Ixtoc I: A Test for the Emerging Concept of the Patrimonial Sea

This Article examines the emergence of the concept of the patrimonial sea from the perspective of Latin American jurists who adhere to the tradition of regional particularism in international law, and considers the question of whether the patrimonial sea is lex lata or lex ferenda. The author argues that the realities of the development of new laws of the sea at the international and regional levels shattered the ideas that the vastness of the oceans would prevent serious pollution and that the wealth of the seabed is a common heritage of mankind. The author presents some conclusions concerning liability for oil spills from offshore drilling operations and obstacles to the enactment of domestic, regional, and international rules aimed at avoiding future disasters like IXTOC I

Applications of the ER-2 meteorological measurement system

The NASA ER-2 aircraft is used as a platform for high altitude atmospheric missions. The Meteorological Measurement System (MMS) was developed specifically for atmospheric research to provide accurate high resolution measurements of pressure, temperature, and the 3-D wind vector with a sampling rate of 5/s. The MMS consist of three subsystems: (1) an air motion sensing system to measure the velocity of the air with respect to the aircraft; (2) a high resolution inertial navigation system (INS) to measure the velocity of the aircraft with respect to the earth; and (3) a data acquisition system to sample, process, and record the measurement quantities. MMS data have been used extensively by ER-2 investigators in elucidating the polar ozone chemistry. Herein, applications on atmospheric dynamics are emphasized. Large scale (polar vortex, potential vorticity, model atmosphere), mesoscale (gravity waves, mountain waves) and microscale (heat fluxes) atmospheric phenomena are investigated and discussed

Multipulse operation of a Ti:sapphire laser mode locked by an ion-implanted semiconductor saturable-absorber mirror

Multipulse operation was demonstrated with a Ti:sapphire laser mode-locked by a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror. Widely separated double, triple, and quadruple pulses with irregular spacing were observed. In addition, closely coupled states were also found that could be attributed to interplay between saturable absorber and filter losses, saturated gain and the coherent interaction of solitons. These observations, as well as the mechanisms in the transitions from single to multipulse states are explained within the framework of the generalized complex Ginzburg-Landau equation as the laser master equation.Peer Reviewe

Is Aggressive Surgical Palliation of Proximal Bile Duct Cancer With Involvement of Both Main Hepatic Ducts Worthwhile?

The only curative treatment for proximal bile duct cancer with involvement of both main hepatic ducts is liver transplantation. Most patients do not fulfill the requirements for liver transplantation. Our treatment strategy in appropriate cases is palliative tumor resection and reconstruction of the biliary passage by sutureless bilioenteric anastomosis. We have treated 12 patients, 5 in combination with intraluminal and percutaneous radiotherapy. Our results indicate that this strategy leads to effective palliation in some cases provided that only microscopic residual tumor is left in-situ. Our survival times compare favourably with survival after liver transplantation

Small Scale Motions Observed by Aircraft in the Tropical Tropopause Layer - Convective and Non-Convective Environments

Indirect evidence indicates a role for vertical mixing in the Tropical Tropopause Layer (TTL). In particular, detailed model studies suggest that such vertical mixing may be required to explain the value of the water vapor minimum in the TTL. There have been previous observations during the STEP Tropical aircraft campaign (1987) of bursts of high frequency activity associated with convectively generated gravity waves in the tropical western Pacific. Higher frequency, higher quality measurements from NASA high altitude aircraft (ER-2, WB-57, and Global Hawk) have been made available in the last 20 years. These include measurements of vertical velocity and other meteorological parameters. Most recently, during the ATTREX Global Hawk aircraft mission (Airborne Tropical TRopopause EXperiment), there have been extensive measurements at all altitudes of the TTL in both convective (winter western Pacific) and less convective (winter eastern Pacific) regions. This presentation represents an initial analysis of high frequency small scale (a few km max) meteorological measurements from the ATTREX dataset. We obtain some basic information about the distribution and character of high frequency activity in vertical velocity in the TTL. In particular, we focus on relating the high frequency activity to nearby tropical convection and to vertical shears associated with gravity and inertia-gravity waves