Towards a Forensic Parapsychology in the OT Paradigm

In parapsychology, unlike psychology, there is no known way to determine whether any measuredeffect comes from the (so-called) subjects - S, or the (nominal) experimenter - E. In each generation parapsychology has been dominated by a mere handful of experimenters who report regular extra-chance results, while the great mass of experimenters encounter, at best, only sporadic success. This paper pursues the view that parapsychology's elite are themselves particularly endowed with psi ability: they attribute scoring to subjects, in line with the psychological tradition, while it actually comes from their own psi. The Geiger counter of the radioactive man ticks everywhere! It is suggested that the experiment using subjects is a ritual tailored to maximize experimenter-psi. Today the experiment with subjects seems to replace the Juju of former times. The E-centric view explains why parapsychological experiments can rarely be repeated by different experimenters. Skeptics maintain that many parapsychology results are due to the experimenter affecting his results in an "improper" way: the E-centric model agrees, but suggests that he does so with his mind rather than with his hands. What has been lacking until now are systematic methods to measure how much of a psi effect is due to subjects, and how much to the experimenter. The physics-based Observational Theories break this impasse. An outline is given of the author's take on these theories as Minimalistic Observational Theory (MOT). The parapsychological experiment is physically no more than a source of (informational) entropy which is acted on by psi. If the subject is the source of psi then he affects the result at the level of the trial. On the other hand, if the experimenter is the source of psi he (typically) affects the experiment as a single global unit. The consequences of this elementary dichotomy are remarkably wide-reaching and testable. Only two examples are noted here: for E-psi a small experiment is as good as a big one and the usual measure of effect size (based on the trial) is inappropriate; another is that the "error" mean squares in ANOVA will be depressed by E-psi. The effects predicted by the MOT allow partitioning of the effect into S and E components. Typically Psi effects are small and differences between models are smaller still; so a great deal of data is required. Recourse must be taken to meta-analysis as well as the modern ultra-large experiment.

Preliminary DIMM and MASS Nighttime Seeing Measurements at PEARL, in the Canadian High Arctic

Results of deploying a Differential Image Motion Monitor (DIMM) and a DIMM combined with a Multi-Aperture Scintillation Sensor (MASS/DIMM) are reported for campaigns in 2011 and 2012 on the roof of the Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (PEARL). This facility is on a 610-m-high ridge at latitude 80 degrees N, near the Eureka weatherstation on Ellesmere Island, Canada. The median seeing at 8-m elevation is 0.85 arcsec or better based on DIMM data alone, but is dependent on wind direction, and likely includes a component due to the PEARL building itself. Results with MASS/DIMM yield a median seeing less than 0.76 arcsec. A semi-empirical model of seeing versus ground wind speed is introduced which allows agreement between these datasets, and with previous boundary-layer profiling by lunar scintillometry from the same location. This further suggests that best 20 percentile seeing reaches 0.53 arcsec, of which typically 0.30 arcsec is due to the free atmosphere. Some discussion for guiding future seeing instrumentation and characterization at this site is provided.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures, accepted for PAS

Wildland fire hazard in Humboldt County, California

Humboldt County has several areas which have naturally high to extreme wildland fire hazards. Recent settlement within these areas increases the likelihood of a destructive fire. This report examines the extent and degree to which climate, slope and vegetation influence the wildland fire hazard in Humboldt County, as well as the problems posed by increasing settlement in hazardous areas. Several options for systematically addressing the problem are also offered

Corporate Governance and Institutional Transparency in Emerging Markets

This paper posits that differences in corporate governance structure partly result from differences in institutional arrangements linked to business systems. We developed a new international triad of business systems: the Anglo-American, the Communitarian and the Emerging system, building on the frameworks of Choi et al. (British Academy of Management (Kynoch Birmingham) 1996, Management International Review 39, 257–279, 1999). A common factor determining the success of a corporate governance structure is the extent to which it is transparent to market forces. Such transparency is more than pure financial transparency; as it can also be based on factors such as governmental, banking and other types of institutional transparency mechanism. There may also be a choice for firms to adopt voluntary corporate disclosure in situations where mandatory disclosure is not established. The Asian financial crisis of 1997–1999 and the more recent corporate governance scandals such as Enron, Andersen and Worldcom in the United States and Ahold and Parmalat in Europe show that corporate governance and business ethics issues exist throughout the world. As an illustration we focus on Asia’s emerging1 markets, as, both in view of the pressure of globalization and taking into account the institutional arrangements peculiar to the emerging business system, these issues are important there. Particularly for those who have to find an accommodation between the corporate governance structures and disclosure standards of the Emerging system and those of the Anglo-American and Communitarian systems

