Effect of Notches on the Axial Fatigue Properties of Structural Steels

The effect of the stress concentration on the zero-to-tension axial fatigue strength of notched members of four structural steels has been studied. For each of the four steels a critical notch severity was found at which a transition in behavior takes place. When the theoretical stress concentration exceeds this critical value the fatigue strength increases instead of continuing to decrease as would normally be expected. The maximum effective stress concentration determined from these tests corresponds to a critical notch severity which is dependent on the material) the geometry of the specimen) and the cyclic conditions of stress. Microscopic examinations of the roots of the notched specimens which did not fail revealed cracking in most cases. Some of the cracks apparently were nonpropagating cracks but the test lives in most cases were insufficient to isolate such cracks positively as non-propagating. A study of other data on non-propagating cracks revealed that the laws governing their formation are not yet fully understood. However, there are indications that the increase in fatigue strength obtained above the critical notch severity is coincident with the formation of non~propagating cracks.The Engineering FoundationAmerican Iron and Steel InstituteChicago Bridge and Iron FoundationThe Welding Research Counci

Evictions and participation rights in India and South Africa

India and South Africa are deeply unequal societies, including in terms of access to housing. This thesis explores the role for participation rights to enable oppressed communities to access adequate housing, by participating in decision-making around evictions. The arguments are structured around a specific context – forced evictions in India and South Africa – but have wider application. This thesis engages with four puzzles regarding the right to housing, adopting theoretical, doctrinal and comparative analysis: (i) the nature and content of participation elements of the right to housing; (ii) the content of other substantive elements; (iii) the relationship between participation and other substantive elements of the right to housing; (iv) and the appropriate role for courts. The thesis challenges the characterisation of participation rights as procedural, and argues that these embody substantive values underlying human rights – freedom, dignity and equality. It relies on these values to develop the content of participation rights, filling gaps in existing legal doctrine. The thesis proposes a way to settle the relationship between participation rights, other substantive elements of rights, and courts. It carves out a valuable role for participation rights to develop the content of other elements of the right to housing. Simultaneously, it fashions a role for courts to interpret and enforce substantive normative commitments underlying the right to housing. It envisages the iterative development of other substantive elements of the right to housing. Firstly, the content of substantive elements of the right to housing ought to be developed through the process of participation between residents of informal settlements, the state, and private duty bearers. Secondly, courts ought to check that the process of participation meets relevant criteria, and thereafter that the outcome of participation meets substantive normative constitutional commitments. The thesis contributes to the literature on social rights, participation rights, judicial review, and deliberative democracy. It is likely to be of interest to scholars, activists, judges and lawyers working in these fields

New insights into receptor trafficking in human cancer

Plasma membrane receptors play an essential role in cancer by regulating cancer-related processes such as cell proliferation and migration in response to cues from the extracellular ligands. Integrins are cell-matrix adhesion receptors which connect the exterior of the cells to the interior facilitating adhesion and regulating many aspects of cell biology including proliferation and survival signaling. Receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are cell surface receptors responding to soluble growth-factors to activate cellular signaling pathways that can be distinct or overlapping with integrins. The extent and strength of signaling by both receptor types depends on the time they engage themselves on the plasma membrane before being endocytosed inside the cell. The endocytosed receptors can either be degraded or recycle back to the plasma membrane. Therefore, the trafficking of receptors is a decisive factor for maintaining the proper cellular functions. Any dysregulation in ther trafficking may contribute to pathological conditions such as cancer. In this thesis, the role of new proteins in regulating the trafficking of integrins and two RTKs, MET and HER2 in human cancer was explored. To investigate integrin traffic, we employed high throughput RNAi screening and proximity-dependent biotinylation (BioID) to find new regulators of integrin trafficking. These studies allowed me to establish a critical role for Golgi-localized, gamma adaptin ear-containing, ARF-binding (GGA2) and small GTPases RAB13 in promoting recycling of active but not inactive β1-integrin to the plasma membrane to facilitate breast carcinoma cell migration and in-vivo invasion. Furthermore, I also established the role of a related adaptor, GGA3, in promoting recycling of total pool of β1-integrin to the plasma membrane. In addition, I made important discoveries about oncogenic RTK traffic in cancer. A yeast two-hybrid screen identified TNS4 as the direct interactor of MET oncogene. This interaction coupled MET to β1-integrin and stabilized active MET on the plasma membrane thus promoting its oncogenic signaling. We also identified a novel regulator of HER2 traffic in breast cancer. Sortilin related receptor 1, a sorting protein previously implicated in Alzheimer’s disease and obesity, was found to be a key regulator of HER2 oncogenic fitness in breast and bladder cancer cells. My results show that SORLA supports HER2 stability and signaling through supporting HER2 recycling to the plasma membrane. In summary, in this thesis, the new functions of GGA2, GGA3, MET and SORLA have been demonstrated in regulating trafficking of different plasma membranes receptors, therefore, influencing signaling and various cancer-related processes linked with these receptors in different cancel models

Gender Discrimination: Beliefs and Experiences: A Comparative Perspective of Women and Men in the Delhi Police

