Operation Moshtarak and the manufacture of credible, “heroic” warfare

Richard Lance Keeble argues that Fleet Street’s coverage of the Afghan conflict has served largely to promote the interests of the military/industrial/media complex – and marginalise the views of the public who have consistently appealed in polls for the troops to be brought back hom

Serving within the British army: research into mental health benefits

This document is the Accepted Manuscript version of a Published Work that appeared in final form in British Journal of Nursing, copyright © MA Education, after peer review and technical editing by the publisher. To access the final edited and published work see http://www.magonlinelibrary.com/doi/abs/10.12968/bjon.2011.20.19.1256The mental health (MH) of soldiers remains extremely newsworthy and is regularly featured in high profile media forums that focus on post-traumatic stress disorder. However, the authors feel that there are distinct benefits to serving within the Army, and that it provides effective occupational medical, MH and welfare support. This research study explores potential benefits and stressors of being in the Army and provides an overview of Army mental health services (AMHS) through the perspectives of AMHS personnel, 84% of which were nurses. The study indicated that the Army can provide a protective community, sharing a bond based on common values and experiences. The Army can provide soldiers with career opportunities that are not available in civilian life, and there are opportunities to develop an employment profile, enhanced by internal and external educational training, and encapsulated within a progressive career pathway. The Army can also be seen to offer an escape route, preventing soldiers entering a life of crime, and supplying the stable family these soldiers had never experienced. The provision of leadership, within an environment where soldiers are valued and stigma is not tolerated can potentially shield against MH problems

A rebellious past : history, theatre and the England riots

Alain Badiou has argued that the England riots of 2011, in dialogue with societal upheavals around the world that same year, demonstrated fundamental crises in our governing social, economic and political discourses. Whilst institutional responses to the riots treated them as an aberration, Badiou believes them to be symptomatic of a broader rebirth of ‘history’ – the coalescing of past and present events into a congruent trajectory with powerful implications for the future. Using Badiou’s argument as a starting point, this article considers two theatrical responses to the riots – Nicholas Kent’s premiere of Gillian Slovo’s The Riots at the Tricycle, and Sean Holmes’ revival of Edward Bond’s Saved at the Lyric Hammersmith. By looking at the ways in which the productions sought to historicise the riots, I unpick both their interpretations of these events, and the contributions they were able to make to the urgent and ongoing discussions that the riots have generated.PostprintPeer reviewe

A Multiwavelength Investigation of the Relationship Between 2CG135+1 and LSI+61o 303

We present the results of a multiwavelength monitoring campaign targeting the gamma-ray source 2CG 135+1 in an attempt to confirm the association of this object with the radio/Be/X-ray binary system LSI +61o 303. The campaign included simultaneous radio, optical, infrared, and hard x-ray/gamma-ray observations carried out with a variety of instruments, covering (not continously) almost three binary cycles of LSI +61o 303 during the period April-July 1994. Three separate OSSE observations of the gamma-ray source were carried out, covering different phases of the radio lightcurve. Hard X-ray/gamma-ray emission was detected from the direction of 2CG 135+1 during the first of these OSSE observations. The signal to noise ratio of the OSSE observations was insufficient to establish a spectral or intensity correlation of the high-energy emission with simultaneous radio, optical and infrared emission of LSI +61o 303. We briefly discuss the theoretical implications of our observations.Comment: 17 pages, 9 figures, 6 tables to be published in Astrophysical Journal, 10 April 199

The spin periods and magnetic moments of white dwarfs in magnetic cataclysmic variables

We have used a model of magnetic accretion to investigate the rotational equilibria of magnetic cataclysmic variables (mCVs). The results of our numerical simulations demonstrate that there is a range of parameter space in the P_spin / P_orb versus mu_1 plane at which rotational equilibrium occurs. This has allowed us to calculate the theoretical histogram describing the distribution of magnetic CVs as a function of P_spin / P_orb. We show that this agrees with the observed distribution assuming that the number of systems as a function of white dwarf magnetic moment is distributed approximately according to N(mu_1) d mu_1 proportional to 1/mu_1 d mu_1. The rotational equilibria also allow us to infer approximate values for the magnetic moments of all known intermediate polars. We predict that intermediate polars with mu_1 > 5 x 10^33 G cm^3 and P_orb > 3h will evolve into polars, whilst those with mu_1 < 5 x 10^33 G cm^3 and P_orb > 3h will either evolve into low field strength polars which are (presumably) unobservable, and possibly EUV emitters, or, if their fields are buried by high accretion rates, evolve into conventional polars once their magnetic fields re-surface when the mass accretion rate reduces. We speculate that EX Hya-like systems may have low magnetic field strength secondaries and so avoid synchronisation. Finally we note that the equilibria we have investigated correspond to a variety of different types of accretion flow, including disc-like accretion at small P_spin / P_orb values, stream-like accretion at intermediate P_spin / P_orb values, and accretion fed from a ring at the outer edge of the white dwarf Roche lobe at higher P_spin / P_orb values.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. Figre 3 included here as a low resolution gif onl

