Improving the chances for developing coastal country success in adapting to climate change

There is an unequivocal scientific consensus that increases in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere drive warming temperatures of air and sea, and acidification of the world’s oceans from carbon dioxide absorbed by the oceans. These changes in turn can induce shifts in precipitation patterns, sea level rise, and more frequent and severe extreme weather events (e.g. storms and sea surge). All of these impacts are already being witnessed in the world’s coastal regions and are projected to intensify in years to come. Taken together, these impacts are likely to result in significant alteration of natural habitats and coastal ecosystems, and increased coastal hazards in low-lying areas. They can affect fishers, coastal communities and resource users, recreation and tourism, and coastal infrastructure. Approaches to planned adaptation to these impacts can be drawn from the lessons and good practices from global experience in Integrated Coastal Management (ICM). The recently published USAID Guidebook on Adapting to Coastal Climate Change (USAID 2009) is directed at practitioners, development planners, and coastal management professionals in developing countries. It offers approaches for assessing vulnerability to climate change and climate variability in communities and outlines how to develop and implement adaptation measures at the local and national levels. Six best practices for coastal adaptation are featured in the USAID Guidebook on Adapting to Coastal Climate Change and summarized in the following sections. (PDF contains 3 pages

Bearings use dry self-lubricating cage materials

Rolling element bearings in spacecraft mechanical systems use solid lubricant composites of polytetrafluoroethylene in the bearing cage which functions as the lubricant reservoir. The cage spaces the rolling elements equally and provides the lubricant at the bearing load-carrying surface

Computational Methods and Results for Structured Multiscale Models of Tumor Invasion

We present multiscale models of cancer tumor invasion with components at the molecular, cellular, and tissue levels. We provide biological justifications for the model components, present computational results from the model, and discuss the scientific-computing methodology used to solve the model equations. The models and methodology presented in this paper form the basis for developing and treating increasingly complex, mechanistic models of tumor invasion that will be more predictive and less phenomenological. Because many of the features of the cancer models, such as taxis, aging and growth, are seen in other biological systems, the models and methods discussed here also provide a template for handling a broader range of biological problems

A New Agenda for Deafness Rehabilitation: Embracing Multicultural Diversity

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Vocational Rehabilitation Services and the Black Deaf

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Vocational Rehabilitation Services and the Black Deaf

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Land tenure and the adoption of agricultural technology in Haiti:

There has long been an active debate in Haiti - as in many other developing countries - over whether or not the customary tenure system constrains technology adoption and agricultural development, and whether cadaster and land titling should be national priorities. This paper contributes to this debate by reviewing and interpreting the body of literature and new empirical evidence concerning the relationship between land tenure and the adoption of technology in rural Haiti. The findings suggest that (a) formal title is not necessarily more secure than informal arrangements, (b) informal arrangements based on traditional social capital resources assure affordable and flexible access to land for most people, and (c) perceived stability of access to land-via stability of personal and social relationships-is a more important determinant of technology adoption than mode of access. The paper concludes that there is no definitive relationship between tenure and technology adoption by peasants; peasants are preoccupied more by political and economic insecurity than insecure tenure; and rather than tinkering with formalizing tenure, policy makers should prioritize other more fundamental rural sector reforms. The paper ends by considering some of the implications for theory and suggests several avenues for future research on land policy.

A National Agenda of Excellence and Equity for Deaf People of Color

Produced by Center on Disabilities, University of Hawai'i at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai'i, Frank Sawyer School of Management, Suffolk University, Boston, Massachusetts and The School of Social Sciences, The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, Texas for The Society for Disability Studies

Preference Heterogeneity in Experiments: Comparing the Field and Lab

Economists recognize that preferences can differ across individuals. We examine the strengths and weaknesses of lab and field experiments to detect differences in preferences that are associated with standard, observable characteristics of the individual. We consider preferences over risk and time, two fundamental concepts of economics. Our results provide striking evidence that there are good reasons to conduct field experiments. The lab fails to detect preference heterogeneity that is present in the field, obviously due to the demographic homogeneity of the lab. There are also differences in treatment effects measured in the lab and the field that can be traced to interactions between treatment and demographic effects. These can only be detected and controlled for properly in the field data. Thus one cannot simply claim, without additional empirical argument or assumption, that treatment effects estimated in the lab are reliable.