A Geomechanical Study of the Mississippian Boone Formation

The Boone Formation in northwest Arkansas is a chert-limestone sequence analogous to the subsurface Mississippi Lime reservoir in parts of Oklahoma and Kansas. It has low permeability and produces via horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. The response to stimulation by fracturing is dependent on the quantity of chert in the area. Chert nodules and laterally extensive chert layers in the sequence are variable. Locally, cm- to dm-scale chert bedding is continuous and comprises up to 50% of the outcrop. Elsewhere, the chert is nodular and intermittent. Samples collected from representative outcrops spanning the thickness and aerial extent of the formation are being targeted to establish a geomechanical framework for the reservoir. Samples include end members of chert and limestone and interlayered limestone and chert facies with variable thicknesses and contact geometries. Each sample was cored, confined, and oriented perpendicular to bedding. Compressive strength testing of core plugs were performed to determine the stiffness of the rock, describe how each facies responds to loading and failure, determine how limestone rheology is influenced by the presence of chert, and characterize how rock properties influence the compressive strength of the sample. Rockwell Hardness testing was performed on the samples to understand the strength of the rock in an additional quantitative way. The compressive strength of the samples and the Rockwell Hardness values of the samples were compared with each other and with the inherent properties of the rock (e.g. lithology, natural fractures, contact types, and facies) to understand and assess correlations and trends in an effort to understand the geomechanics of the Boone Formation

Measuring business growth : high growth firms and their contribution to employment in the UK

The Measuring Business Growth report is a comprehensive look at UK business growth over the past decade. It makes a powerful case that a small number of high-growth businesses are responsible for the lion's share of job creation and prosperity

\u3cem\u3eInheritance Law and the Evolving Family.\u3c/em\u3e Ralph C. Brashier.

Book note for Ralph C. Brashier, Inheritance Law and the Evolving Family. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2004. $69.50 hardcover,$24.95 papercover

Middle-class, white-collar offenders: needy women - greedy men?

Little research on white-collar offenders has focused on gender. This study focuses on previously neglected gendered dimensions of white-collar criminality by examining both motivations for crime and reactions to adjudication among men and women convicted of white-collar crimes. Data for this study were collected via in-depth interviews with 35 male and female white-collar offenders from the Eastern TennesseeFederal District. Information was also gathered from the offenders’ presentence investigation reports. The analysis suggests that gender differences among white-collaroffenders are not as stark as presented in previous research. Both men and women found to be equally represented among several categories of motivational accounts including, financial interest, need, psychological problems, and revenge. Gender Similarities were also found in the coping strategies used to adapt to imprisonment and in reactions to community supervision. By focusing on the experiences of both men and women convicted of white-collar crimes insight can be gained that may inform future research

Epigenetic marks as the link between environment and development: examination of the associations between attachment, socioeconomic status, and methylation of the SLC6A4 gene.

BackgroundEpigenetic processes act as a link between environment and individual development. This pilot study examined the association between socioeconomic status (SES), attachment, and methylation of the promoter region of the serotonin transporter gene (SLC6A4).MethodsAttachment classification and SLC6A4 methylation was determined in 100 late adolescents. We hypothesized that (1) SES would interact with methylation to predict higher unresolved loss (UL) or trauma scores on the Adult Attachment Interview; (2) across SES, participants with unresolved attachment would have lower levels of methylation than organized or secure participants; and (3) within the unresolved classification, SES would predict methylation.ResultsResults showed that lower methylation and low-SES were associated with higher UL, and higher methylation and low-SES were associated with higher unresolved trauma. Across SES, unresolved participants had lower levels of methylation than organized participants. Within the unresolved category, low-SES unresolved participants had higher levels of methylation than mid/upper-SES participants. SES was unrelated to methylation within the secure and organized categories.ConclusionsThese results suggest that the quality of attachment relationships may impact epigenetic processes

Autonomic nervous system functioning assessed during the Still-Face Paradigm: A meta-analysis and systematic review of methods, approach and findings.

Animal and human research suggests that the development of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) is particularly sensitive to early parenting experiences. The Still-Face Paradigm (SFP), one of the most widely used measures to assess infant reactivity and emotional competence, evokes infant self-regulatory responses to parental interaction and disengagement. This systematic review of 33 peer-reviewed studies identifies patterns of parasympathetic (PNS) and sympathetic (SNS) nervous system activity demonstrated by infants under one year of age during the SFP and describes findings within the context of sample demographic characteristics, study methodologies, and analyses conducted. A meta-analysis of a subset of 14 studies with sufficient available respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) data examined whether the SFP reliably elicited PNS withdrawal (RSA decrease) during parental disengagement or PNS recovery (RSA increase) during reunion, and whether results differed by socioeconomic status (SES). Across SES, the meta-analysis confirmed that RSA decreased during the still-face episode and increased during reunion. When studies were stratified by SES, low-SES or high-risk groups also showed RSA decreases during the still face episode but failed to show an increase in RSA during reunion. Few studies have examined SNS activity during the SFP to date, preventing conclusions in that domain. The review also identified multiple qualifications to patterns of SFP ANS findings, including those that differed by ethnicity, infant sex, parental sensitivity, and genetics. Strengths and weaknesses in the extant research that may explain some of the variation in findings across the literature are also discussed, and suggestions for strengthening future research are provided

Integrated Care : A Pill for All Ills?

There is an increasing policy emphasis on the integration of care, both within the healthcare sector and also between the health and social care sectors, with the simple aim of ensuring that individuals get the right care, in the right place, at the right time. However, implementing this simple aim is rather more complex. In this editorial, we seek to make sense of this complexity and ask: what does integrated care mean in practice? What are the mechanisms by which it is expected to achieve its aim? And what is the nature of the evidence base around the outcomes delivered

Microstructural Study of the Interfacial Transition Zone in Concrete using Optical Microscopy

This paper presents an overview on the optical microstructural features in concrete. Microstructure is the small scale structure of a material, defined as the structure of a prepared surface of material as revealed by a microscope. The concrete specimens with the manipulation of water/cement ratio 0.3-0.7 (increment of 0.1) in the concrete mix design were used to study the optical microstructural features in concrete and to validate the existence of an interfacial transition zone (ITZ) in concrete. USB Digital Microscope is used to analyse the formation mechanism of microstructure in concrete where the optical microstructural images is analyse via respective curing periods of 1, 7, 28 and 56 days. The microstructure features are discussed with respect to their influence on the strength development of concrete