Next Edition of IHO S-57 (Edition 4): Much more than ENCs

The primary goal for the next edition of S-57 (Edition 4) is to support a greater variety of hydrographic-related digital data sources, products, and customers. This includes matrix and raster data, 3-D and time-varying data (x, y, z, and time), and new applications that go beyond the scope of traditional hydrography (e.g., high-density bathymetry, seafloor classification, marine GIS). It will also enable the use of web-based services for data discovery, browsing, query, analysis, and transfer. S-57 Edition 4.0 will not be an incremental revision of Edition 3.1. Edition 4 will be a new standard that includes both additional content and a new data exchange format. Due to the world-wide prominence of ISO standards, IHO S-57 will conform to the “ISO way” of standards development. However, alignment with the ISO 19100 series of geographic standards will require a re-structuring of S-57 Edition 4. More specifically, this requires a new framework, and a new (or revised) set of terms used to describe the components of S-57 Edition 4.0. The present intention is to release Edition 4.0 in late 2006. Edition 3.1 will continue to be valid for many years to come -- even after Edition 4.0 has been released. Since most ECDIS equipment use ENC data conforming to the ENC Product Specification contained in S-57 Edition 3.1, Hydrographic Offices should continue to produce Edition 3.1 ENC data in order to continue to improve world-wide ENC coverage. Current plans are to release a new ENC Product Specification approximately one year after publication of S-57 Edition 4.0

The Syntax of Clitic Placement in European Portuguese

Dans la plupart des langues romanes, les clitiques objets apparaissent à la gauche du verbe (proclitiques); en portugais européen (PE), ils se situent à la droite (enclitiques). De plus, de nombreux contextes syntaxiques présentent la proclise en PE, au contraire des autres langues romanes. Ils se regroupent en deux classes, celle où SC est occupé (questions QU-, focalisations, subordonnées), et celle où une tête entre SC et ST est occupée (négation, adverbes particuliers). Pour expliquer ces faits, je propose que C0 ait le trait [+lexical], qui doit être vérifié par une unité lexicale avant l’Épellation. Je propose aussi la structure phrastique suivante : STop>SC>SAdvs>SNeg>ST>Sv>SV. SAdvs est une projection fonctionnelle qui contient un membre d’un petit ensemble d’adverbes particuliers. Si SC est déjà occupé à l’Épellation, le trait [+lexical] sera vérifié et effacé. Sinon, C0 attire l’unité lexicale la plus proche.In most Romance languages, object clitics appear to the left of the verb (proclitics); in European Portuguese (henceforth, EP) they appear to the right (enclitics). Furthermore, several syntactic environments trigger proclisis in EP, which usually have no effect on clitic placement in other Romance languages. These environments can be roughly split into two categories: those in which CP is filled (Wh-questions, focus constructions, subordinate clauses), and those in which a head position between CP and TP is filled (negation, special adverbs). To account for this, I propose that C0 in EP has the strong feature [+lexical] which must be checked by a lexical item before Spell-Out. I also propose the following clause structure: TopP>CP>AdvsP>NegP>TP>vP>VP. AdvsP is a functional projection which hosts any one of a small set of special adverbials. If CP is filled by Spell-Out (either in its head or specifier position), the [+lexical] feature will be checked and erased. If not, then C0 attracts the closest lexical item

