Was Adam Smith an individualist?

Smith is generally regarded as an individualist without qualification. This article argues that his predominantly individualist policy prescription is rooted in a more complex philosophy. He sees nature, including human nature, as a vast machine supervised by God and designed to maximize human happiness. Human weaknesses, as well as strengths, display the wisdom of God and play their part in this scheme. While Smith pays lip-service to justice, it is really social order that preoccupies him, and, within that, the defence of property. Individuals are valued as bearers of property. As persons, individuals are deceived by nature into acting in a socially beneficial way. In different ways Smith systematically denies the autonomy of the individual with respect to the whole of which he or she is part. For Smith, individual liberty is not the end, but the means, of sustaining social order and property

Optical map of the genotype A1 WB C6 Giardia lamblia genome isolate

Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2011. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Elsevier B.V. for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Molecular and Biochemical Parasitology 180 (2011): 112-114, doi:10.1016/j.molbiopara.2011.07.008.The Giardia lamblia genome consists of 12 Mb divided among 5 chromosomes ranging in size from approximately 1 to 4 Mb. The assembled contigs of the genotype A1 isolate, WB, were previously mapped along the 5 chromosomes on the basis of hybridization of plasmid clones representing the contigs to chromosomes separated by PFGE. In the current report, we have generated an MluI optical map of the WB genome to improve the accuracy of the physical map. This has allowed us to correct several assembly errors and to better define the extent of the subtelomeric regions that are not included in the genome assembly.This work was funded in part by the Woods Hole Center for Oceans and Human Health, jointly funded by the National Science Foundation (OCE-0430724) and the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences (P50 ES012742)

A Nonlinear Super-Exponential Rational Model of Speculative Financial Bubbles

Keeping a basic tenet of economic theory, rational expectations, we model the nonlinear positive feedback between agents in the stock market as an interplay between nonlinearity and multiplicative noise. The derived hyperbolic stochastic finite-time singularity formula transforms a Gaussian white noise into a rich time series possessing all the stylized facts of empirical prices, as well as accelerated speculative bubbles preceding crashes. We use the formula to invert the two years of price history prior to the recent crash on the Nasdaq (april 2000) and prior to the crash in the Hong Kong market associated with the Asian crisis in early 1994. These complex price dynamics are captured using only one exponent controlling the explosion, the variance and mean of the underlying random walk. This offers a new and powerful detection tool of speculative bubbles and herding behavior.Comment: Latex document of 24 pages including 5 eps figure

Alzheimer Disease and Oxidative Stress

Research in Alzheimer disease has recently demonstrated compelling evidence on the importance of oxidative processes in its pathogenesis. Cellular changes show that oxidative stress is an event that precedes the appearance of the hallmark pathologies of the disease, neurofibrillary tangles, and senile plaques. While it is still unclear what the initial source of the oxidative stress is in Alzheimer disease, it is likely that the process is highly dependent on redox-active transition metals such as iron and copper. Further investigation into the role that oxidative stress mechanisms seem to play in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease may lead to novel clinical interventions

Intrafeather and Intraindividual Variation in the Stable-Hydrogen Isotope (δD) Content of Raptor Feathers

Stable-hydrogen isotope ratios (deuterium:protium; δD) in feathers enable researchers to evaluate patterns of avian movement and to estimate the source areas of migratory birds. However, variation in feather δD remains inadequately described, thus confounding inferences of avian movement and origin. We assessed variation within a feather and among feathers within and between tracts in three species of immature raptors. Within contour feathers, measurements of δD increased from a distal section to an adjacent, proximal section; the magnitude of δD increase varied with raptor species. Furthermore, contour and flight feathers differed systematically in their δD content. Two explanations for intrafeather and intraindividual variation warrant further investigation: (1) hydrogen isotope fractionation associated with feather growth rate, and (2) the incorporation of temporal variation in environmental δD into growing feathers. We consider these explanations for raptors and passerines, which seemingly differ in the incorporation of deuterium into feathers. Additionally, corresponding sections of multiple contour feathers exhibited better measurement repeatability than multiple sections within a contour feather; the variability of multiple δD measurements within a feather tract (geometric SD: ±3.5%) suggests that biological effects on the repeatability of δD measurements from concurrently grown feather material are difficult to distinguish from analytical effects. In most cases, intrafeather and intraindividual variation can be minimized by informed sample selection decisions, but both sources of variation must be considered when stable-hydrogen isotopes are used to infer the geographic origins of migrants, ascertain migratory connectivity, and facilitate avian conservation decisions

The Positive Effect of Resilience on Stress and Business Outcomes in Difficult Work Environments

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether resilience has a protective effect in difficult work environments. METHODS: A survey of 2063 individuals measured individual resilience, stress, burnout, sleep problems, likelihood of depression, job satisfaction, intent to quit, absences, and productivity. It also measured work characteristics: job demands, job influence, and social support. Multivariate and logistic regression models examined the main effects and interactions of resilience and job characteristics. RESULTS: High strain work environments (high demand, low influence, and low support) have an unfavorable effect on all outcomes. Resilience has a protective effect on all outcomes. For stress, burnout, and sleep, higher resilience has a more protective effect under low-strain conditions. For depression, absence and productivity, resilience has a more protective effect when job strain is high. CONCLUSIONS: Workers with high resilience have better outcomes in difficult work environments

Exposure to nanomaterials in consumer spray products available in the UK

Products containing nanomaterials (NMs) (size < 100 nanometres) are rapidly entering the market, however little is known about inhalation exposures to NMs from their use. Here, we analysed representative consumer spray products available in the UK that claim (or are expected) to contain NMs, to assess potential NM exposure levels during use. In the absence of a UK-focused product inventory, we searched “The Nanodatabase” (nanodb.dk), which listed 269 (out of 3001) products for which inhalation was identified as an exposure pathway. None were available over-the-counter at large stores, but 40 were available on “.co.uk” websites (mainly Amazon). We obtained a representative sample (based on product type and claimed content e.g. silver, silica, gold) and found that 12 out of 16 products contained detectable NMs. We used a multi-method approach to characterise the NMs; inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy and energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy to assess NM composition, and dynamic light scattering, nanoparticle tracking analysis, transmission electron microscopy and single particle ICP-MS to determine particle size and shape. The sizes of the airborne particles/droplets produced by spraying a sub-set (6) of these products were measured using aerodynamic and mobility particle sizers, demonstrating the presence of inhalable aerosols. Whilst 5 out of 6 products clearly contained NMs, only 3 produced aerosols in the nano-size range, suggesting that other constituents (e.g. solvent, fragrance) make up the bulk of the aerosol mass. Using the data generated, quantities of NMs inhaled when using these products can be estimated, which is important for appropriate risk characterisation