Restrictive covenants in Xanadu

Legal scholarship is naturally inclined towards explanations and justifications of contemporary law. In the case of restrictive covenants and building schemes this has led to a distorted perception of the historical record, as revealed in recorded case reports dating from the nineteenth century. It is argued that the restrictive covenant had its historical genesis not in a response to industrialisation and mass urbanisation, but in the developments of resort towns in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, as a response to the needs of land developers. Furthermore, it is argued that a better historical understanding of these origins illuminates contemporary problems concerned with the adaptability of law and the potential roles of law in development

Combined deletion of Xrcc4 and Trp53 in mouse germinal center B cells leads to novel B cell lymphomas with clonal heterogeneity

Abstract Background Activated B lymphocytes harbor programmed DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) initiated by activation-induced deaminase (AID) and repaired by non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ). While it has been proposed that these DSBs during secondary antibody gene diversification are the primary source of chromosomal translocations in germinal center (GC)-derived B cell lymphomas, this point has not been directly addressed due to the lack of proper mouse models. Methods In the current study, we establish a unique mouse model by specifically deleting a NHEJ gene, Xrcc4, and a cell cycle checkpoint gene, Trp53, in GC B cells, which results in the spontaneous development of B cell lymphomas that possess features of GC B cells. Results We show that these NHEJ deficient lymphomas harbor translocations frequently targeting immunoglobulin (Ig) loci. Furthermore, we found that Ig translocations were associated with distinct mechanisms, probably caused by AID- or RAG-induced DSBs. Intriguingly, the AID-associated Ig loci translocations target either c-myc or Pvt-1 locus whereas the partners of RAG-associated Ig translocations scattered randomly in the genome. Lastly, these NHEJ deficient lymphomas harbor complicated genomes including segmental translocations and exhibit a high level of ongoing DNA damage and clonal heterogeneity. Conclusions We propose that combined NHEJ and p53 defects may serve as an underlying mechanism for a high level of genomic complexity and clonal heterogeneity in cancers

Reliability and Validity of the Dutch Version of the Brief Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (BITSEA)

Background: The Brief Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (BITSEA) is a relatively new and short (42-item) questionnaire that measures psychosocial problems in toddlers and consists of a Problem and a Competence scale. In this study the reliability and validity of the Dutch version of the BITSEA were examined for the whole group and for gender and ethnicity subgroups. Methods: Parents of 7140 two-year-old children were invited in the study, of which 3170 (44.4%) parents completed the BITSEA. For evaluation of the score distribution, the presence of floor/ceiling effects was determined. The internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) was evaluated and in subsamples the test-retest, parent-childcare provider interrater reliability and concurrent validity with regard to the Child Behavioral Checklist (CBCL). Discriminative validity was evaluated by comparing scores of parents that worry and parents that do not worry about their child's development. Results: The BITSEA showed no floor or ceiling effects. Psychometric properties of the BITSEA Problem and Competence scale were respectively: Cronbach's alphas were 0.76 and 0.63. Test-retest correlations were 0.75 and 0.61. Interrater reliability correlations were 0.30 and 0.17. Concurrent validity was as hypothesised. The BITSEA was able to discriminate between parents that worry about their child and parents that do not worry. The psychometric properties of the BITSEA were comparable across gender and ethnic background. Conclusion: The results in this large-scale study of a diverse sample support the reliability and validity of the BITSEA Problem scale. The BITSEA Competence scale needs further study. The performance of the BITSEA appears to be similar in subgroups by gender and ethnic background

Financial phantasmagoria: corporate image-work in times of crisis

Our purpose in this article is to relate the real movements in the economy during 2008 to the ?image-work? of financial institutions. Over the period January?December 2008 we collected 241 separate advertisements from 61 financial institutions published in the Financial Times. Reading across the ensemble of advertisements for themes and evocative images provides an impression of the financial imaginaries created by these organizations as the global financial crisis unfolded. In using the term ?phantasmagoria? we move beyond its colloquial sense of a set of strange images designed to dazzle towards the more technical connotation used by Ranci�re (2004) who suggested that words and images can offer a trace of an overall determining set-up if they are torn from their obviousness so they become phantasmagoric figures. The key phantasmagoric figure we identify here is that of the financial institution as timeless, immortal and unchanging; a coherent and autonomous entity amongst other actors. This notion of uniqueness belies the commonality of thinking which precipitated the global financial crisis as well as the limited capacity for control of financial institutions in relation to market events. It also functions as a powerful naturalizing force, making it hard to question certain aspects of the recent period of ?capitalism in crisis?

