International aid and financial crises in donor countries

The global financial crisis has already led to sharp downturns in the developing world. In the past, international aid has been able to offset partially the effects of crises that began in the developing world, but because this crisis began in the wealthy countries, donors may be less willing or able to increase aid in this crisis. Not only have donor-country incomes fallen, but the cause of the drop -- the banking and financial-sector crisis -- may exacerbate the effect on aid flows because of its heavy fiscal costs. This paper estimates how donor-country banking crises have affected aid flows in the past, using panel data from 24 donor countries between 1977 and 2007. The analysis finds that banking crises in donor countries are associated with a substantial additional fall in aid flows, beyond any income-related effects, perhaps because of the high fiscal costs of crisis and the debt hangover in the post-crisis periods. In most specifications, aid flows from crisis-affected countries fall by an average of 20 to 25 percent (relative to the counterfactual) and bottom out only about a decade after the banking crisis hits. In addition, the results confirm that donor-country incomes are robustly related to per-capita aid flows, with an elasticity of about 3. Because all donor countries are being hit hard by the current global recession, and several have also suffered banking-sector crises, there are reasons to expect that aid could fall by a significant amount (again, relative to the counterfactual) in the coming years -- just when aid may be most clearly justified to help smooth exogenous shocks to developing countries.Economic Conditions and Volatility,Labor Policies,Debt Markets,Development Economics&Aid Effectiveness,Banks&Banking Reform

New structural interpretation, microstructural analyses, and preliminary monazite geochronology of Proterozoic rocks in the central Manzano Mountains, New Mexico

The Manzano Mountains of central New Mexico, on the east flank of the Rio Grande Rift, provide excellent outcrops of Proterozoic basement. Rock types in the area include Sevilleta metarhyolite, amphibolitic metavolcanic rocks, schist, meta-lithic arenite, banded metarhyolite, the White Ridge and related quartzites, and the Blue Springs schist. Plutonic activity included the emplacement of the Monte Largo (1656Ma) and Priest (1427Ma) plutons. Proterozoic metavolcanic and metasedimentary rocks were multiply deformed during at least three deformation events. D1, D2, D3 of rocks in the Manzano Mountains have all produced movement along the NE striking Monte Largo shear zone (MLSZ). The movement sense within this shear zone is consistently top-to-the-northwest. Analysis of microstructures from the MLSZ, combined with studies of overprinting relationships of folded rocks of the area provides a better understanding of the kinematics associated with each deformation event. Geochronologic studies of metamorphic monazite grains will place time constraints on when movement occurred within the area. Metamorphic monazite grown during tectonic deformation can have incremental growth patterns such as rim and core features. The ability to relate grain orientation to overall fabric of the rocks combined with the ability to obtain geochronological information of individual grains (and individual parts of each grain, i.e rim/core features) helps in interpreting how and when deformation occurred. Examination of thin sections of quartzites within the MLSZ as well as from the folded quartzites within the metasedimentary package provides information to help understand the kinematics and time constraints of each deformational event

Performing Arts and Carnival in Initial Teacher Education and Schools: HEARTS project at Goldsmiths, University of London 2005-2006

HEARTS was conceived as a project to revitalise the arts in the experience of students in Higher Education preparing to become primary school teachers. Supported by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, the National Endowment for Science, Technology & the Arts and the Teacher Training Agency, HEARTS funded HEIs to undertake year-long projects that would enrich the arts for their students and lead on to deeper change within institutions in the way new teachers are made ready for their professional role. In order to do this at Goldsmiths we proposed to document, research and develop our existing performing arts and carnival courses

A Career Eulogy Reflective Exercise: A View into Early Professional Identity Formation

Beginning medical students have a very early idea of what their physician identity will be. Providing a brief structured opportunity to reflect on the end of their career can be an important first step in identity formation. A reflective exercise was used in the summer prior to beginning medical school as each class of students at a regional rural medical school began a summer prematriculation program from 2015-2019. Students wrote what they wished to be said about them at the end of their career using a “Career Eulogy.” Identifiers were removed and narratives were coded into recurring text clusters by the authors. The students, on an anonymous evaluation, strongly agreed that the exercise facilitated the accomplishment of the program goals. Reflections from 42 entering medical students indicated a preference to be remembered for compassion, passion, quality, and patient relationships. Men more frequently mentioned family and enjoying life, and women more frequently mentioned patient relationships. Rural students included quality and being a teacher of medical students more frequently, and those with a physician parent included passion and community more frequently. Those who later chose family medicine as a specialty more often included references to enjoying life and family. This reflective exercise provided useful insight into early professional identity formation among these medical students and served to encourage group discussion. It could be used with larger, more diverse groups to determine its value and clarify true differences among the demographic and specialty choice patterns. This exercise could also be used annually for each student, providing a longitudinal view of identity formation

Paper Session II: Computer Forensics Field Triage Process Model

With the proliferation of digital based evidence, the need for the timely identification, analysis and interpretation of digital evidence is becoming more crucial. In many investigations critical information is required while at the scene or within a short period of time - measured in hours as opposed to days. The traditional cyber forensics approach of seizing a system(s)/media, transporting it to the lab, making a forensic image(s), and then searching the entire system for potential evidence, is no longer appropriate in some circumstances. In cases such as child abductions, pedophiles, missing or exploited persons, time is of the essence. In these types of cases, investigators dealing with the suspect or crime scene need investigative leads quickly; in some cases it is the difference between life and death for the victim(s). The Cyber Forensic Field Triage Process Model (CFFTPM) proposes an onsite or field approach for providing the identification, analysis and interpretation of digital evidence in a short time frame, without the requirement of having to take the system(s)/media back to the lab for an in-depth examination or acquiring a complete forensic image(s). The proposed model adheres to commonly held forensic principles, and does not negate the ability that once the initial field triage is concluded, he system(s)/storage media be transported back to a lab environment for a more thorough examination d analysis. The CFFTPM has been successfully used in various real world cases, and its investigative importance and pragmatic approach has been amply demonstrated. Furthermore, the derived evidence from these cases has not been challenged in the court proceedings where it has been introduced. The current article describes the CFFTPM in detail, discusses the model’s forensic soundness, investigative support capabilities and practical considerations

Nudging within learning health systems: next generation decision support to improve cardiovascular care

The increasing volume and richness of healthcare data collected during routine clinical practice have not yet translated into significant numbers of actionable insights that have systematically improved patient outcomes. An evidence-practice gap continues to exist in healthcare. We contest that this gap can be reduced by assessing the use of nudge theory as part of clinical decision support systems (CDSS). Deploying nudges to modify clinician behaviour and improve adherence to guideline-directed therapy represents an underused tool in bridging the evidence-practice gap. In conjunction with electronic health records (EHRs) and newer devices including artificial intelligence algorithms that are increasingly integrated within learning health systems, nudges such as CDSS alerts should be iteratively tested for all stakeholders involved in health decision-making: clinicians, researchers, and patients alike. Not only could they improve the implementation of known evidence, but the true value of nudging could lie in areas where traditional randomized controlled trials are lacking, and where clinical equipoise and variation dominate. The opportunity to test CDSS nudge alerts and their ability to standardize behaviour in the face of uncertainty may generate novel insights and improve patient outcomes in areas of clinical practice currently without a robust evidence base