized in order to focus on the particular experiment objectives. Incremental experimental development has included unique communication subsystems such as command/control of the nanosatellite through email commands -as well as a recent record for Wifi transmission. Also, the thermophysics of controlled drag devices (Exo-Brake) has been developed which will prelude sample return and planetary exploration applications. The successful "rapid incremental experiment" approach has also been incorporated into collaborations with academia, permitting professors/student interns to be exposed to the rigors of space mission hardware design and execution. The TechEdSat-8, a linear 6U configuration, allows for 5 different groups to contribute an "experiment, sensor, or sub-system" through a well-defined common interface. Lastly, the flying laboratory concept is helpful in developing future interplanetary nano-satellite subsystems which will advance exploration goals by allowing rapid demonstration/validation first in LEO (Low Earth Orbit)

Infrastructures, processes of insertion and the everyday: towards a new dialogue in critical policy studies

This forum argues that the complex assemblages of infrastructures, and their reproduction in our everyday worlds, offer a privileged lens through which to explore the practices of much of what critical policy studies holds dear. It draws attention to processes of insertion that reproduce infrastructure in everyday lives, arguing that such processes cast new light on the work of the state, governance, and democratic struggles. It discerns three avenues as a means of exploring such infrastructural processes: first, an invitation to transcend the physical form and reflect on infrastructural temporalities; second on the transformation of spatial governance and policy through infrastructure; and third, a re-assessment in the relationship between infrastructures and the ‘modernist ideal’. Through these avenues, light can be shed on the often ‘hidden’ practices of policymaking. We conclude by calling for a dialogue across diverse disciplines, side-stepping embedded divides between academics-activists, cities-towns, and the global south-north

TES-8: Advanced Exo-Brake, VR and COM Experiments

The TES-8 was jettisoned from the International Space Station on January 31, 2019. As an orbital laboratory and 8th in on-going series, the design makes use of a standard set of interfaces and safety features that permit rapid re-flight. On this flight, an advanced Exo-Brake is flown with de-orbit targeting capability that will engender sample return capability from LEO platforms. A Virtual Reality data recording system uses stereo imaging and efficient data-compression with an NVIDIA GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) to permit compression and transmission of very large data files. An SDR (Software Defined Radio) will download data to the NEN (Near Earth Network) for the first time - demonstrating potential use in cis-lunar space using S-band. For the first time, a comparison will be made regarding the functionality of the Iridium and Globalstar short burst data modems - as essential communication tools for future nano-sat projects. Lastly, the 7 micro-processors and 4 cameras provide an excellent learning platform for university students and NASA young professionals

Minigene-like inhibition of protein synthesis mediated by hungry codons near the start codon

Rare AGA or AGG codons close to the initiation codon inhibit protein synthesis by a tRNA-sequestering mechanism as toxic minigenes do. To further understand this mechanism, a parallel analysis of protein synthesis and peptidyl-tRNA accumulation was performed using both a set of lacZ constructs where AGAAGA codons were moved codon by codon from +2, +3 up to +7, +8 positions and a series of 3–8 codon minigenes containing AGAAGA codons before the stop codon. β-Galactosidase synthesis from the AGAAGA lacZ constructs (in a Pth defective in vitro system without exogenous tRNA) diminished as the AGAAGA codons were closer to AUG codon. Likewise, β-galactosidase expression from the reporter +7 AGA lacZ gene (plus tRNA, 0.25 μg/μl) waned as the AGAAGAUAA minigene shortened. Pth counteracted both the length-dependent minigene effect on the expression of β-galactosidase from the +7 AGA lacZ reporter gene and the positional effect from the AGAAGA lacZ constructs. The +2, +3 AGAAGA lacZ construct and the shortest +2, +3 AGAAGAUAA minigene accumulated the highest percentage of peptidyl-tRNAArg4. These observations lead us to propose that hungry codons at early positions, albeit with less strength, inhibit protein synthesis by a minigene-like mechanism involving accumulation of peptidyl-tRNA

Providing Small Satellite Communications Using the NOAA GOES Satellite

The results of a LEO to GEO communication system using the NOAA GOES (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite) DCS (Data Collection System) are presented. The DCS system was designed to collect climate-related data from remote unmanned stations. Data are uplinked to one of the two operational satellites via an aggregated link to the NASA Wallops Facility. The modified LEO transmitter, one of the 7 transmitters flown on the TechEdSat-8 nano-satellite, is designed to compensate for the Doppler effects to ensure the communication link. Though a slow data rate initially, the system may offer another convenient means of transmitting data from LEO to ground stations any time during an orbit. The experiment will allow for an assessment of this as a future communication system development path - as well as the very interesting extension of the system for a comparable system at Mars for climatic surveys from ground stations (hence, a Mars radio)

Factors of the epidemiological triad that influence the persistence of human papilloma virus infection in women with systemic lupus erythematosus

We studied the epidemiologic triad-related factors influencing human papilloma virus (HPV) persistence in Mexican women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Patients aged ?18 years with SLE (American College of Rheumatology criteria), with and without HPV persistence, were selected. Groups were analyzed by (1) host: clinical disease characteristics; (2) agent: (I) infectious (prevalence, incidence, HPV genotype and co-infections (?2 HPV genotypes or mycoplasmas)), (II) chemical (contraceptives and immunosuppressive drugs) and (III) physical (vitamin D deficiency) and (3) environment. A total of 121 SLE patients were selected over a two-year period. (1) Host: mean age 45.8 years and disease duration 12.7 years. (2) Agent: (I) infectious. HPV infection prevalence in the second sample was 26.4%, high-risk HPV genotypes 21.5% and co-infections 7.4%. HPV infection incidence was 13.2%, persistence 13.2% and clearance 15.7%. (II) Chemical: use of oral hormonal contraceptives 5% and immunosuppressive treatment 97.5%. (III) Physical: Vitamin D levels were similar in both groups. (3) Environment: (I) natural. A total of 60.6% of patients were residents of Puebla City. (II) Social: The mean education level was 10.9. Poverty levels were: III degree 52.4%, IV degree 28% and II degree 17%. (III) Cultural behavioral: Onset of sexual life was 20.5 years, 10% had ?3 sexual partners and 51.2% were postmenopausal. In conclusion, no factor of the epidemiologic triad was associated with HPV infection prevalence. © The Author(s) 2018

Uncertainty Estimation for Performance Evaluation of a Confocal Microscope as Metrology Equipment

Both in industry and research, the quality control of micrometric manufactured parts is based on the measurement of parameters whose traceability is sometimes difficult to guarantee. In some of these parts, the confocal microscopy shows great aptitudes to characterize a measurand qualitatively and quantitatively. The confocal microscopy allows the acquisition of 2D and 3D images that are easily manipulated. Nowadays, this equipment is manufactured by many different brands, each of them claiming a resolution probably not in accord to their real performance. The Laser Center (Technical University of Madrid) has a confocal microscope to verify the dimensions of the micro mechanizing in their own research projects. The present study pretends to confirm that the magnitudes obtained are true and reliable. To achieve this, a methodology for confocal microscope calibration is proposed, as well as an experimental phase for dimensionally valuing the equipment by 4 different standard positions, with its seven magnifications and the six objective lenses that the equipment currently has, in the x–y and z axis. From the results the uncertainty will be estimated along with an effect analysis of the different magnifications in each of the objective lenses