Gender and Property Rights: A Critical Issue in Urban Economic Development

Highlights the need for gender equality in property rights, women's role in advancing economic development, and the importance of urban housing and commercial property rights to development. Calls for including gender issues in development programs

Superflywheel energy storage system

A windpowered system using the superflywheel configuration for energy storage is considered. Basic elements of superflywheels are thin rods assembled in pregrooved hub lamina so that they fan out in radial orientation. Adjacent layers of hub lamina are assembled 90 degree in rotation to each other so as to form a circular brush configuration. Thus stress concentrations and rod failure are minimized and realistic failure containment for a high performance flywheel is obtained

The role of mast cells in the microenvironment of tumors

Mast cells exert important functions in innate and adaptive immunity and are therefore strategically located at inner and outer body surfaces, such as skin, gastrointestinal tract and blood vessels. Once mast cells are activated, they release a broad array of prestored or newly synthesized mediators, including a series of cytokines and chemokines. Recent studies showed that mast cells also infiltrate many types of solid cancers and hematologic malignancies. Here, mast cell products can participate in creating a microenvironment that either promotes or inhibits tumor growth. However, the role of mast cells in tumor biology is still controversial and underlying mechanisms remain largely undefined. In the present study, we show for the first time that mast cell numbers are significantly increased in skin biopsies from patients with primary cutaneous lymphoma. Mast cell infiltration is most prominent in the periphery, at lymphoma rims. Also, degranulation of mast cells is significantly increased. Interestingly, patients with advanced stages of the disease show higher mast cell counts than stable patients. Similarly, numbers of mast cells correlate with disease progression. In addition, mast cell numbers correlate with the density of microvessels. Supernatant of cultured mast cells induces in vitro production of cytokines and proliferation in primary cutaneous lymphoma cells. To further elucidate the contribution of mast cells to tumor biology, we use new transgenic mouse models of inducible or constitutive selective deficiency of connective tissue mast cells and show that growth of subcutaneously injected tumors and chemically induced carcinogenesis is significantly decreased in mast cell-deficient mice. Taken together, these experiments demonstrate that mast cells play a tumor-promoting role in human primary cutaneous lymphoma and different murine tumor models. Moreover, our data provide a rationale for exploiting tumor-associated mast cells as prognostic marker and therapeutic target in primary cutaneous lymphoma and other tumors

Genesis of soils and carbonate enriched horizons in a climo-sequence developed over cretaceous limestone in Central and West Texas

Typescript (photocopy).The Edwards Plateau covers 10 million ha in Central and West Texas (nearly 14% of the state) and is an important agricultural rangeland. A strong climo-gradient extends across the area with annual precipitation decreasing westward from 800 to 300 mm. There is a paucity of information on the shallow and stony soils derived from Cretaceous limestone. Following reconnaissance investigations of 34 sites, 15 pedons were sampled and analyzed for routine physical, chemical, mineralogical and micromorphological data. Four pedons were selected for detailed mineralogical, elemental, and SEM analyses. These data serve for developing pedogenic models. Carbonate levels in surface horizons were significantly correlated with Thornthwaite's P-E (moisture) index. Soils in the western part of the area commonly had calcic or petrocalcic horizons. Argillic horizons were common in the easternmost part of the study area although illuvial argillans were difficult to verify except in protected areas such as pores within chert fragments. Euhedral, prismatic quartz grains were identified by SEM to be a prominent component of residues from hard crystalline limestones. These grains were used as marker minerals in identifying parent material discontinuities. Quartz grain morphology, particle size distribution, elemental assay, and mineralogical data indicate a discontinuity between the soil and subjacent limestone. The underlying rock should not, therefore, be considered as the soil parent material. Airborne dusts of uniform quantity and composition are deposited to the surface at the approximate rate of 1 mm/100 yrs. Marker minerals indicate, however, that these dusts are not accumulating on stable land surfaces because erosion presumably exceeds accretion.Differentiation of lithogenic (limestone) from pedogenic forms of carbonates in soils was accomplished by applying microfabric and stable carbon isotope methodologies. Both methods confirmed that massive indurated carbonate zones and much of the disseminated carbonates were pedogenically derived. Petrocalcic horizons occurring over limestone have formed through in situ pedogenic alteration and reconstitution of limestone. This is distinctly different from the 4-stage model of Gile et al. (1966). A new 3-stage model is proposed to describe the genesis of limestone derived petrocalcic horizons

Sobre os limites da interpretação. O debate entre Umberto Eco e Jacques Derrida

A proposta do presente trabalho é examinar o debate sobre os limites da atividade interpretativa, tomando por base as propostas do desconstrucionismo de Jacques Derrida e da semiologia de Umberto Eco. Tentaremos mostrar que as discordâncias entre as duas perspectivas poderiam ser suficientemente aplainadas a partir da identificação de um ponto de convergência fornecido pelas idéias de contexto e de compreensão intersubjetiva

