Reasonable accommodation : faith and judgment

This paper considers the approach of domestic courts and the European Court of Human Rights to the adjudication of religious liberty claims, contrasting them with the output of the United States Supreme Court. It questions the definition of religion and judicial illiteracy in faith based claims. It seeks to make take a fresh approach to such cases by recasting them as claims for freedom of conscience. It commends a nuanced application of the principle of reasonable accommodation

Neil Gaiman\u27s American Gods: An Outsider\u27s Critique of American Culture

In 2001, Neil Gaiman published American Gods, a novel of American life and mythology. As a British author living in the United States, Gaiman has a powerful vantage point from which to critique American culture, landscape, and ideology. Rich with re-invented deities, legends, mythic creatures, and folk heroes cast in a decidedly American mold, American Gods examines the American character, evaluating the myths and beliefs of the culture from the vantage point of an outsider. By examining the character\u27s allegiance to particular cultural legacies (Wednesday as the American con artist, Shadow as the cowboy), I intend to assess this outsider\u27s understanding of what it means to be an American

Optimizing edge-of-field water quality monitoring methods to determine the effects of best management practices on nutrient and sediment runoff

This study investigates the impact on water quality of combined agricultural best management practices cover crop and minimum tillage, alongside an examination of techniques used to collect those samples. Edge-of-field (EOF) water quality samples were collected from 11 working farms during a two-year paired field experiment. Results showed significant reductions in nutrient concentrations, increased discharge, and mixed findings regarding nutrient mass transport post-treatment. A suite of EOF collection techniques were compared using in-situ automated water sampling systems sampling the same runoff events. Sampling protocols influenced nutrient concentrations in composite samples, but unexpected variance in velocity sensors affected measured discharge, making it challenging to confidently attribute differences in nutrient loading estimates to sampling protocol. The findings provide regionally specific evidence for mitigating on-farm nutrient enrichment in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley and enhancing monitoring techniques

Neil Gaiman\u27s American Gods: An Outsider\u27s Critique of American Culture

In 2001, Neil Gaiman published American Gods, a novel of American life and mythology. As a British author living in the United States, Gaiman has a powerful vantage point from which to critique American culture, landscape, and ideology. Rich with re-invented deities, legends, mythic creatures, and folk heroes cast in a decidedly American mold, American Gods examines the American character, evaluating the myths and beliefs of the culture from the vantage point of an outsider. By examining the character\u27s allegiance to particular cultural legacies (Wednesday as the American con artist, Shadow as the cowboy), I intend to assess this outsider\u27s understanding of what it means to be an American

Management of mental illness by the British Army

Background: The Ministry of Defence has its own hospital for soldiers requiring admission for mental health problems. Aims: To assess the efficiency of the army psychiatric hospital at restoring patients to full active duty. To assess whether a new military training and rehabilitation unit (MTRU) that emphasises military-skills training, improves outcome. Method: A 2-year, inception-cohort outcome study of hospital in-patients. A 12-month, case-matched, ‘before and after’ outcome study compared MTRU patients with hospital in-patients. Results: I (hospital in-patients, n=309): at 2-year follow-up 67 (22%) were fully fit for active duty. Military psychiatrists' success rate at predicting recovery to active duty was 27%. 2: the odds of a soldier in the MTRU cohort (n=35) returning to active duty were 14 times greater than for the hospital cohort (n=35). The odds of remaining in the army while unfit for active duty were 20 times less for the MTRU than for the hospital cohort. Conclusions: The army hospital is inefficient at rehabilitation to active duty. The MTRU significantly increased the odds of returning to active duty and reduced the odds of remaining in the army while still unfit. These findings may be applicable to the emergency services