America’s Imperfect War: The Ethics, Law, and Strategy of Drone Warfare

This study explores the ethics, law, and strategy of targeted killings by drones in the War on Terror. It starts with an exploration of just war theory, its historical development and criteria, to create a foundational framework by which to analyze the ethics of drones as a tactic. Then it defines terrorism and insurgency, establishing how sub-state actors operate, and the strategies states will use to neutralize them as threats. This shows that the War on Terror is actually an armed conflict because terrorism and insurgency are forms of warfare under the law and in warfare theory. After looking at terrorism a broad concept, a history of the War on Terror, its operational context, and the specific nature of al-Qaeda and its affiliates are explained to give context to the ethical debate. Because of the actions of al-Qaeda and its affiliates, the U.S. is at war with these organizations and is allowed to use kinetic action against them. The study then approaches the history, law, geopolitics, and ethics of drone warfare to show targeted killings and strategic strikes are legitimate forms of kinetic action and are legal, ethical, and useful tactics to neutralize enemy combatants and terrorist organizations. Finally, using the cases of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, and Somalia this study demonstrates that targeted killings by drones are proportional, discriminatory, and militarily necessary

Jimmy Carter and Anwar el-Sadat: Relationships and Motivations Behind the 1978 Camp David Accords

This thesis addresses the American and Egyptian motivations behind the conclusion of the 1978 Camp David Accords between the United States, Egypt, and Israel. In addition, it considers the role the personal relationships developed between the principal leaders played in reaching an ultimate agreement. The thesis primarily relies on recently declassified Department of State and Central Intelligence Agency documents to reconstruct the American and Egyptian impetuses for peace, as seen from the outset of Jimmy Carter’s presidency. It also draws on the memoirs and writings of those directly involved in the peace process. Then, the thesis reviews how these factors manifested themselves during the thirteen day summit at Camp David. The thesis argues that the American and Egyptian motivations for peace hinged on the personal desires of Carter and Anwar el-Sadat. Furthermore, the personal relationship cultivated between the two presidents proved essential in reaching a final agreement

Expression of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A2/B1 changes with critical stages of mammalian lung development

Recent reports have demostrated a link between expression of members of the family of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins (hnRNPs) and cancer. Overexpression of hnRNP A2/B1 correlated with the eventual development of lung cancer in three different clinical cohorts. We have studied the expression of hnRNP A2/B1 messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein during mammalian development. The expression of hnRNP A2/B1 mRNA and protein are parallel but change dynamically during critical periods in mouse pulmonary development. hnRNP A2/B1 is first detected in the lung in the early pseudoglandular period, peaks at the beginning of the canalicular period, and remains high during the saccular (alveolar) period. In mouse and rat, hnRNP A2/B1 expression is first evident in the earliest lung buds. As lung development progresses, the cuboidal epithelial cells of the distal primitive alveoli show high levels of the ribonucleoprotein, which is almost undetectable in the proximal conducting airways. The expression of hnRNP A2/ B1 is restricted in mature lung. Similar dynamic pattern of expression through lung development was also found in rat and human lung. Upregulated expression of hnRNP A2/B1 at critical periods of lung development was comparable to the level of expression found in lung cancers and preneoplastic lesions and is consistent with hnRNP A2/B1 overexpression playing an oncodevelopmental role

Peptidylglycine alpha-amidating monooxygenase- and proadrenomedullin-derived peptide-associated neuroendocrine differentiation are induced by androgen deprivation in the neoplastic prostate

Most PCs show NE differentiation. Several studies have tried to correlate NE expression with disease status, but the reported findings have been contradictory. Prostatic NE cells synthesize peptides with a wide spectrum of potential functions. Some of these active peptides, such as PAMP, are amidated. PAM is the only carboxy-terminal peptide-amidating enzyme identified. We studied expression of PAMP and PAM in normal prostate and prostatic tumors (clinical specimens and human xenograft models) with or without prior androgen-deprivation therapy and found a wide distribution of both molecules in NE subpopulations of all kinds. Although the correlation of either marker to tumor grade, clinical progression or disease prognosis did not reach statistical significance, PAMP- or PAM-immunoreactive cells were induced after androgen-blockade therapy. In the PC-310 and PC-295 androgen-dependent models, PAMP or PAM NE differentiation was induced after castration in different ways, being higher in PC-310, which might explain its long-term survival after androgen deprivation. We show induction of expression of 2 new NE markers in clinical specimens and xenografted PC after endocrine therapy

Transition to university: the role played by emotion

Students experience transition to university as challenging. Recent studies implicate emotion in university success. This paper reports on a pilot study to examine the extent to which school to university transition is experienced as emotional. Understanding the role of emotion in this transition can inform mechanisms for student support. This qualitative study used focus group interviews to elicit insider accounts of transition. The pilot cohort consisted of a tutorial group of twenty-eight students from within the class of one hundred and eight first year students at one Faculty of Dentistry in South Africa. Three focus group interviews were conducted. Issues identified in the literature as significant were used to analyse the data. Eleven descriptive tags related to transition and associated with emotion were identified from the data. These were clustered into four themes – ‘academic challenges’, ‘friends and family’, ‘outside constraints’ and ‘identity’. Findings suggest that emotions are a natural part of the experience of transition. Drawing on insights of students’ emotional needs, it is suggested that students in transition need a roadmap and a guide. A framework, to be used as a roadmap, is suggested. Peer mentoring is discussed as a mechanism for mediating the framework and thus for supporting students in the transition.Web of Scienc

An investigation of radiation protection knowledge, attitudes and practices of North Queensland dentists

Aim: Queensland has current radiation‐protection guidelines; however, with the absence of data exploring compliance and implementation, the efficacy is unknown. The aim of the present study was to investigate the knowledge and attitudes on radiation protection among private North Queensland (NQ) dentists. Methods: A quantitative methodology was employed in an observational and descriptive study using questionnaires for data collection. Results: Of the 154 questionnaires distributed, 63 were completed and returned. The respondents’ knowledge concerning the technical details of their equipment was limited, with 31.5% and 47% not knowing the tube voltage and current utilized for their machines, respectively. In total, 23.8% of dentists had limited knowledge about the speed of the conventional film they used, 90.5% of respondents agreed that the role of imaging in dentistry is important, and 75.8% dentists reported the thyroid as the most important organ to protect during dental radiography. Their knowledge regarding position‐distance rule was reasonably adequate; 80.3% of the dental practices appeared to follow the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency guidelines, 95.2% preferred taking radiographs if it was only urgent, and 69.8% identified a need for spreading awareness regarding radiation protection. Conclusions: An opportunity and need for further continuing education was identified among NQ dentists to ensure safety of patients

Relationships Between Personality Factors, Stress and GPA

We examined correlations among personality traits, stress, and GPA. We compared stress levels from the early 2000s to now