Development of a scanning electron mirror microscope

Scanning electron mirrors microscope design and developmen

The structure of the plasma sheet-lobe boundary in the Earth's magnetotail

The structure of the magnetotail plasma sheet-plasma lobe boundary was studied by observing the properties of tailward flowing O+ ion beams, detected by the ISEE 2 plasma experiment inside the boundary during three time periods. The computed value of the north-south electric field component as well as the O+ parameters are shown to change at the boundary. The results are related to other observations made in this region. The O+ parameters and the Ez component behavior are shown to be consistent with that expected from the topology of the electric field lines in the tail as mapped from the ionosphere

Creative accounting three score years ago; Office management as a profession

Professor Garner brought the following human interest item to the attention of this editor. Emphasis (italics) was supplied throughout by Dr. Garner. From: Alpha Kappa Psi Diary, June, 1924 OFFICE MANAGEMENT AS A PROFESSION By A. W. T. Ogilvie, Gamma Chapter. There is also a note acknowledging Dr. Garner\u27s contribution to the Endowment Fund

The climate emergency across business, community and campaign groups: motivations and barriers to driving change for the common good

Initiatives to help tackle the climate emergency have tended to focus on large-scale actions that governments can take and smaller-scale actions for individuals, with relatively limited attention given to the mass of groups that form society between these two ends of the spectrum. The aim here is to help close that gap and the chosen areas of study are business, community, and campaign groups. The approach was to assess the existing literature and to conduct three focus groups to identify what motivates these groups to take actions on climate change, while also uncovering the barriers that may drive choices of inaction. The findings indicate that multiple factors motivate environmental engagements across business, community, and campaign groups, but personal ethics and concern for the future play the most vital roles. The most common barriers cited were difficulties in accessing support schemes, a lack of clear accessible information, and financial implications. Better networking and knowledge exchange are considered essential for meaningful progress. This research provides a new framework, upon which many organisations can be better motivated to take actions in helping deal with the global climate emergency facing humanity. Practical action guides may be developed from existing materials, and small taskforces could be trained to provide direct hands-on support to groups across society, especially those in SMEs and local communities. The energies of younger people and campaigners, combined with the experiences of other generations, would create a powerful force for good

Making Sense of a New Transport System: An Ethnographic Study of the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway

An increase in public transport use has the potential to contribute to improving population health, and there is growing interest in innovative public transport systems. Yet how new public transport infrastructure is experienced and integrated (or not) into daily practice is little understood. We investigated how the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway, UK, was used and experienced in the weeks following its opening, using the method of participant observation (travelling on the busway and observing and talking to passengers) and drawing on Normalization Process Theory to interpret our data. Using excerpts of field notes to support our interpretations, we describe how the ease with which the new transport system could be integrated into existing daily routines was important in determining whether individuals would continue to use it. It emerged that there were two groups of passengers with different experiences and attitudes. Passengers who had previously travelled frequently on regular bus services did not perceive the new system to be an improvement; consequently, they were frustrated that it was differentiated from and not coherent with the regular system. In contrast, passengers who had previously travelled almost exclusively by car appraised the busway positively and perceived it to be a novel and superior form of travel. Our rich qualitative account highlights the varied and creative ways in which people learn to use new public transport and integrate it into their everyday lives. This has consequences for the introduction and promotion of future transport innovations. It is important to emphasise the novelty of new public transport, but also the ways in which its use can become ordinary and routine. Addressing these issues could help to promote uptake of other public transport interventions, which may contribute to increasing physical activity and improving population health. © 2013 Jones et al

PEComa of the Upper Extremity: A Unique Case and Description of an Initial Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy

