Argument maps as policy memories for informed deliberation: A research note

This is an eGISE network paper. A significant area within eGovernment is concerned with systems to support democratic policy formation and decision making processes. In modern government, both local and national, consultation with interested parties is an important element in maintaining the democratic process. To date online consultation tools have has used existing software tools, which are simple text based tools that were not tailored to the process. This project proposes to develop an online tool that will visualise the issues and arguments graphically as the consultation process proceeds. Using Discourse Analysis and Ontological Engineering it will create Argument Maps that will server not only to inform participants but also the archive record of the consultation – the Policy Memory. We hypothesise that such a tool would allow citizens to be come more engaged with policy formation and enhance democratic participation

Local Area Dynamic Routing Protocol: a Position Based Routing Protocol for MANET

A Mobile Ad Hoc Network (MANET) comprises mobile nodes (MNs), equipped with wireless communications devices; which form a temporary communication network without fixed network infrastructure or topology. The characteristics of MANET are: limited bandwidth; limited radio range; high mobility; and vulnerability to attacks that degrade the signal to noise ratio and bit error rates. These characteristics create challenges to MANET routing protocols. In addition, the mobility pattern of the MNs also has major impact on the MANET routing protocols. The issue of routing and maintaining packets between MNs in the mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) has always been a challenge; i.e. encountering broadcast storm under high node density, geographically constrained broadcasting of a service discovery message and local minimum problem under low node density. This requires an efficient design and development of a lightweight routing algorithm which can be handled by those GPS equipped devices. Most proposed location based routing protocols however, rely on a single route for each data transmission. They also use a location based system to find the destination address of MNs which over time, will not be accurate and may result in routing loop or routing failure. Our proposed lightweight protocol, ‘Local Area Network Dynamic Routing’ (LANDY) uses a localized routing technique which combines a unique locomotion prediction method and velocity information of MNs to route packets. The protocol is capable of optimising routing performance in advanced mobility scenarios, by reducing the control overhead and improving the data packet delivery. In addition, the approach of using locomotion prediction, has the advantage of fast and accurate routing over other position based routing algorithms in mobile scenarios. Recovery with LANDY is faster than other location protocols, which use mainly greedy algorithms, (such as GPRS), no signalling or configuration of the intermediate nodes is required after a failure. The key difference is that it allows sharing of locomotion and velocity information among the nodes through locomotion table. The protocol is designed for applications in which we expect that nodes will have access to a position service (e.g., future combat system). Simulation results show that LANDY`s performance improves upon other position based routing protocols

Astrometric Monitoring of the HR 8799 Planets: Orbit Constraints from Self-Consistent Measurements

We present new astrometric measurements from our ongoing monitoring campaign of the HR 8799 directly imaged planetary system. These new data points were obtained with NIRC2 on the W.M. Keck II 10 meter telescope between 2009 and 2014. In addition, we present updated astrometry from previously published observations in 2007 and 2008. All data were reduced using the SOSIE algorithm, which accounts for systematic biases present in previously published observations. This allows us to construct a self-consistent data set derived entirely from NIRC2 data alone. From this dataset, we detect acceleration for two of the planets (HR 8799b and e) at $>$3$\sigma$. We also assess possible orbital parameters for each of the four planets independently. We find no statistically significant difference in the allowed inclinations of the planets. Fitting the astrometry while forcing coplanarity also returns $\chi^2$ consistent to within 1$\sigma$ of the best fit values, suggesting that if inclination offsets of $\lesssim$20$^{o}$ are present, they are not detectable with current data. Our orbital fits also favor low eccentricities, consistent with predictions from dynamical modeling. We also find period distributions consistent to within 1$\sigma$ with a 1:2:4:8 resonance between all planets. This analysis demonstrates the importance of minimizing astrometric systematics when fitting for solutions to highly undersampled orbits.Comment: 18 pages, 11 figures. Accepted for publication in A

High-contrast imaging in the Hyades with snapshot LOCI

To image faint substellar companions obscured by the stellar halo and speckles, scattered light from the bright primary star must be removed in hardware or software. We apply the "locally-optimized combination of images" (LOCI) algorithm to 1-minute Keck Observatory snapshots of GKM dwarfs in the Hyades using source diversity to determine the most likely PSF. We obtain a mean contrast of 10^{-2} at 0.01", 10^{-4} at <1", and 10^{-5} at 5". New brown dwarf and low-mass stellar companions to Hyades primaries are found in a third of the 84 targeted systems. This campaign shows the efficacy of LOCI on snapshot imaging as well as on bright wide binaries with off-axis LOCI, reaching contrasts sufficient for imaging 625-Myr late-L/early-T dwarfs purely in post-processing.Comment: 12 pages, 12 figures, to appear in SPIE Astronomy 2012, paper 8447-16