Gender roles are learnt through the socialization process and subsequently extend to the work context where women and men are believed to have different characteristics and are therefore treated differently. The pervasiveness of workplace gender differences influence hiring practices, salaries and career growth opportunities for women. Gender-based work behavior differences are perceived to be much greater in male dominated professions like the police. While research suggests that there is no evidence that policewomen perform differently from their male counterparts in their day-to-day activities of police, negative male attitudes towards women in police significantly obstruct the advancement of policewomen. Induction of women in the police service in India is a recent change. This paper analyses the beliefs and unique experiences of women in a police department in Delhi, India. Using a comparative perspective, it examines the issues and challenges relating to women in police and the concomitant experiences of policemen, posed by the more recent entry of women in the service. Quantitative data, supported by in-depth interviews are obtained from a large sample of women and men from the rank and file of the police. The data suggest that gender based work behaviour differences are perceived to be predominant. Women are assigned peripheral roles and are yet to be integrated with the mainstream. These findings have significant implications for developing relevant human resource policies in police departments to deal with the changing demographics and for building a gender-inclusive organisation

Monitoring and analysis of lung sounds remotely

Visual and auditory analysis of respiratory sound signals promises improved detection of certain types of lung diseases. LabVIEW software was used to design a system that monitors the respiratory activity of the patient. The program developed calculates the respiratory rate, displays the time expanded waveform of the lung sound, and computes the fast Fourier transform and short-time Fourier transform to present the power spectrum and spectrogram respectively. These parameters are transmitted synchronously to the remote station using the Internet for online monitoring of the patient

Scrutinizing public expenditures: assessing the performance of public accounts committees

In 2002, David McGee wrote a comprehensive report on two important elements in the system of public financial accountability, namely the office of the Auditor General and the parliamentary oversight committee commonly referred to as the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). The purpose of the present paper is to deepen McGee's analysis of PACs. In particular, the authors define PAC success and identify those factors that affect PAC peformance. They use data that were collected by the World Bank Institute in 2002, when a survey questionnaire was sent to 51 national and state/provincial parliaments in Commonwealth countries in Asia and Australasia, and Canada and the United Kingdom. The authors find that the institutional factors which most account for the success of the PACs are the focus on government's financial activity rather than its policies, the power to investigate all past and present government expenses, the power to follow up on government action in response to its recommendations, and its relationship with the Auditors General.National Governance,Parliamentary Government,Politics and Government,Business Environment,Business in Development

Book review: The international LGBT rights movement: a history by Laura A. Belmonte

In The International LGBT Rights Movement: A History, Laura A. Belmonte describes the twists and turns that have characterised the history of the international LGBT rights movement, focusing primarily on activism and mobilisations in North America and Europe. The book’s key message is that while efforts to achieve equal rights for LGBT people persist, there remains a long road to full equality and dignity, writes Kanav Narayan Sahgal. The International LGBT Rights Movement: A History. Laura A. Belmonte. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2020

Youth Resilience to Violent Extremism: An Evaluation of a Mentorship Intervention in Kenya

In response to the rise in extremist violence within Kenya, the Strengthening Resilience to Violent Extremism Programme was launched to counter the threat of violent extremism (VE) and prevent the radicalisation and recruitment of vulnerable youth. To assess the extent to which the Programme was able to achieve its objective, an evaluation of the Programme's key component – a mentoring and counselling-based project intervention, was conducted between 2017-19. In total, 347 youth,  identified as being 'at risk', were included as part of the evaluation. This paper presents the principal findings of the evaluation and assesses the effect of the intervention on three key dimensions: the youth's attitudes, their social networks and levels of awareness of the risks of VE and the strategies for countering violent extremist activities. Using logit models and controlling for any confounding effects of socio-demographic differences, the evaluation finds evidence of improvements in the at-risk groups' knowledge of the risks posed by VE groups as well as the strategies for countering VE. However, mixed results were noted in the groups' attitudes towards violence, their levels of self-confidence and the extent and diversity of their social networks. Across two of the dimensions, more significant effects were also observed among 'at-risk' groups who were employed versus those who were unemployed. Some variability in outcomes was also found among at-risk groups who had been exposed to the intervention for longer compared to those who had been in the Project for shorter periods. Taken together, these findings underscore the need for extending the Project's existing engagements and incorporating a nuanced and sustained approach for engendering more long-term change. The analytical insights presented also offer critical lessons for designing and implementing similar interventions in Kenya and in the wider global context

Procarbazine, CCNU and vincristine (PCV) versus temozolomide chemotherapy for patients with low-grade glioma: a systematic review.

Low-grade gliomas (LGG) encompass a heterogeneous group of tumors that are clinically, histologically and molecularly diverse. Treatment decisions for patients with LGG are directed toward improving upon the natural history while limiting treatment-associated toxiceffects. Recent evidence has documented a utility for adjuvant chemotherapy with procarbazine, CCNU (lomustine), and vincristine (PCV) or temozolomide (TMZ). We sought to determine the comparative utility of PCV and TMZ for patients with LGG, particularly in context of molecular subtype. A literature search of PubMed was conducted to identify studies reporting patient response to PCV, TMZ, or a combination of chemotherapy and radiation therapy (RT). Eligibility criteria included patients 16 years of age and older, notation of LGG subtype, and report of progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and treatment course. Level I, II, and III data were included. Adjuvant therapy with PCV resulted in prolonged PFS and OS in patients with newly diagnosed high-risk LGG. This benefit was accrued most significantly by patients with tumors harboring 1p/19q codeletion and IDH1 mutation. Adjuvant therapy with temozolomide was associated with lower toxicity than therapy with PCV. In patients with LGG with an unfavorable natural history, such as with intact 1p/19q and wild-type IDH1, RT/TMZ plus adjuvant TMZ may be the best option. Patients with biologically favorable high-risk LGG are likely to derive the most benefit from RT and adjuvant PCV