Victorian values and the Victorian theatre

I contend that 'morality, respectability, and decorum', were Victorian values trumpeted particularly loudly in Birmingham because of the local dominance of Nonconformism. Nonconformists had materially delayed the granting of a licence to Birmingham's playhouse, and continued actively hostile to its existence. Their influence on the prevailing 'official' moral climate is apparent in the reluctance of the local magistracy to grant music hall licence applications. Theatre managers here, then, laboured under an added imperative to maintain tranquil, well-conducted houses, presenting wholesome fare, and with strong community links. II My contention is that the theatre embraced and, occasionally, stimulated technological innovation. I also argue that Birmingham industrialists played a crucial role in materially changing both the functioning and the appearance of playhouses and music halls. That the revolution in mobility was the overriding factor in the contemporary mushrooming of playhouses and music halls is, I suggest, too apparent to be gainsaid. I focus closely on the transformation of Birmingham's transport links, both externally and within the town, and the readiness of local promoters and managers of theatres to exploit the new opportunities to attract audiences. III I suggest that if cultural imperialism operated more subtly than the political brand, imperialism it remained. The relationship with the fledgling United States displayed the classic characteristics of paternalism and condescension, not unmixed with arrogance, on . the part of the metropolitan power, and a general deference, giving way to fits of resentment, pique, and sometimes open rebellion, on the part of the erstwhile colonials. Minstrelsy and the cult of the 'Wild West' represent the beginnings of a reversal of the hitherto one-way cultural traffic, mirroring changes in the transatlantic political balance. I argue that the advent of steam navigation was a key factor in the expanding and vibrant Anglo-American exchange, with Birmingham playing a full role in that exchange

Low temperature (<150 °C) hydrogenated amorphous silicon grown by PECVD with source gas heating

Hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) is a semiconductor that is widely used in a variety of applications. A particularly important development has been the incorporation of this material into thin film transistor (TFT) arrays for the active matrix addressing of liquid crystal displays. Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapour Deposition (PECVD) is one of the most successful techniques currently in use for the deposition of device quality a-Si:H. However, there is an increasing desire to improve process compatibility with low cost, plastic substrates. This entails trying to reduce the deposition temperature from approximately 250 - 300°C to below 150°C, whilst maintaining material quality. This thesis describes the design of a novel, low temperature PECVD system incorporating the facility to pre-heat the deposition source gases. The physical and electronic properties of a-Si:H deposited at <150°C are investigated, and the performance of TFT structures incorporating optimised material as the active layer is described. It is shown that the physical properties of a-Si:H produced at a substrate temperature of 125°C with the source gas line heated to 400 °C are commensurate with films deposited at 250-300 QC. The hydrogen content of the optimised film was found to be 10.5 %, with a Tauc bandgap of 1.66 e V. Pre-heating of the source gases also leads to an increase in the proportion of hydrogen bonded in the monohydride configuration. It is suggested that the diffusion of the film-forming gaseous species is enhanced by this technique, resulting in a reduction in the degree of disorder within the film and hydrogen elimination. Consequently, the concentration of hydrogen and the Tauc bandgap also decrease, leading to an increase in photoconductivity of one order of magnitude. TFTs exhibit a switching ratio of 1 Os, which is approximately an order of magnitude smaller than high temperature a-Si:H TFTs, but a comparable OFF current of approximately 10.12 A. However, the field effect mobility of these devices is very poor (10.3 cm2V·l s·I). This is thought to be due to a high interface state density at the boundary between the low temperature, gas-heated a-Si:H layer and the high temperature silicon nitride gate insulator.EPSRC. Philips Research Laboratorie

Did local civil rights protest liberalize whites’ racial attitudes?

Mazumder investigates the long-term effect of protest on political attitudes. He finds that whites have more liberal views on race and are more likely to be Democrats in counties where Civil Rights protest was reported in the early 1960s. The analysis omits a crucial predictor of protest and of racial attitudes: college education. We include the proportion of adults with a college degree and the number of college students at the county level. The inclusion of these variables, along with some other contextual variables from the original dataset, cuts the effect of protest by about half. Protest is no longer statistically significant in eight out of nine combinations of outcome variables and protest measures. The size of the effect remains trivial when we shift analysis from the county to the individual level. Even accounting for the individual’s own education, the county’s proportion of college graduates is strongly associated with racial liberalism. This finding emphasizes the importance of education as a contextual variable. Our conclusion highlights two methodological lessons. First, causal inference should be paired with sustained historical inquiry that specifies plausible mechanisms. Second, statistical tests for sensitivity can induce complacency about the risk of confounding