FIELD OBSERVATIONS AND MODEL SIMULATIONS OF LOW-LEVEL FLOWS OVER THE MID-ATLANTIC DURING AUGUST 1-5, 2006

For years, basic mountain, sea breeze, and low-level jet (LLJ) circulations have been studied, usually in locations with a high frequency of occurrence, sharp gradients, or significant geographic prominence. However, there is evidence that similar circulations exist in non-classic locations with more mild topography and atmospheric gradients. One such understudied area is the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region. The Water Vapor Variability - Satellite/Sondes (WAVES) 2006 field campaign provided a contiguous 5-day period of concentrated high resolution observations to examine fine-scale details of a weather pattern typical of the Mid-Atlantic summertime. These measurements presented an opportunity for an intensive modeling study to further investigate peculiar phenomena with verification against research-grade observations. The observations captured two significant events: an official LLJ and a cold front with a prefrontal trough. A pronounced diurnal cycle was revealed which can be categorized into three stages: (1) daytime growth of the planetary boundary layer (PBL), (2) flow intensification into a LLJ regime after dusk, and (3) interruption by downslope winds (DW) after midnight. The third stage is most interesting owing to the lack of literature documenting similar occurrences in the Mid-Atlantic, which can impact air quality forecasting. Prior to high resolution modeling of the case study, sensitivity studies were conducted examining four areas to which the model was believed most sensitive: (1) initial condition data, (2) cumulus schemes, (3) PBL parameterizations, and (4) initialization times. Results also revealed shortcomings in model precipitation and PBL profiles, model biases, urban anomalies, and tendencies for forecast convergence. High resolution regional modeling showed the evolution of these nocturnal events and were verified against WAVES observations. A hybrid solenoidal influenced afternoon and early evening circulation east of the mountains. Afternoon deepening of a lee trough by an oscillating warm air band influenced low-level wind fields. Wind flow was further influenced by the thermal wind that originated over sloping terrain. Airflow traversed the Appalachian barrier and moved down the east flank of the Appalachians with katabatic and hydraulic contributions. This DW swept the LLJ regime off to the southeast. The prefrontal LLJ outflow in the Midwest strengthened DW events as the cold front approached

Sind Intention und Planung von Erholung geeignete Prädiktoren zur Vorhersage von Erholungsverhalten? Eine Studie zur internen Validität des Health Action Process Approach

Psychische Erkrankungen im Lehrerberuf, insbesondere gegen Dienstende, sind in den letzten Jahren besonderer Forschungsgegenstand gewesen. Die empfundene Beanspruchung beziehungsweise der erlebte Stress schien hierbei eine bedeutende Rolle in der Entstehung von psychischen Erkrankungen zu spielen. In neueren Studien hingegen wird Erholung als protektiver Faktor diskutiert. Bisher jedoch gibt es wenig Wissen darüber, wie Erholungsverhalten vorhergesagt oder erklärt werden kann. In der vorliegenden Studie dienen die an Erholungsverhalten angepassten Variablen des sozialkognitiven Prozessmodells gesundheitlichen Verhaltens (Schwarzer, 2008b) zur Vorhersage von Erholungsintentionen und Erholungsverhalten. Neben bereits in Bezug auf Erholungsverhalten untersuchten Skalen wurde zusätzlich die Skala Erholungsintentionen erstmalig operationalisiert und faktorenanalytisch untersucht. Zusätzlich wurde das Modell um Wichtigkeit, ein Konstrukt aus der Motivierenden Beratung, als Prädiktor von Erholungsintentionen erweitert. Ziel der Arbeit war es anhand der Modellkomponenten die Vorhersagbarkeit von Erholungsintentionen – und verhalten zu überprüfen, sowie die vielfach diskutierte Intentions-Verhaltenslücke genauer zu untersuchen. An einer Stichprobe von 173 Personen wurden die Hypothesen im längsschnittlichen Studiendesign mittels Regressions-und Mediatoranalysen untersucht. Entgegen der Annahme des Modells resultierte Wichtigkeit in der multivariaten Analyse als einzig signifikanter Prädiktor von Erholungsintentionen. Erholungsintentionen, Planung von Erholung und erholungsbezogene Selbstwirksamkeit sagten signifikant Erholungsverhalten vorher, wobei erstere der wichtigste Prädiktor war. Zudem zeigte sich, dass die Intentions-Verhaltenslücke beinahe eliminiert werden konnte. Planung fungierte als partieller Mediator in der Intention-Verhaltens-Beziehung. Die Ergebnisse werden hinsichtlich ihrer Bedeutung für die Theoriebildung und vor dem Hintergrund ihrer praktischen Umsetzung zur Förderung von Erholungsverhalten diskutiert. Mögliche weitere Forschungsfragen aufgrund der Ergebnisse werden dargestellt