The Be/X-ray transient KS 1947+300

We present optical spectroscopy and optical and infrared photometry of the counterpart to the transient X-ray source KS 1947+300. The counterpart is shown to be a moderately reddened V=14.2 early-type Be star located in an area of low interstellar absorption slightly above the Galactic plane. Changes in brightness are accompanied by correlated reddening of the source, as is expected in this kind of object. From intermediate resolution spectroscopy, we derive a spectral type B0Ve. If the intrinsic luminosity of the star is normal for its spectral type, KS 1947+300 is situated at a distance of ~10 kpc, implying that its X-ray luminosity at the peak of the spring 2000 X-ray outburst was typical of Type II outbursts in Be/X-ray transients. KS 1947+300 is thus the first Be/X-ray recurrent transient showing Type II outbursts which has an almost circular orbit.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, uses new A&A format (included). Accepted for publication in A&

Nematology in the North Central Region, 1956-1966

There have been many accomplishments in nematology in the North Central Region during the past decade. As a result of the organization of a regional nematology committee, research and teaching in the area have been greatly expanded. New problems of major agricultural significance have been discovered, and some of suspected significance have been revealed. An awareness has developed of a large and important group of animals, many of them plant parasites. Because of sheer numbers alone, nematodes deserve more attention by biologists in all aspects.https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/specialreports/1055/thumbnail.jp

Covert action failure and fiasco construction: William Hague’s 2011 Libyan venture

In 2011 William Hague, then British Foreign Secretary, authorized a Special Forces team to enter Libya and attempt to contact rebels opposed to Muammar Gaddafi in the unfolding civil war. However, its members were detained by the rebels, questioned and ejected from the country. This article puts the literature on public policy failures into dialogue with that on covert action as a tool of foreign policy. It asks: why did this not develop into a fully-fledged policy fiasco when journalists and politicians alike judged it to have been a major error of judgement on Hague’s part? Using narrative analysis of the contemporary reporting of this incident, we argue that the government – possessing the advantage of information asymmetry accruing from operational secrecy – was ultimately able to win the battle of narratives in a frame contestation process. The study of information asymmetry can enhance the recently revivified research into foreign policy failures

Взаємний зв'язок властивостей і структури плівкових чутливих елементів сенсорів магнітного поля