Purpose. Tumors of the perivascular epithelial cell tumor (PEComa), first described in 1992, represent a rare soft tissue neoplasm of varying malignant potential. Cases of PEComa have been previously described in a few somatic and visceral sites, most notably in the gastrointestinal tract, genitourinary tract, and one extremity case in the thigh. To date, most malignant cases of PEComa have been resistant to chemotherapy, and as such, an appropriate therapy is not known. Case report. Here we describe the first case of PEComa of the upper extremity. Open biopsy revealed a high-grade malignant lesion, and the patient subsequently underwent both neoadjuvant therapy with doxorubicin, ifosfamide and mensa, and radiation therapy prior to wide surgical resection. After six cycles of chemotherapy, the tumor underwent an 80% reduction in size. Subsequent neoadjuvant radiation therapy of 5000 cGy did not further reduce the size of the tumor. Following limb sparing radical resection, pathology showed 20% necrosis within a high-grade malignant lesion. Twenty one months after beginning treatment, the patient shows no sign of local recurrence, but metastatic disease was confirmed after resection of a lung nodule. Conclusion. Given the favorable albeit partial response seen in this patient, the course of therapy outlined here may represent a good starting point for neoadjuvant treatment in a tumor with a historically bleak prognosis. In addition, the diagnosis of PEComa must now be entertained in the differential diagnosis of upper extremity soft tissue sarcoma

Aligning spinning black holes and accretion discs

We consider the alignment torque between a spinning black hole and an accretion disc whose angular momenta are misaligned. This situation must hold initially in almost all gas accretion events on to supermassive black holes, and may occur in binaries where the black hole receives a natal supernova kick. We show that the torque always acts to align the hole's spin with the total angular momentum without changing its magnitude. The torque acts dissipatively on the disc, reducing its angular momentum, and aligning it with the hole if and only if the angle theta between the angular momenta J_d of the disc and J_h of the hole satisfies the inequality cos theta > -J_d / 2 J_h. If this condition fails, which requires both theta > pi/2 and J_d < 2 J_h, the disc counteraligns.Comment: MNRAS, in pres

Interaction of the solar wind with Venus

Two topics related to the interaction of the solar wind with Venus are considered. First, a short review of the experimental evidence with particular attention to plasma measurements carried out on Mariner-5 and Mariner-10 is given. Secondly, the results of some recent theoretical work on the interaction of the solar wind with the ionosphere of Venus are summarized

Warp propagation in astrophysical discs

Astrophysical discs are often warped, that is, their orbital planes change with radius. This occurs whenever there is a non-axisymmetric force acting on the disc, for example the Lense-Thirring precession induced by a misaligned spinning black hole, or the gravitational pull of a misaligned companion. Such misalignments appear to be generic in astrophysics. The wide range of systems that can harbour warped discs - protostars, X-ray binaries, tidal disruption events, quasars and others - allows for a rich variety in the disc's response. Here we review the basic physics of warped discs and its implications.Comment: To be published in Astrophysical Black Holes by Haardt et al., Lecture Notes in Physics, Springer 2015. 19 pages, 2 figure

Management actions to address the climate emergency: Motivations and barriers for SMEs and other societal micro/meso-level groups

Initiatives to tackle the climate emergency have tended to focus on large-scale actions that governments and investors (societal macro-levels) can take and smaller-scale individual habits, with limited attention given to the groups that form society between those ends of the spectrum (societal micro/meso-levels). This research aims to traverse that gap by studying three societal micro/meso-level groups; from the private, public and voluntary sectors, as represented by business, community and campaign groups. Existing literature and focus groups are used to identify what motivates actions on climate change, while exposing barriers that may drive choices of inaction. The study shows that concerns for the future and personal ethics play vital roles across business, community and campaign groups, while the principal barriers include difficulties in accessing support schemes and changes in political priorities. Better networking and knowledge exchange are considered essential for meaningful progress. This provides a new framework for management education to support organisations in tackling climate-related issues. Action guides may be developed and task-forces trained to provide hands-on support, especially for SMEs and local communities. The enthusiasm of younger people and campaigners, combined with others’ experiences, would create a powerful platform for climate emergency actions