Kinstate intervention in ethnic conflicts : Albania and Turkey compared

Albania and Turkey did not act in overtly irredentist ways towards their ethnic brethren in neighboring states after the end of communism. Why, nonetheless, did Albania facilitate the increase of ethnic conflict in Kosovo and Macedonia, while Turkey did not, with respect to the Turks of Bulgaria? I argue that kin-states undergoing transition are more prone to intervene in external conflicts than states that are not, regardless of the salience of minority demands in the host-state. The transition weakens the institutions of the kin-state. Experiencing limited institutional constraints, self-seeking state officials create alliances with secessionist and autonomist movements across borders alongside their own ideological, clan-based and particularistic interests. Such alliances are often utilized to advance radical domestic agendas. Unlike in Albania's transition environment, in Turkey there were no emerging elites that could potentially form alliances and use external movements to legitimize their own domestic existence or claims

Variant of TYR and Autoimmunity Susceptibility Loci in Generalized Vitiligo.

BACKGROUND Generalized vitiligo is an autoimmune disease characterized by melanocyte loss, which results in patchy depigmentation of skin and hair, and is associated with an elevated risk of other autoimmune diseases. METHODS To identify generalized vitiligo susceptibility loci, we conducted a genomewide association study. We genotyped 579,146 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 1514 patients with generalized vitiligo who were of European-derived white (CEU) ancestry and compared the genotypes with publicly available control genotypes from 2813 CEU persons. We then tested 50 SNPs in two replication sets, one comprising 677 independent CEU patients and 1106 CEU controls and the other comprising 183 CEU simplex trios with generalized vitiligo and 332 CEU multiplex families. RESULTS We detected significant associations between generalized vitiligo and SNPs at several loci previously associated with other autoimmune diseases. These included genes encoding major-histocompatibility-complex class I molecules (P=9.05×10−23) and class II molecules (P=4.50×10−34), PTPN22 (P=1.31×10−7), LPP (P=1.01×10−11), IL2RA (P=2.78×10−9), UBASH3A (P=1.26×10−9), and C1QTNF6 (P=2.21×10−16). We also detected associations between generalized vitiligo and SNPs in two additional immune-related loci, RERE (P=7.07×10−15) and GZMB (P=3.44×10−8), and in a locus containing TYR (P=1.60×10−18), encoding tyrosinase. CONCLUSIONS We observed associations between generalized vitiligo and markers implicating multiple genes, some associated with other autoimmune diseases and one (TYR) that may mediate target-cell specificity and indicate a mutually exclusive relationship between susceptibility to vitiligo and susceptibility to melanoma

Microcoil Spring Interconnects for Ceramic Grid Array Integrated Circuits

As integrated circuit miniaturization trends continue, they drive the need for smaller higher input/output (I/O) packages. Hermetically sealed ceramic area array parts are the package of choice by the space community for high reliability space flight electronic hardware. Unfortunately, the coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch between the ceramic area array package and the epoxy glass printed wiring board limits the life of the interconnecting solder joint. This work presents the results of an investigation by Marshall Space Flight Center into a method to increase the life of this second level interconnection by the use of compliant microcoil springs. The design of the spring and its attachment process are presented along with thermal cycling results of microcoil springs (MCS) compared with state-of-the-art ball and column interconnections. Vibration testing has been conducted on MCS and high lead column parts. Radio frequency simulation and measurements have been made and the MCS has been modeled and a stress analysis performed. Thermal cycling and vibration testing have shown MCS interconnects to be significantly more reliable than solder columns. Also, MCS interconnects are less prone to handling damage than solder columns. Future work that includes shock testing, incorporation into a digital signal processor board, and process evaluation of expansion from a 400 I/O device to a device with over 1,100 I/O is identified

Common variants in FOXP1 are associated with generalized vitiligo

In a recent genome-wide association study of generalized vitiligo, we identified ten confirmed susceptibility loci. By testing additional loci that showed suggestive association in the genome-wide study, using two replication cohorts of European descent, we observed replicated association of generalized vitiligo with variants at 3p13 encompassing FOXP1 (rs17008723, combined P = 1.04 × 10−8) and with variants at 6q27 encompassing CCR6 (rs6902119, combined P = 3.94 × 10−7)

Fit for what?: towards explaining Battlegroup inaction

The thrust of this paper concerns the case of the European Battlegroup (BG) non-deployment in late 2008, when the United Nations requested European military support for the United Nations Organisation Mission peacekeeping force in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The argument is built on the fact that when, in official documents, the EU approaches the European security and ESDP/CSDP's military crisis management policy and interventions, it makes strong references to the United Nations and the UN Charter Chapter VII's mandate of restoring international peace and security. Such references make it seem that supporting the UN when it deals with threats and crises is a primary concern of the EU and the member states. These allusions lead to the main contention of this paper, that there is much ambivalence in these indications. The paper develops its argument from one key hypothesis; namely, that the non-deployment of a European BG in the DRC, at the end of 2008, constitutes a useful case study for detecting a number of ambiguities of the EU in respect of its declarations in the official documents establishing the European military crisis management intervention structure