Climate Change and National Laws across Commonwealth Countries

This paper furthers the Commonwealth agenda on climate action by exploring the kinds of ‘practical and swift action’ that might be taken through national legal frameworks to implement the Paris Agreement. The paper reviews national laws of Commonwealth member countries as they currently apply to and intersect with climate change. The paper investigates legal measures that relate directly to implement climate change policy, including climate change legislation and regulatory instruments such as emissions trading schemes and energy efficiency measures. It also considers indirect legal measures that can provide ‘co-benefits’ in relation to climate change policy, such as waste legislation and air quality measures. The paper presents examples of these different kinds of climate intersections in different Commonwealth legal systems, highlighting examples of what has worked well and what has not worked well to date, within different legal, economic and political cultures, and in different geographies and climates

Magnon softening in a ferromagnetic monolayer: a first-principles spin dynamics study

We study the Fe/W(110) monolayer system through a combination of first principles calculations and atomistic spin dynamics simulations. We focus on the dispersion of the spin waves parallel to the [001] direction. Our results compare favorably with the experimental data of Prokop et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 177206], and correctly capture a drastic softening of the magnon spectrum, with respect to bulk bcc Fe. The suggested shortcoming of the itinerant electron model, in particular that given by density functional theory, is refuted. We also demonstrate that finite temperature effects are significant, and that atomistic spin dynamics simulations represent a powerful tool with which to include these.Comment: v1: 11 pages, 3 figures. v2: double column, 5 pages, 3 figures, typos corrected, references adde

Exoplanet Detection Techniques

We are still in the early days of exoplanet discovery. Astronomers are beginning to model the atmospheres and interiors of exoplanets and have developed a deeper understanding of processes of planet formation and evolution. However, we have yet to map out the full complexity of multi-planet architectures or to detect Earth analogues around nearby stars. Reaching these ambitious goals will require further improvements in instrumentation and new analysis tools. In this chapter, we provide an overview of five observational techniques that are currently employed in the detection of exoplanets: optical and IR Doppler measurements, transit photometry, direct imaging, microlensing, and astrometry. We provide a basic description of how each of these techniques works and discuss forefront developments that will result in new discoveries. We also highlight the observational limitations and synergies of each method and their connections to future space missions.Comment: 24 pages, 19 figures, PPVI proceedings. Appears as 2014, Protostars and Planets VI, Henrik Beuther, Ralf S. Klessen, Cornelis P. Dullemond, and Thomas Henning (eds.), University of Arizona Press, Tucson, 914 pp., p.715-73

Early Life Conditions and Physiological Stress following the Transition to Farming in Central/Southeast Europe: Skeletal Growth Impairment and 6000 Years of Gradual Recovery.

Early life conditions play an important role in determining adult body size. In particular, childhood malnutrition and disease can elicit growth delays and affect adult body size if severe or prolonged enough. In the earliest stages of farming, skeletal growth impairment and small adult body size are often documented relative to hunter-gatherer groups, though this pattern is regionally variable. In Central/Southeast Europe, it is unclear how early life stress, growth history, and adult body size were impacted by the introduction of agriculture and ensuing long-term demographic, social, and behavioral change. The current study assesses this impact through the reconstruction and analysis of mean stature, body mass, limb proportion indices, and sexual dimorphism among 407 skeletally mature men and women from foraging and farming populations spanning the Late Mesolithic through Early Medieval periods in Central/Southeast Europe (~7100 calBC to 850 AD). Results document significantly reduced mean stature, body mass, and crural index in Neolithic agriculturalists relative both to Late Mesolithic hunter-gatherer-fishers and to later farming populations. This indication of relative growth impairment in the Neolithic, particularly among women, is supported by existing evidence of high developmental stress, intensive physical activity, and variable access to animal protein in these early agricultural populations. Among subsequent agriculturalists, temporal increases in mean stature, body mass, and crural index were more pronounced among Central European women, driving declines in the magnitude of sexual dimorphism through time. Overall, results suggest that the transition to agriculture in Central/Southeast Europe was challenging for early farming populations, but was followed by gradual amelioration across thousands of years, particularly among Central European women. This sex difference may be indicative, in part, of greater temporal variation in the social status afforded to young girls, in their access to resources during growth, and/or in their health status than was experienced by men.Grant sponsorship Cambridge Commonwealth, European and International Trust (UK; AAM), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (Canada; AAM), European Research Council (RP; ERC Starting Grant, ERC-2010-StG263441), Natural Environment Research Council (JTS; NERC Grant Number NE/M/S/2003/00069).This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from PLOS via http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.014846