Third-party transfers in WLCG using HTTP

Since its earliest days, the Worldwide LHC Computational Grid (WLCG) has relied on GridFTP to transfer data between sites. The announcement that Globus is dropping support of its open source Globus Toolkit (GT), which forms the basis for several FTP client and servers, has created an opportunity to reevaluate the use of FTP. HTTP-TPC, an extension to HTTP compatible with WebDAV, has arisen as a strong contender for an alternative approach. In this paper, we describe the HTTP-TPC protocol itself, along with the current status of its support in different implementations, and the interoperability testing done within the WLCG DOMA working group's TPC activity. This protocol also provides the first real use-case for token-based authorisation for this community. We will demonstrate the benefits of such authorisation by showing how it allows HTTP-TPC to support new technologies (such as OAuth, OpenID Connect, Macaroons and SciTokens) without changing the protocol. We will also discuss the next steps for HTTP-TPC and the plans to use the protocol for WLCG transfers.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, to appear in the proceedings of CHEP 202

IL-21 receptor expression in human tendinopathy

The pathogenetic mechanisms underlying tendinopathy remain unclear, with much debate as to whether inflammation or degradation has the prominent role. Increasing evidence points toward and early inflammatory infiltrate and associated inflammatory cytokine production in human and animal models of tendon disease. The IL-21/IL-21R axis is a proinflammatory cytokine complex that has been associated with chronic inflammatory diseases including rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. This project aimed to investigate the role and expression of the cytokine/receptor pair IL-21/IL-21R in human tendinopathy. We found significantly elevated expression of IL-21 receptor message and protein in human tendon samples but found no convincing evidence of the presence of IL-21 at message or protein level. The level of expression of IL-21R message/protein in human tenocytes was significantly up regulated by proinflammatory cytokines (TNFα/IL-1β) in vitro. These findings demonstrate that IL-21R is present in early human tendinopathy mainly expressed by tenocytes and macrophages. Despite a lack of IL-21 expression these data again suggest that early tendinopathy has an inflammatory/cytokine phenotype, which may provide novel translational targets in the treatment of tendinopathy

Is e-Learning ‘inevitable’ in dental education? Experiences from King’s College London Dental Institute

Ovaj rad želi predstaviti iskustva četiriju različitih projekata e-učenja provedenih na londonskom Kraljevskom stomatološkom institutu (KCLDI), a potvrdili su kulturalne promjene u primjeni takvoga oblika učenja (e-learninga) u stomatološkoj edukaciji. Definicije e-learninga, fleksibilnog učenja te učenja na daljinu trenutačno se navode u uporabi u visokom obrazovanju u Velikoj Britaniji. Na KCLDI-ju su provedena četiri istraživanja različitih primjena tehnologije i to: CDROM za igre, PDA za korištenje u kliničkom radu, webcasting za trajan profesionalan razvoj (CPD) te online-učenje za CPD. U prva dva istraživanja bili su uključeni dodiplomski studenti, a u ostala dva poslijediplomski. Rezultati četiriju istraživanja pokazuju sve veću vrijednost e-učenja u stomatološkoj izobrazbi. Potrebe dodiplomskih studenata mijenjaju se u suvremenom tehnološkom i digitalnom svijetu, a poslijediplomski studenti najviše cijene ugodnost i učinkovitost pristupa tečajevima, jer se mogu dobiti na kombinirani način – online uz praktičnu nastavu. Kao najveći stomatološki fakultet u Velikoj Britaniji, s najvišom kakvoćom učenja i istraživanja, e-learning je našao svoje mjesto u curiculumu dodiplomskih i poslijediplomskih studenata, ali i kod CPD-a. Početak pristupa IVIDENT-u (Međunarodni virtualni stomatološki fakultet) pomoći će uskladiti standarde te poduprijeti Bolonjsku deklaraciju. E-učenje je neodvojiv dio stomatološke edukacije.This descriptive paper aims to demonstrate how experiences of e-learning through four different e-learning projects undertaken at King’s College London Dental Institute (KCLDI) are validating the cultural change towards the use of e-learning in dental education. Definitions of e-learning, flexible learning and distance learning are stated as currently used in higher education in UK. Four investigations undertaken at KCLDI were chosen to represent four different uses of technology, namely CDROM for gaming, PDA for use in clinics, webcasting for Continuing Professional Development (CPD), and blended online learning for CPD. The first two studies involved undergraduate students and the latter two, postgraduate students. Results of the four investigations are presented which demonstrate the increasing value of e-learning in dental education. The needs of the undergraduate are changing in a modern technological and digital world, whilst the postgraduate convenience and efficiency of access to courses, delivered in a blended approach - online coupled with practical tuition - is most highly prized. As the largest dental and medical school in UK, with the highest accolades in teaching quality and research, e-learning has become embedded within the delivery of the curriculum for both undergraduates, postgraduates and in CPD. The advent of an IVIDENT approach (International Virtual Dental School) is advocated to help converge standards and support the Bologna Declaration. e-Learning in dental education is considered ‘inevitable’