The Jury System in Contemporary Ireland: In the Shadow of a Troubled Past

Jackson et al discuss the distinctive features of criminal trial by jury in Ireland, both north and south, to explain how the jury continues to survive within modern Ireland and how it also has managed to decline in significance

Youth Political Engagement and Democratic Culture in Republican Nepal

Nepal’s transformation from an autocratic monarchy to a democratic republic presupposes the development of democratic institutions, and the current generation of Nepali youth, particularly those in higher education, are uniquely situated in that process. As such Nepali youth constitute a distinct generation along the lines specified by Karl Mannheim and others. In the past efforts to mobilize Nepalese youth have been aimed at integrating them as useful assets in the service of Nepalese political institutions, such as political student unions, but in this paper, based on fieldwork and interview data collected in 2013 and 2016, we argue that politically active youth today should be understood as an autonomous though heterogeneous constituent force that is in counterpoint with normative political institutions

A low molecular weight hydrogel with unusual gel aging

We describe a dipeptide hydrogel with unusual aging characteristics. Over time, a transformation from a turbid gel to a transparent gel occurs which is initiated from the air–water interface. Here, we investigate this transition and discuss the implications of this aging on the bulk properties of the gel

Constructive approximation in de Branges-Rovnyak spaces

In most classical holomorphic function spaces on the unit disk, a function $f$ can be approximated in the norm of the space by its dilates f\_r(z):=f(rz)~(r \textless{} 1). We show that this is \emph{not} the case for the de Branges--Rovnyak spaces \cH(b). More precisely, we give an example of a non-extreme point $b$ of the unit ball of $H^\infty$ and a function f\in\cH(b) such that \lim\_{r\to1^-}\|f\_r\|\_{\cH(b)}=\infty. It is known that, if $b$ is a non-extreme point of the unit ball of $H^\infty$, then polynomials are dense in \cH(b). We give the first constructive proof of this fact

The Xeros data model: tracking interpretations of archaeological finds

At an archaeological dig, interpretations are built around discovered artifacts based on measurements and informed intuition. These interpretations are semi-structured and organic, yet existing tools do not capture their creation or evolution. Patina of Notes (PoN) is an application designed to tackle this, and is underpinned by the Xeros data model. Xeros is a graph structure and a set of operations that can deal with the addition, edition, and removal of interpretations. This data model is a specialisation of the W3C PROV provenance data model, tracking the evolution of interpretations. The model is presented, with operations defined formally, and characteristics of the representation that are beneficial to implementations are discussed

Household Food Waste Pilot Project

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s focus on reducing the amount of food reaching landfills must target waste that comes from households or lose an important opportunity to encourage sustainability and decrease health and environmental impacts of food waste. The EPA Food Recovery Challenge offers a hierarchy of activities to reduce landfilled or incinerated food waste. In order of priority they are: waste prevention, feeding needy people, feeding animals, industrial use including energy generation, and lastly composting. The Hierarchy is prescriptive; solutions are implemented according to circumstances. The environmental, social, and economic impacts of food waste are most effectively addressed by prevention and avoiding waste in the first place. However, proven methods for prevention are not necessarily obvious, easy, or quick. Illustrating the magnitude of the problem, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated that 31% of edible food that reached retailers and consumers in 2010 was never eaten (The Estimated Amount, Value, and Calories of Postharvest Food Losses at the Retail and Consumer Levels in the United States) (Buzby, 2014). That represents 133 billion pounds of food with a retail value of $161 billion. Perhaps surprisingly, approximately 21$115 billion on food that we never ate! EPA’s West Coast Climate and Materials Management Forum recognized in 2011 that an effective tool was needed to help people reduce their household food waste. The Food Too Good To Waste initiative focusing on waste reduction was borne from the efforts of this group. Beginning in 2012 and continuing today, pilot projects from around the country are collecting critical data and information about the performance of the Initiative. Food Too Good To Waste provides a system for people to measure food waste. When put into practice, people learn: what food they waste and why, and how to reduce it. After measuring their food waste, participants are shown simple tools to shop smarter, store food properly, prepare food to last longer, and how to enjoy leftovers. This all helps people understand why food is just too meaningful to throw away. Results from pilot projects demonstrate total household food waste prevention of 15 to 25 percent. In a four-person home, this can amount to $400 or more in edible food cost savings every year along with significant environmental benefits, which people also enjoy creating! EPA’s Food Recovery Challenge teaches new sustainable ways for people to manage their food at home while dramatically reducing the amount of food that they throw away

The truth about anti-semitism in the Soviet Union: Exposing the fraud perpetrated on the American people

https://stars.library.ucf.edu/prism/1298/thumbnail.jp