Дисертацію присвячено комплексним експериментальним дослідженням особливостей структурно-фазового стану та магнітних і магніторезистивних властивостей багатошарових плівкових систем на основі Co і Cu, Co і Cr, Fe і Cr та Fe і Cu як можливих матеріалів чутливих елементів сенсорів різного призначення. У роботі встановлено взаємозв’язок між товщиною магнітних шарів і немагнітних прошарків, орієнтацією зразка у зовнішньому магнітному полі, температурою термообробки та магнітними, магніторезистивними і магнітооптичними властивостями багатошарових плівкових систем із можливим спін-залежним розсіюванням електронів. Визначені величини магнітоопору, коерцитивної сили, коефіцієнта прямокутності й чутливості плівкової системи до магнітного поля досліджуваних плівкових систем як приладових структур для формування первинних перетворювачів. Установлена кореляція між структурно-фазовим станом, магнітними та магнітооптичними властивостями тришарових плівкових систем з різним типом розчинності компонент як функціональних елементів датчиків. Запропонована схематична конструкція АМР-датчика магнітного поля для тришарових плівкових систем із спін-залежним розсіюванням електронів. У результаті проведених досліджень впливу геометрії вимірювання, температури термообробки та загальної концентрації феромагнітної компоненти в системі на магнітні й магніторезистивні властивості визначені можливі області застосування плівкових систем на основі Co і Cu або Cr та Fe і Cu або Cr.Диссертация посвящена комплексным экспериментальным исследованиям особенностей структурно-фазового состояния, магнитных магниторезистивных свойств многослойных пленочных систем на основе Co и Cu, Co и Cr, Fe и Cr и Fe и Cu в качестве возможных материалов чувствительных элементов сенсоров различного назначения. В работе установлена взаимосвязь между толщиной магнитных слоев и немагнитных прослоек, ориентацией образца во внешнем магнитном поле, температурой термообработки и магнитными, магниторезистивными и магнитооптическими свойствами многослойных пленочных систем с возможным спин-зависимым рассеянием электронов. При исследовании магнитных свойств пленочных систем на основе Fe, Co, Cu или Cr получено, что для пленочных систем на основе Fe и Cu в форме кривых гистерезиса наблюдается определенный перегиб, свидетельствующий о послойном перемагничивании слоев Fe, в то время как для систем на основе Fe и Cr петля гистерезиса имеет форму, подобную однослойным пленкам Fe, что говорит о преобладании ферромагнитной связи в системе. В пленочных структурах на основе Co и Cr или Cu магнитные свойства системы главным образом определяются состоянием слоев Со, поэтому форма кривых гистерезиса для обеих систем схожа с формой кривых для однослойных пленок Со, а небольшие значения коэрцитивной силы свидетельствуют о реализации ферромагнитной связи в системе. Все четыре системы характеризуются достаточно высоким значением коэффициента прямоугольности, которое при смене ориентации образца от 0 до 90° несколько уменьшается для систем Fe/Cu/Fe и Fe/Cr/Fe и, наоборот, растет в системах на основе Co и Cr. Определены величины магнитосопротивления, коэрцитивной силы, коэффициента прямоугольности и чувствительности пленочной системы к магнитному полю исследуемых пленочных систем как приборных структур для формирования первичных преобразователей. Установлена корреляция между структурно-фазовым состоянием, магнитными и магнитооптическими свойствами трехслойных пленочных систем с разным типом растворимости компонент в качестве функциональных элементов датчиков. Предложена схематическая конструкция АМР-датчика магнитного поля для трехслойных пленочных систем со спин-зависимым рассеянием электронов. В результате проведенных исследований влияния геометрии измерения, температуры термообработки и общей концентрации ферромагнитной компоненты в системе на магниторезистивные свойства определены возможные области применения пленочных систем на основе Co и Cu или Cr и Fe и Cu или Cr.The thesіs іs dedіcаted to the complex experіmentаl reseаrch between the structurаl-phаse stаte, magnetic and magnetoresistance propertіes of multіlаyer fіlm systems bаsed on the Co аnd Cu, Co аnd Cr, Fe аnd Cr, аnd Fe аnd Cu, аs the potential mаterіаls for sensіtіve elements of sensors for dіfferent purposes. Іn thіs thesis wаs found the correlаtіon between the thіckness of the mаgnetіc аnd nonmаgnetіc lаyers, the orіentаtіon of the sаmple іn аn externаl mаgnetіc fіeld, temperаture of heаt treаtment аnd mаgnetіc, mаgnetoresіstіve аnd mаgneto-optіcаl propertіes іn multіlаyer fіlm systems wіth possіble spіn-dependent scаtterіng of electrons. The vаlues of mаgnetoresіstаnce, coercіvіty, squаreness fаctor аnd sensіtіvіty of fіlm system to a mаgnetіc fіeld in the studіed fіlm systems аs devіce structures for the formаtіon of prіmаry converters were defined. The correlаtіon between the structurаl-phаse stаte, mаgnetіc аnd mаgneto-optіcаl propertіes of three-lаyer fіlm systems wіth dіfferent types of component solubіlіty аs functіonаl elements sensors was established. The schemаtіc sturucture of АMR sensor for three-lаyer fіlm systems wіth spіn-dependent scаtterіng of electrons was purposed. The possіble аreаs of аpplіcаtіons wаs іdentіfіed on the bаsіs of studіes of the effect of geometry meаsurement temperаture heаt treаtment аnd the totаl concentrаtіon of ferromаgnetіc components іn the system on the magnetic and mаgnetoresіstіve propertіes of fіlm-systems bаsed on Co аnd Cu, or Cr аnd Fe, аnd Cu or Cr

Baseline Religion Involvement Predicts Subsequent Salivary Cortisol Levels Among Male But not Female Black Youth

Background: Compared to Whites, Blacks are exposed to higher levels of chronic stress in the United States. As a result, major Black-White differences exist in the baseline and response of cortisol. Yet, the potential association between baseline religiosity and subsequent cortisol levels of Blacks are not known. Objectives: In the current study we aimed to determine the association between baseline religious behaviors and daytime salivary cortisol level among male and female Black youth. Materials and Methods: With a longitudinal design, data came from wave 1 (1994) and wave 6 (2000) of a cohort from an urban area in the Midwest of the United States. The study followed 227 Black adolescents (109 males and 118 females) for six years. Socio-demographics and religious behaviors (frequency of participation in religious activities) were measured at baseline. Base morning cortisol level at wave 6 was the outcome. We fitted a linear regression model to test the association between baseline religiosity at wave 1 and cortisol level at wave 6, while baseline age, socio-economics, and psychological symptoms were controlled. Results: In the pooled sample, frequency of participation in religious activities at baseline was negatively associated with mean cortisol level at follow up (r = -0.29, P > 0.01) among all, males (r = -0.38, P > 0.01), but not females (r = -.20, P > 0.05). Frequency of participation in religious activities remained a significant predictor of subsequent cortisol level (b = -0.283, 95% CI = -.107 - -0.022) while the effect of age, socioeconomics, and psychological symptoms were controlled. We could only find such an association among male Black youth (b = -0.368, 95% CI = -0.148 - -0.024) but not female Black youth (b = -0.229, 95% CI = -.113 - 0.011). Conclusions: Religiosity has been used as a coping mechanism among Blacks. Religiosity may also be related to stress regulation among Black youth. Future studies need to test complex associations between race, sex, religiosity, chronic stress, coping, and function of hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA). It is not known whether male Black youth who are and those who are not religious differently cope with stress associated with daily discrimination and living in disadvantaged neighborhoods