Rolling of asymmetric disks on an inclined plane

In a recent papers, Turner and Turner (2010 {\em Am. J. Phys.} {\bf 78} 905-7) and Jensen (2011 {\em Eur. J. Phys.} {\bf 32} 389-397) analysed the motion of asymmetric rolling rigid bodies on a horizontal plane. These papers addressed the common misconception that the instantaneous point of contact of the rolling body with the plane can be used to evaluate the angular momentum $\mathbf L$ and the torque $\boldsymbol\tau$ in the equation of motion $d\mathbf L/dt = \boldsymbol\tau$. To obtain the correct equation of motion, the "phantom torque" or various rules that depend on the motion of the point about which $\mathbf L$ and $\boldsymbol\tau$ are evaluated were discussed. In this paper, I consider asymmetric disks rolling down an inclined plane and describe the most basic way of obtaining the correct equation of motion; that is, to choose the point about which $\mathbf L$ and $\boldsymbol\tau$ are evaluated that is stationary in an inertial frame

Defence diplomacy: is the game worth the candle?

Few defence topics have been as prominent or invested with as much optimism in recent years as defence diplomacy. This paper has been created to explore the issue and help guide policymakers. Foreword Few Defence topics have been as prominent or invested with as much optimism in recent years as defence diplomacy (also called military diplomacy or defence engagement). In response to the growing security challenges of Asia, scholars, policymakers and practitioners have looked for ways to build confidence, decrease the risk and impact of accidents and encourage peaceful dispute resolution. Defence diplomacy, namely the practice of military and defence officials engaging their overseas counterparts, is increasingly regarded as a vital way to achieve these aims. Given the importance of this topic, a special Centre of Gravity paper has been created to explore the issue and help guide policymakers. This edition features six short papers, each with a different take and policy recommendation. The authors were asked the same question ‘Is the game worth the candle?’ and while their answers focus largely on Australia there are lessons and implications from their findings for the entire region. Brendan Taylor, the head of the Strategic & Defence Studies Centre begins the special edition calling for a stocktake of current efforts, in a bid to understand what has worked and what resources it requires. He is joined by two colleagues, John Blaxland who argues strongly in favour of an expanded defence diplomacy program and Hugh White who urges caution about the strategic influence of the practice. To complement these views, Nick Bisley, Executive Director La Trobe Asia, highlights the need for realistic ambitions. Lieutenant General (Ret.) Peter Leahy draws on his distinguished career in the ADF to detail how defence diplomacy occurs in practice and why it matters. Finally, See Seng Tan, Deputy Director of the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies in Singapore provides a regional perspective on Australia’s defence diplomacy. The authors of these papers don’t agree with each other, and that was precisely why they were invited to contribute. But some common themes are clear. Such as the need for a clear —and public — strategy along with integrating defence diplomacy into the efforts of other parts of government. Together these six papers provide insight into the practice and potential of defence diplomacy. This special edition also marks a re-launch of the Centre of Gravity Series. While some of the design may change, the focus remains the same: inviting some of the best analysts from Australia and around the world to provide short, accessible papers on the key questions facing Australian strategic affairs

Cognition-Enhancing Drugs: Can We Say No?

Normative analysis of cognition-enhancing drugs frequently weighs the liberty interests of drug users against egalitarian commitments to a level playing field. Yet those who would refuse to engage in neuroenhancement may well find their liberty to do so limited in a society where such drugs are widespread. To the extent that unvarnished emotional responses are world-disclosive, neurocosmetic practices also threaten to provide a form of faulty data to their users. This essay examines underappreciated liberty-based and epistemic rationales for regulating cognition-enhancing drugs

Virtual Surface Characteristics of a Tactile Display Using Magneto-Rheological Fluids

Virtual surface characteristics of tactile displays are investigated to characterize the feeling of human touch for a haptic interface application. In order to represent the tactile feeling, a prototype tactile display incorporating Magneto-Rheological (MR) fluid has been developed. Tactile display devices simulate the finger’s skin to feel the sensations of contact such as compliance, friction, and topography of the surface. Thus, the tactile display can provide information on the surface of an organic tissue to the surgeon in virtual reality. In order to investigate the compliance feeling of a human finger’s touch, normal force responses of a tactile display under various magnetic fields have been assessed. Also, shearing friction force responses of the tactile display are investigated to simulate the action of finger dragging on the surface. Moreover, different matrix arrays of magnetic poles are applied to form the virtual surface topography. From the results, different tactile feelings are observed according to the applied magnetic field strength as well as the arrays of magnetic poles combinations. This research presents a smart tactile display technology for virtual surfaces

Palliative and supportive care in head and neck cancer: United Kingdom National Multidisciplinary Guidelines

