When do governments concede to terrorists?

This study addresses the question of whether violence leads to governments making concessions. There were four hypotheses proposed that support the research on this question. The first proposed that there was no correlation between levels of violence and concessions. The second proposed that concessions increase as violence increases. The third proposed that concessions decrease as violence decreases. The final hypothesis proposed that there would be no concessions until a certain level of violence was reached, which was designated as a tipping point. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) served as the sample case study of this analysis. The findings indicate that there is no statistically significant relationship between levels of violence and the Colombian government making concessions to the FARC. Regardless of the amount of violence that the FARC perpetuates each year, the Colombian government does not make concessions. Further analysis suggests that there may be a relationship between presidential parties, elections cycles, and governments making concessions.http://archive.org/details/whendogovernment1094542671Captain, United States ArmyApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Claude Debussy’s Children’s Corner – A Pedagogical Guide

A student learning Debussy’s Children’s Corner must be properly trained to handle a wide range of physical and musical demands. An experienced teacher, who is able to analyze and anticipate musical and technical challenges, demonstrate specific musical passages, and develop an organized plan of sequential learning steps, will successfully guide the student-learning process. As a teaching guide, this project addressed each piece individually, highlighting various technical and musical challenges, followed by pedagogical recommendations for addressing these challenges

Cost Comparison of Perchlorate Treatment Options

Perchlorate (ClO4 -) is used as an oxidizer for rocket fuel, fireworks, matches, air bags, and other mechanisms requiring enhanced explosions. Because perchlorate is extremely hydrophilic, it leaches into ground water and is eventually found in drinking water supplies. Public health is the primary reason agencies regulate perchlorate. Severe effects of perchlorate ingestion are hypothyroidism, goiter, and aplastic anemia. The objectives of this study were isolate areas of perchlorate occurrence and compare costs of government sanctioned compliance methods. Two removal strategies meet the best available technology (BAT) criteria for perchlorate, single pass ion exchange and biological fluidized bed reactor. The former is the preferred method due to issues with possible pathogenic bacteria for the latter. Another compliance option is blending with a fresh water source. Costs were compared for ion exchange and blending for each of the water sources in each of two public water systems. The study compared the relative prices of blending and ion exchange over a twenty-year period and found that in the $60/acre-ft case, the inflation adjusted total cost of blending was$9,595,263 for Pomona and $15,152,463 for Riverside. For the average$250/acre-ft case, the inflation adjusted total cost of blending was $33,814,300 for Pomona and$56,842,972 for Riverside. In the high estimate, $500/acre-ft, the inflation adjusted total cost of blending was$65,681,455 for Pomona and $111,698,906 for Riverside. The inflation adjusted total cost for ion exchange was$41,411,187 for Pomona and $55,631,907 for Riverside. Thus, depending on the cost scenario used the costs determine varied recommendations

Chasing the second gamma-ray bright isolated neutron star: 3EG J1835+5918/RX J1836.2+5925

The EGRET telescope aboard NASAs Compton GRO has repeatedly detected 3EG J1835+5918, a bright and steady source of high-energy gamma-ray emission with no identification suggested until recently. The long absence of any likely counterpart for a bright gamma-ray source located 25 degrees off the Galactic plane initiated several attempts of deep observations at other wavelengths. We report on counterparts in X-rays on a basis of a 60 ksec ROSAT HRI image. In order to conclude on the plausibility of the X-ray counterparts, we reanalyzed data from EGRET at energies above 100 MeV and above 1 GeV, including data up to CGRO observation cycle 7. The gamma-ray source location represents the latest and probably the final positional assessment based on EGRET data. The X-ray counterparts were studied during follow-up optical identification campaigns, leaving only one object to be likely associated with the gamma-ray source 3EG J1835+5918. This object, RX J1836.2+5925, has the characteristics of an isolated neutron star and possibly of a radio-quiet pulsar.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. To appear in the Proceedings of the 270. WE-Heraeus Seminar on Neutron Stars, Pulsars and Supernova Remnants, Jan. 21-25, 2002, Physikzentrum Bad Honnef, eds W. Becker, H. Lesch & J. Truemper. Proceedings are available as MPE-Report 27

The changing UV and X-ray properties of the Of?p star CPD -28 2561

The Of?p star CPD -28 2561 was monitored at high energies with XMM-Newton and HST. In X-rays, this magnetic oblique rotator displays bright and hard emission that varies by ~55% with rotational phase. These changes occur in phase with optical variations, as expected for magnetically confined winds; there are two maxima and two minima in X-rays during the 73d rotational period of CPD -28 2561. However, contrary to previously studied cases, no significant hardness variation is detected between minima and maxima, with the exception of the second minimum which is slightly distinct from the first one. In the UV domain, broad-band fluxes remain stable while line profiles display large variations. Stronger absorptions at low velocities are observed when the magnetic equator is seen edge-on, which can be reproduced by a detailed 3D model. However, a difference in absorption at high velocities in the CIV and NV lines is also detected for the two phases where the confined wind is seen nearly pole-on. This suggests the presence of strong asymmetries about the magnetic equator, mostly in the free-flowing wind (rather than in the confined dynamical magnetosphere).Comment: 14 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication by MNRA

Computer Science Outreach to Inform Secondary School Students’ Perceptions of Computer Science: Preliminary Findings

This poster describes a longitudinal K-12 outreach programme to promote Computer Science in Ireland, which ran over a three-year period from 2017- 2020. A pilot phase was conducted in the first year from 2017-2018 with 2900 students participating. The implementation phase began in 2018, when 7320 students participated across the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 academic years. The programme consisted of a free onsite school delivery of a two-hour camp that introduced students to a range of Computing topics: addressing computing perceptions, introduction to coding, and exploration of computational thinking. Schools self-selected, and the programme reached a large number of schools with varied socio-economic and gender diversity, along with schools across every county in Ireland. The student ages ranged from third class (7 - 8 years old) in primary school to sixth year in second level (17 - 18 years old). This poster focuses specifically on the research data collected during the implementation phase (N=1211) from secondary school students (12 - 18 years old) not enrolled in the formal Leaving Certificate Computer Science subject. Looking at student perceptions of Computer Science and if the outreach positively impacted those perceptions and built student interest in pursuing further study in Computer Science.https://arrow.tudublin.ie/cddpos/1011/thumbnail.jp

Screening of retroviral cDNA libraries for factors involved in protein phosphorylation in signaling cascades

We report a novel approach that allows for the rapid identification of proteins mediating phosphorylation in signaling cascades after specific stimulation. As a proof of concept, we used the interferon- γ (IFN-γ)-induced phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription-1 (Stat1) in a human promonocytic cell line, which was previously shown to be deficient in this signaling pathway. By using retroviral cDNA expression libraries, transduced selector cells expressing single cDNAs were stimulated with IFN-γ, then fixed, permeabilized and stained intracellularly for phospho-Stat1 levels. Cells responding to the stimulation, which showed increased levels of phosphorylated Stat1, were enriched using fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS). Genomic DNA was isolated from the enriched cell population and served as a template for cDNA amplification using PCR. After only one round of selection, a cDNA encoding the β-chain of the IFN-γ receptor (IFNGR2) was obtained and demonstrated to restore the selected phenotype. The approach now allows one to use phospho-events as reporters, alone or in tandem, for screening of signaling network states, overcoming a prior need to rely on the reporter genes that are often only indirect measures of phenotypes desired in a screen