Creating safe zones and safe corridors in conflict

The conflict in Syria has prompted renewed calls for so-called ?safe zones? and ?safe corridors? to prevent people from needing to seek protection abroad as refugees, and to encourage refugees to return home. Given the inherent dangers that arise from trying to leave a conflict zone and travelling onwards to seek asylum, the idea of creating safe zones within States has been put forward as a positive humanitarian alternative. Yet, there are a number of legal and practical preconditions that must be met for safety to be guaranteed. The reality of conflict today means that in all but the most extreme circumstances ? where flight is impossible ? safe zones cannot be a substitute for asylum in another country. They may be the best response to people trapped in a conflict zone, but that is all. They do not provide true ?protection? as envisaged by international refugee law. Furthermore, the law is underdeveloped and the practice is too erratic and random for safe zones to be a proper response to a humanitarian crisis. If States in the global north want to spare refugees the dangers of irregular flight, they should establish proper pathways to safety through humanitarian and migration channels, and push for peace in those areas of the world where conflict is rife.1 Safe corridors could provide that route out ? as well as operating to allow those trapped in conflict zones to carry on with their lives by safely accessing work, education, markets and health care, to the extent possible. This policy brief begins by asking some fundamental questions about safe zones and safe corridors, and sketching the complexity of the international legal frameworks that apply. It then briefly examines the history of the law and practice of safe zones and safe corridors, before analysing the preconditions to their creation, their qualities and character, how they are accessed, and how protection and other human rights can be assured. Finally, it considers the responsibility and accountability of various international actors with respect to safe zones and safe corridors. The existence of different terms to describe the concepts, and the interplay of several different sub-branches of international law, make the analysis more complicated, but the conclusion reached is that in all but the most extreme circumstances ? where flight is impossible ? safe zones can never provide a substitute for asylum. They cannot provide the same degree of protection that a safe third country can. By contrast, safe corridors can enable people to flee to a place of safety, and at the very least can help those unable to leave by facilitating access to vital services

The motivating operation and negatively reinforced problem behavior. A systematic review.

The concept of motivational operations exerts an increasing influence on the understanding and assessment of problem behavior in people with intellectual and developmental disability. In this systematic review of 59 methodologically robust studies of the influence of motivational operations in negative reinforcement paradigms in this population, we identify themes related to situational and biological variables that have implications for assessment, intervention, and further research. There is now good evidence that motivational operations of differing origins influence negatively reinforced problem behavior, and that these might be subject to manipulation to facilitate favorable outcomes. There is also good evidence that some biological variables warrant consideration in assessment procedures as they predispose the person's behavior to be influenced by specific motivational operations. The implications for assessment and intervention are made explicit with reference to variables that are open to manipulation or that require further research and conceptualization within causal models

Surgical results of the Lung Cancer Mutation Consortium 3 trial: A phase II multicenter single-arm study to investigate the efficacy and safety of atezolizumab as neoadjuvant therapy in patients with stages IB-select IIIB resectable non-small cell lung cancer

OBJECTIVE: Multimodality treatment for resectable non-small cell lung cancer has long remained at a therapeutic plateau. Immune checkpoint inhibitors are highly effective in advanced non-small cell lung cancer and promising preoperatively in small clinical trials for resectable non-small cell lung cancer. This large multicenter trial tested the safety and efficacy of neoadjuvant atezolizumab and surgery. METHODS: Patients with stage IB to select IIIB resectable non-small cell lung cancer and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status 0/1 were eligible. Patients received atezolizumab 1200 mg intravenously every 3 weeks for 2 cycles or less followed by resection. The primary end point was major pathological response in patients without EGFR/ALK+ alterations. Pre- and post-treatment computed tomography, positron emission tomography, pulmonary function tests, and biospecimens were obtained. Adverse events were recorded by Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events v.4.0. RESULTS: From April 2017 to February 2020, 181 patients were entered in the study. Baseline characteristics were mean age, 65.1 years; female, 93 of 181 (51%); nonsquamous histology, 112 of 181 (62%); and clinical stages IIB to IIIB, 147 of 181 (81%). In patients without EGFR/ALK alterations who underwent surgery, the major pathological response rate was 20% (29/143; 95% confidence interval, 14-28) and the pathological complete response rate was 6% (8/143; 95% confidence interval, 2-11). There were no grade 4/5 treatment-related adverse events preoperatively. Of 159 patients (87.8%) undergoing surgery, 145 (91%) had pathologic complete resection. There were 5 (3%) intraoperative complications, no intraoperative deaths, and 2 postoperative deaths within 90 days, 1 treatment related. Median disease-free and overall survival have not been reached. CONCLUSIONS: Neoadjuvant atezolizumab in resectable stage IB to IIIB non-small cell lung cancer was well tolerated, yielded a 20% major pathological response rate, and allowed safe, complete surgical resection. These results strongly support the further development of immune checkpoint inhibitors as preoperative therapy in locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer

