Racial Profiling and the War on Terror: Changing Trends and Perspectives

Minorities in the United States have often been treated unfairly by law enforcement agencies. Prior to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack on the United States, Blacks were the main victims of racial profiling. Since the terrorist attack, however, Arabs and Muslims are becoming the primary targets for profiling by law enforcement agencies. There are some remarkable similarities between the profiling of Blacks and the profiling of Arabs and Muslims. In both cases, the fundamental problems with racial profiling are that it violates the civil liberties of innocent people and denies minorities the equal protection of the law. The War on Terror has redefined racial profiling. It has not only led to a shift in the target population, but it has also changed the ways in which racial profiling is conducted

Diffusion Maps: Analysis and Applications

A lot of the data faced in science and engineering is not as complicated as it seems. There is the possibility of ¯nding low dimensional descriptions of this usually high dimensional data. One of the ways of achieving this is with the use of diffusion maps. Diffusion maps represent the dataset by a weighted graph in which points correspond to vertices and edges are weighted. The spectral properties of the graph Laplacian are then used to map the high dimensional data into a lower dimensional representation. The algorithm is introduced on simple test examples for which the low dimensional description is known. Justification of the algorithm is given by showing its equivalence to a suitable minimisation problem and to random walks on graphs. The description of random walks in terms of partial di®erential equations is discussed. The heat equation for a probability density function is derived and used to further analyse the algorithm. Applications of diffusion maps are presented at the end of this dissertation. The first application is clustering of data (i.e. partitioning of a data set into subsets so that the data points in each subset have similar characteristics). An approach based on di®usion maps (spectral clustering) is compared to the K-means clustering algorithm. We then discuss techniques for colour image quantization (reduction of distinct colours in an image). Finally, the diffusion maps are used to discover low dimensional description of high dimensional sets of images

Invasive bacterial infections in Gambians with sickle cell anaemia in an era of widespread Pneumococcal and Haemophilus influenzae type B vaccination

Background: There is relatively little data on the aetiology of bacterial infections in patients with sickle cell anaemia (SCA) in West Africa, and no data from countries that have implemented conjugate vaccines against both Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib). Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of SCA patients admitted to the Medical Research Council Unit, The Gambia during a five-year period when there was high coverage of Hib and Pneumococcal conjugate vaccination. We evaluated 161 admissions of 126 patients between April 2010 and April 2015. Results: Pathogenic bacteria were identified in blood cultures from 11 of the 131 admissions that had cultures taken (8.4%, 95% CI 4.5-14.1%). The most frequent isolate was Salmonella Typhimurium (6/11; 54.5%), followed by Staphylococcus aureus (2/11; 18.2%) and other enteric Gram-negative pathogens (2/11; 18.2%) and there was one case of H. influenzae non-type b bacteraemia (1/11; 9.1%). There were no episodes of bacteraemia caused by S. pneumoniae or Hib. Conclusions: The low prevalence of S. pneumoniae and Hib, and the predominance of non-typhoidal Salmonella as a cause of bacteraemia suggest the need to reconsider optimal antimicrobial prophylaxis and the empirical treatment regimens for patients with SCA

Cryopreservation of immature embryos of coconut (Cocos nucifera L.)

Réponse d'embryons immatures de cocotiers (7 à 8 mois après la pollinisation) à la congélation par azote liquide (-196¼C) : survie et germinatio

Involvement of the general public in the management of water pollution in Johor Bahru Malaysia

Water is undoubtedly the most delicate component of the ecosystem, but it is essential for human and industrial advancement. As the population grows, so does the demand for water supplies and drinkable water. Water covers roughly 71percent of the total earth’s surface and highly vital natural resource for humans. However, only 2.5 percent of the world's water is pure and thus drinkable. It is everyone's fundamental human right to have access to clean water. The purpose of this study is: to identify the current level of public involvement in water pollution management and to assess people's desire to participate towards reducing water pollution. The study's methodology is a quantitative approach for achieving the research objectives. A total of sixty-three (63) responses were reordered from the distribution of the questionnaires. The data collected were analysed using Microsoft Excel (2019) and simple percentage distribution tables and charts. The findings revealed that most of the participants have sewerage connections in their residences and that the water quality of their rivers is acceptable for majority of the participants. The study also indicated that water pollution is a grave concern for environmental and social health. In addition, it was observed that community involvement in water pollution decision-making processes was currently low on average, implying that authorities still have room to improve concerning water pollutant information delivery. Majority of respondents agreed that investing more money in water and waste management, and educating the public, are strategies to enhance water quality. Eventually, the findings revealed that the general public is enthusiastic about taking part in the fight against water pollution and are ready to participate in water pollution management in their community. The study recommends building a solid foundation to allow greater public involvement in decision-making and to enacting strict water pollution control policy

Culture in vitro d'embryons zygotiques de cocotier (Cocos nucifera L.). Méthode révisée et simplifiée d'obtention de plants de cocotiers transférables au champ

Des améliorations ont été apportées à la technique de culture in vitro des embryons zygotiques de cocotier. La suppression de l'haustorium sur des embryons ayant développé une gemmule de 2 à 4 cm a entraîné une meilleure survie des plants après leur passage sur sable. L'augmentation de la concentration en saccharose dans le milieu a permis d'accélérer le développement des embryons. Dans ce cas, le système radiculaire formé sans adjonction d'auxines rhizogènes a été satisfaisant. On a obtenu ainsi, en 5 mois, des plantules vigoureuses ayant un développement harmonieux après leur passage en conditions naturelle

Maternal-fetal prognosis of obstetric emergencies at the maternity ward of the Mamou regional hospital

Background: Pregnant women may be at risk of unpredictable obstetric complications such as: bleeding, dystocia, acute fetal suffering, pre-eclampsia and eclampsia. This maternal-fetal prognosis of obstetric emergencies is influenced by factors that are most often related to complications that alter the course or outcome of a pregnancy and require prompt care. The objectives of this study are to analyze the factors that influence the maternal-fetal prognosis of obstetric emergencies; determine their frequency, describe the clinical profiles of patients and evaluate the maternal-fetal prognosis.Methods: The study was conducted at the Mamou Regional Hospital. It was a 6-month quantitative, descriptive and analytical study, from July 1st to December 31st, 2016, including all parturient women whose term is greater than or equal to 28 weeks of amenorrhoea.Results: The study covered 377 obstetric emergencies out of a total of 1273 deliveries, or 29.61%. Factors influencing the prognosis were: young age, parity, unfavorable socio-economic conditions and difficult baseline conditions. The main obstetric emergencies recorded were acute fetal suffering, disproportion and narrowed pelvis. The dominant mode of delivery was caesarean section with a frequency of 89.65%. Maternal lethality is 3.44% and fetal lethality is 5.14%.Conclusions: Obstetric emergency is a frequent situation where better management would improve the prognosis of the mother and fetus