This is the official guideline endorsed by the specialty associations involved in the care of head and neck cancer patients in the UK. It provides recommendations on the assessments and interventions for this group of patients receiving palliative and supportive care. Recommendations • Palliative and supportive care must be multidisciplinary. (G) • All core team members should have training in advanced communication skills. (G) • Palliative surgery should be considered in selected cases. (R) • Hypofractionated or short course radiotherapy should be considered for local pain control and for painful bony metastases. (R) • All palliative patients should have a functional endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) assessment of swallow to assess for risk of aspiration. (G) • Pain relief should be based on the World Health Organization pain ladder. (R) • Specialist pain management service involvement should be considered early for those with refractory pain. (G) • Constipation should be avoided by the judicious use of prophylactic laxatives and the correction of systemic causes such as dehydration, hypercalcaemia and hypothyroidism. (G) • Organic causes of confusion should be identified and corrected where appropriate, failing this, treatment with benzodiazepines or antipsychotics should be considered. (G) • Patients with symptoms suggestive of spinal metastases or metastatic cord compression must be managed in accordance with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance. (R) • Cardiopulmonary resuscitation is inappropriate in the palliative dying patient. (R) • 'Do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation' orders should be completed and discussed with the patient and/or the family unless good reasons exist not to do so where appropriate. This is absolutely necessary when a patient's care is to be managed at home. (G)

Global standards of Constitutional law : epistemology and methodology

Just as it led the philosophy of science to gravitate around scientific practice, the abandonment of all foundationalist aspirations has already begun making political philosophy into an attentive observer of the new ways in which constitutional law is practiced. Yet paradoxically, lawyers and legal scholars are not those who understand this the most clearly. Beyond analyzing the jurisprudence that has emerged from the expansion of constitutional justice, and taking into account the development of international and regional law, the ongoing globalization of constitutional law requires comparing the constitutional laws of individual nations. Following Waldron, the product of this new legal science can be considered as ius gentium. This legal science is not as well established as one might like to think. But it can be developed on the grounds of the practice that consists in ascertaining standards. As abstract types of best “practices” (and especially norms) of constitutional law from around the world, these are only a source of law in a substantive, not a formal, sense. They thus belong to what I should like to call a “second order legal positivity.” In this article I will undertake, both at a methodological and an epistemological level, the development of a model for ascertaining global standards of constitutional law

Fuzzy Spheres in AdS/CFT Correspondence and Holography from Noncommutativity

We show that the existent fuzzy S^2 and S^4 models are natural candidates for the quantum geometry on the corresponding spheres in AdS/CFT correspondence. These models fit nicely the data from the dipole mechanism for the stringy exclusion principle. In the AdS_2 X S^2 case, we show that a wrapped fractional membrane can be used to count for the large ground state degeneracy. We also propose a fuzzy AdS_2 model whose fundamental commutation relation may underlie the UV/IR connection.Comment: 17 pages, one comment and reference adde

Differential sub-nuclear distribution of hypoxia-inducible factors (HIF)-1 and -2 alpha impacts on their stability and mobility

Cellular adaptation to hypoxia occurs via a complex programme of gene expression mediated by the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF). The oxygen labile alpha subunits, HIF-1α/-2α, form a heterodimeric transcription factor with HIF-1β and modulate gene expression. HIF-1α and HIF-2α possess similar domain structure and bind to the same consensus sequence. However, they have different oxygen-dependent stability and activate distinct genes. To better understand these differences, we used fluorescent microscopy to determine precise localization and dynamics. We observed a homogeneous distribution of HIF-1α in the nucleus, while HIF-2α localized into speckles. We demonstrated that the number, size and mobility of HIF-2α speckles were independent of cellular oxygenation and that HIF-2α molecules were capable of exchanging between the speckles and nucleoplasm in an oxygen-independent manner. The concentration of HIF-2α into speckles may explain its increased stability compared with HIF-1α and its slower mobility may offer a mechanism for gene specificity

Assessing the Efficacy of Nano- and Micro-Sized Magnetic Particles as Contrast Agents for MRI Cell Tracking

Iron-oxide based contrast agents play an important role in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of labelled cells in vivo. Currently, a wide range of such contrast agents is available with sizes varying from several nanometers up to a few micrometers and consisting of single or multiple magnetic cores. Here, we evaluate the effectiveness of these different particles for labelling and imaging stem cells, using a mouse mesenchymal stem cell line to investigate intracellular uptake, retention and processing of nano- and microsized contrast agents. The effect of intracellular confinement on transverse relaxivity was measured by MRI at 7 T and in compliance with the principles of the ‘3Rs’, the suitability of the contrast agents for MR-based cell tracking in vivo was tested using a chick embryo model. We show that for all particles tested, relaxivity was markedly reduced following cellular internalisation, indicating that contrast agent relaxivity in colloidal suspension does not accurately predict performance in MR-based cell tracking studies. Using a bimodal imaging approach comprising fluorescence and MRI, we demonstrate that labelled MSC remain viable following in vivo transplantation and can be tracked effectively using MRI. Importantly, our data suggest that larger particles might confer advantages for longer-term imaging

Probing the Sensitivity of Electron Wave Interference to Disorder-Induced Scattering in Solid-State Devices

The study of electron motion in semiconductor billiards has elucidated our understanding of quantum interference and quantum chaos. The central assumption is that ionized donors generate only minor perturbations to the electron trajectories, which are determined by scattering from billiard walls. We use magnetoconductance fluctuations as a probe of the quantum interference and show that these fluctuations change radically when the scattering landscape is modified by thermally-induced charge displacement between donor sites. Our results challenge the accepted understanding of quantum interference effects in nanostructures.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, Submitted to Physical Review