Determinants of grassland primary production in seasonally-dry silvopastoral systems in Central America

Grassland primary productivity is the function that underpins the majority of the fodder production in cattle-rearing silvopastoral farms. Hence, understanding the factors that determine grassland productivity is critical for the design and management of silvpastoral systems. We studied the effect of two factors with documented impact on grassland productivity in seasonally dry silvopastures of Nicaragua, rainfall and trees. We assessed the effects of three species that differed in crown size and phenology, one evergreen, Cassia grandis, and two deciduous species, Guazuma ulmifolia and Tabebuia rosea. Overall, grassland ANPP had a quadratic response to rainfall, with a decline at high rainfall that coincided with peak standing biomass and grassland cover. Trees had a predominately negative effect on grassland productivity, and the effect was concentrated in the rainy season at peak productivity. The effect of the trees corresponded with the tree crown area, but not with crown density. Trees reduced the standing biomass of graminoids and increased forb biomass; thus, the effect of trees on grassland ANPP appears in part to respond to changes in grassland composition. We also found higher levels of soil moisture content below the tree canopy, particularly at the peak of the rainy season when soils tend to become waterlogged. The evergreen species, C. grandis, affected grassland ANPP more strongly than the deciduous species.This research has been co-funded by the Research Council of Norway, Environment 2015 Program and FRIMUF (Grants 204413 – SILPAS and 190134 – Multi-functional Landscapes) and by the European Commission, Directorate General for Research, within the 7th Framework Programme of RTD, Theme 2 – Biotechnology, Agriculture & Food (Grant Agreement No. 227265 - FUNCiTREE). P. Casals is supported by a Ramón y Cajal Contract (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Spain)

Bose-Einstein condensation in a stiff TOP trap with adjustable geometry

We report on the realisation of a stiff magnetic trap with independently adjustable trap frequencies, $\omega_z$ and $\omega_r$, in the axial and radial directions respectively. This has been achieved by applying an axial modulation to a Time-averaged Orbiting Potential (TOP) trap. The frequency ratio of the trap, $\omega_z / \omega_r$, can be decreased continuously from the original TOP trap value of 2.83 down to 1.6. We have transferred a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) into this trap and obtained very good agreement between its observed anisotropic expansion and the hydrodynamic predictions. Our method can be extended to obtain a spherical trapping potential, which has a geometry of particular theoretical interest.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Interfacial Design for Joining Technologies: An Historical Perspective

This paper gives an historic perspective of the concept of "Interfacial Design” in joined (e.g. soldered, brazed, diffusion bonded) assemblies. During the course of history, the awareness grew that the interface in a material joint can be perceived at different length scales. With the continuing development of joining materials and technologies, it became evident that the performance of assemblies is critically dependent on the structure and composition of the multiple internal interfaces in the material joints. Resulting trends in the microstructural design of soldering, brazing, and other bonding materials by smart engineering of internal interfaces, as driven by increasingly complex technological requirements, are briefly addressed

Clinical Characteristics of Patients with Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Harboring Somatic BAP1 Mutations

