Alaska’s Judicial Retention Elections: A Comparative Analysis

The results of recent judicial retention elections in Alaska, and the recent increase in political activities related to judicial selection in Alaska and many other states, have given rise to concerns about the fates of future Alaska retention candidates. This Article analyzes the results of retention elections nationwide and suggests that there may be good reason for Alaska judges to be worried. Baseline levels of voter support for retention candidates in most of Alaska are among the lowest in the country, and have gradually been declining over time. In addition, Alaskan voters have targeted individual judges for removal more frequently than voters in most other states. This Article’s analysis indicates that ensuring the retention of competent Alaska judges in the future requires more than simply improving the effectiveness of pro-retention campaigns for individual candidates, and that understanding and addressing deeply held voter attitudes must be part of a more comprehensive effort

Finishing pigs: conversion is more than respecting the standards

Food scares, mainly BSE and antibiotics, have sharpened consumers concerns about food safety and quality and have increased public attention on agricultural production and food processing. The demand for organic food has increased drastically in the year 2001. In particular, the demand for organically produced pork can not be satisfied. Accordingly, the interest of organic and conventional farmers to finish pigs organically has risen. The general objective of this research project is to describe the state of organic pig finishing in Germany, to analyse the most frequently encountered problems related to an up-take of organic pig finishing, to develop strategies to overcome these problems and provide the base to develop a conversion guidebook. The specific objective of this paper is to present the results of a pilot study which was designed to further explore the research problem and test the feasibility of the study design

Phase transitions in systems with two species of molecular motors

Systems with two species of active molecular motors moving on (cytoskeletal) filaments into opposite directions are studied theoretically using driven lattice gas models. The motors can unbind from and rebind to the filaments. Two motors are more likely to bind on adjacent filament sites if they belong to the same species. These systems exhibit (i) Continuous phase transitions towards states with spontaneously broken symmetry, where one motor species is largely excluded from the filament, (ii) Hysteresis of the total current upon varying the relative concentrations of the two motor species, and (iii) Coexistence of traffic lanes with opposite directionality in multi-filament systems. These theoretical predictions should be experimentally accessible.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, epl style (.cls-file included), to appear in Europhys. Lett. (http://www.edpsciences.org/epl

New developments in astrodynamics algorithms for autonomous rendezvous

A the core of any autonomous rendezvous guidance system must be two algorithms for solving Lambert's and Kepler's problems, the two fundamental problems in classical astrodynamics. Lambert's problem is to determine the trajectory connecting specified initial and terminal position vectors in a specified transfer time. The solution is the initial and terminal velocity vectors. Kepler's problem is to determine the trajectory that stems from a given initial state (position and velocity). The solution is the state of an earlier or later specified time. To be suitable for flight software, astrodynamics algorithms must be totally reliable, compact, and fast. Although solving Lambert's and Kepler's problems has challenged some of the world's finest minds for over two centuries, only in the last year have algorithms appeared that satisfy all three requirements just stated. This paper presents an evaluation of the most highly regarded Lambert and Kepler algorithms

Modeling sRNA-regulated Plasmid Maintenance

We study a theoretical model for the toxin-antitoxin (hok/sok) mechanism for plasmid maintenance in bacteria. Toxin-antitoxin systems enforce the maintenance of a plasmid through post-segregational killing of cells that have lost the plasmid. Key to their function is the tight regulation of expression of a protein toxin by an sRNA antitoxin. Here, we focus on the nonlinear nature of the regulatory circuit dynamics of the toxin-antitoxin mechanism. The mechanism relies on a transient increase in protein concentration rather than on the steady state of the genetic circuit. Through a systematic analysis of the parameter dependence of this transient increase, we confirm some known design features of this system and identify new ones: for an efficient toxin-antitoxin mechanism, the synthesis rate of the toxin's mRNA template should be lower that of the sRNA antitoxin, the mRNA template should be more stable than the sRNA antitoxin, and the mRNA-sRNA complex should be more stable than the sRNA antitoxin. Moreover, a short half-life of the protein toxin is also beneficial to the function of the toxin-antitoxin system. In addition, we study a therapeutic scenario in which a competitor mRNA is introduced to sequester the sRNA antitoxin, causing the toxic protein to be expressed.Comment: 25 pages, 8 figure

Buckling of elastic filaments by discrete magnetic moments

We study the buckling of an idealized, semiflexible filament along whose contour magnetic moments are placed. {We give analytic expressions for the critical stiffness of the filament below which it buckles due to the magnetic compression. For this, we consider various scenarios of the attachment of the magnetic particles to the filament. One possible application for this model are the magnetosome chains of magnetotactic bacteria. An estimate of the critical bending stiffness indicates that buckling may occur within the range of biologically relevant parameters and suggests a role for the bending stiffness of the filament to stabilize the filament against buckling, which would compromise the functional relevance of the bending stiffness of the used filament.Comment: accepted for publication in EPJ

Statistical Discrimination in the Criminal Justice System: The case for Fines Instead of Jail

We develop a model of statistical discrimination in criminal trials. Agents carry publicly observable labels of no economic significance (race, etc.) and choose to commit crimes if their privately observed utility from doing so is high enough. A crime generates noisy evidence, and defendants are convicted when the realized amount of evidence is sufficiently strong. Convicted offenders are penalized either by incarceration or by monetary fines. In the case of prison sentences, discriminatory equilibria can exist in which members of one group face a prior prejudice in trials and are convicted with less evidence than members of the other group. Such discriminatory equilibria cannot exist with monetary fines instead of prison sentences. Our findings have implications for potential reforms of the American criminal justice system.Statistical discrimination, criminal justice, prejudice

Description and measurement of competition in higher education markets: The example of Australia

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Early Round Upsets and Championship Blowouts

In equilibrium play of a two-round tournament we find that underdogs exert more effort in the opening round while favorites save more effort for the final. Ability differences between players are therefore compressed in the opening round so upsets are more likely, and amplified in the final so blowouts are more likely. Measures that reduce the need to strategically allocate effort across games make for a more exciting final but a less exciting opening round. Consistent with the model, introduction of a one-day rest period between regional semi-final and final matches in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament was found to increase the favorite’s victory margin in the semi-finals by about five points. Non-sports applications of the model include the allocation of resources across primaries and general elections by candidates and the allocation of resources across a career ladder by managers.contest; tournament; all-pay auction