IntroductionGenomic studies of malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) have recently identified frequent mutations in the BRCA-associated protein 1(BAP1) gene. In uveal melanoma and clear cell renal cell carcinoma, BAP1 mutations are associated with poor outcomes but their clinical significance in MPM is unknown. We therefore undertook this study to define the characteristics of patients whose MPM tumors harbor somatic BAP1 mutation and to examine the relationship between BAP1 mutation and survival.MethodsWe reviewed the charts of 121 patients with MPM tumors diagnosed between 1991 and 2009 tested for BAP1 mutation, and extracted the following information: age at diagnosis, sex, histology, stage, smoking status, asbestos exposure, family or personal history of malignancy, and treatment including surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation as well as survival status.ResultsTwenty-four of the 121 tumors (20%) harbored somatic BAP1 mutations. The percentage of current or former smokers among cases with BAP1 mutations was significantly higher than in BAP1 wild-type cases, (75% versus 42%; p = 0.006). However, the types of nucleotide substitutions in BAP1 did not suggest that this association was because of a causative role of smoking in BAP1 mutations. No other clinical feature was significantly different among those with and without BAP1 mutations in their MPM. There was also no difference in survival according to somatic BAP1 mutation status.ConclusionThere is no apparent distinct clinical phenotype for MPM with somatic BAP1 mutation. The significance of the more frequent history of smoking among patients with BAP1-mutated MPM warrants further study

Under-representation of males in the early years: the challenges leaders face

This article investigates why there appears to be an under-representation of males in comparison to their female colleagues in the Early Years (EY) sector, and the perception of male teachers progressing more quickly to leadership positions when they do enter this context. Using case studies of final year male students on an Initial Teacher Training (ITT) undergraduate degree course at one university, we attempt to analyse data on male under-representation in Early Years against contemporary theories of identity, power and leadership. Questionnaires and interviews were conducted with the male sample group and male senior leaders in primary schools to gain an overview as to the leadership support they needed and provided. Our tentative findings suggested that male trainees are happy to work in an Early Years context and take leadership positions, but the challenge for leaders is that male trainees require strong leadership mentoring processes to help overcome perceived contextual barriers

Mode Coupling Analysis of Hollow Ring-Core Fibers for OAM Transmission

We present an analytical and numerical description of coupling between OAM modes in hollow ring-core fibers affected by stress birefringence and ellipticity The analysis paves the way to a better modeling of propagation in these fibers

Crop diversity benefits carabid and pollinator communities in landscapes with semi-natural habitats

In agricultural landscapes, arthropods provide essential ecosystem services such as biological pest control and pollination. Intensified crop management practices and homogenization of landscapes have led to declines among such organisms. Semi-natural habitats, associated with high numbers of these organisms, are increasingly lost from agricultural landscapes but diversification by increasing crop diversity has been proposed as a way to reverse observed arthropod declines and thus restore ecosystem services. However, whether or not an increase in the diversity of crop types within a landscape promotes diversity and abundances of pollinating and predaceous arthropods, and how semi-natural habitats might modify this relationship, are not well understood. To test how crop diversity and the proportion of semi-natural habitats within a landscape are related to the diversity and abundance of beneficial arthropod communities, we collected primary data from seven studies focusing on natural enemies (carabids and spiders) and pollinators (bees and hoverflies) from 154 crop fields in Southern Sweden between 2007 and 2017. Crop diversity within a 1-km radius around each field was positively related to the Shannon diversity index of carabid and pollinator communities in landscapes rich in semi-natural habitats. Abundances were mainly affected by the proportion of semi-natural habitats in the landscape, with decreasing carabid and increasing pollinator numbers as the proportion of this habitat type increased. Spiders showed no response to either crop diversity or the proportion of semi-natural habitats. Synthesis and applications. We show that the joint effort of preserving semi-natural habitats and promoting crop diversity in agricultural landscapes is necessary to enhance communities of natural enemies and pollinators. Our results suggest that increasing the diversity of crop types can contribute to the conservation of service-providing arthropod communities, particularly if the diversification of crops targets complex landscapes with a high proportion of semi-natural habitats