The WTO and civil society

In line with a general trend in contemporary global governance, the World Trade Organization has been developing increased links with civil society groups. If conducted well, these contacts can make important contributions towards greater effectiveness and democracy in the global trade regime. If handled poorly, however, the relations can undermine policy and undercut democracy. Already the WTO and civic associations have taken notable steps to increase the quantity and quality of their mutual exchanges. Yet major resource constraints and deeper structural impediments have to date prevented a fuller development of this dialogue

Oxygen Abundances in Two Metal-Poor Subgiants from the Analysis of the 6300 A Forbidden O I Line

Recent LTE analyses (Israelian et al. 1998 and Bosegaard et al. 1999) of the OH bands in the optical-ultraviolet spectra of nearby metal-poor subdwarfs indicate that oxygen abundances are generally higher than those previously determined. The difference increases with decreasing metallicity and reaches delta([O/Fe]) ~ +0.6 dex as [Fe/H] approaches -3.0. Employing high resolution (R = 50000), high S/N (~ 250) echelle spectra of the two stars found by Israelian et al. (1998) to have the highest [O/Fe]-ratios, viz, BD +23 3130 and BD +37 1458, we conducted abundance analyses based on about 60 Fe I and 7-9 Fe II lines. We determined from Kurucz LTE models the values of the stellar parameters, as well as abundances of Na, Ni, and the traditional alpha-elements, independent of the calibration of color vs $T_{eff}$ scales. We determined oxygen abundances from spectral synthesis of the stronger line (6300 A) of the [O I] doublet. The syntheses of the [O I] line lead to smaller values of [O/Fe], consistent with those found earlier among halo field and globular cluster giants. We obtain [O/Fe] = +0.35 +/- 0.2 for BD +23 3130 and +0.50 +/- 0.2 for BD +37 1458. In the former, the [O I] line is very weak (~ 1 mA), so that the quoted [O/Fe] value may in reality be an upper limit. Therefore in these two stars a discrepancy exists between the [O/Fe]- ratios derived from [O I] and the OH feature, and the origin of this difference remains unclear. Until the matter is clarified, we suggest it is premature to conclude that the ab initio oxygen abundances of old, metal-poor stars need to be revised drastically upward.Comment: 38 pages, 5 tables, 14 figures To appear in July 1999 AJ Updated April 16, 1999. Fixed typo

Zeroes of holomorphic vector fields and Grothendieck duality theory (and applications to the holomorphic fixed-point formula of Atiyah and Bott)

The holomorphic fixed-point formula of Atiyah and Bott is discussed in terms of Grothendieck's theory of duality for algebraic varieties. The treatment is valid for an endomorphism of a compact complex-analytic manifold with arbitrary isolated fixed points. An expression for the fixed-point indices is then derived for the case where the endomorphism belongs to the additive group generated by a holomorphic vector field with isolated zeroes. An application and some examples are given. Two generalisations of these results are also proved. The first deals with holomorphic vector bundles having sufficient homogeneity properties with respect to the action of the additive group on the base manifold, and the second with additive group actions on algebraic varieties

Architecture of the Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative – A Partnership Delivering Transformative Cancer Health Equity Research, Education and Community Engagement

Reducing cancer health inequities requires transformation of longstanding structures, including ways of ‘doing business’ and other deeply rooted traditions that perpetuate social injustice. We posit that moving the needle toward cancer health equity requires the building of large-scale partnerships with the infrastructure and reach to reshape the architecture defining how education, training, and research are conducted. It is with this vision that the Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative (ChicagoCHEC) was conceived in response to a call for proposals by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in 2015 that sought applications for a partnership across a NCI designated comprehensive cancer center and up to two institutions serving underserved health disparitypopulations and underrepresented students. ChicagoCHEC was conceived as a tri-institutional partnership comprised of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, a NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center which serves a diverse nine county catchment area, Northeastern Illinois University, a minority-serving institution known for its connection to minority students, and the University of Illinois Cancer Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), a minority-serving institution and leader in community-focused cancer care and disparities research. Established in 2016, ChicagoCHEC is comprised of four functionally distinct cores that together serve the mission of advancing cancer health equity through meaningful scientific discovery, education, training, and community engagement. The successful functioning of of ChicagoCHEC is evident from the fruits borne by the partnership in research, education, and community engagement toward the goal of eradicating cancer health inequities

Voices of Fire : Art, Rage, Power, and the State

"Visual art, especially abstract art, functions a little like a time bomb. It explodes under the pressure of changing social circumstances, scattering the old meanings that once defined it and reassembling new ones not imagined at the moment of production. These metaphoric detonations and reconstitutions of art, though unpredictable in their timing, occur with a certain inevitability." -- p. [4] of cover

Axis I anxiety and mental health disorders among stuttering adolescents

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate anxiety and psychological functioning among adolescents seeking speech therapy for stuttering using a structured, diagnostic interview and psychological questionnaires. This study also sought to determine whether any differences in psychological status were evident between younger and older adolescents. Method: Participants were 37 stuttering adolescents seeking stuttering treatment. We administered the Computerized Voice Version of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children, and five psychometric tests. Participants were classified into younger (12-14 years; n=20) and older adolescents (15-17 years; n=17). Results: Thirty-eight percent of participants attained at least one diagnosis of a mental disorder, according to the diagnostic criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV; APA, 2000), with the majority of these diagnoses involving anxiety. This figure is double current estimates for general adolescent populations, and is consistent with our finding of moderate and moderate-severe quality of life impairment. Although many of the scores on psychological measures fell within the normal range, older adolescents (15-17 years) reported significantly higher anxiety, depression, reactions to stuttering, and emotional/behavioral problems, than younger adolescents (12-14 years). There was scant evidence that self-reported stuttering severity is correlated with mental health issues. There are good reasons to believe these results are conservative because many participants gave socially desirable responses about their mental health status. Discussion: These results reveal a need for large-scale, statistically powerful assessments of anxiety and other mental disorders among stuttering adolescents with reference to control populations.Educational Objectives: The reader will be able to: (a) explain the clinical importance of assessing for mental health with stuttering adolescents, (b) state the superior method for adolescent mental health assessment and (c) state a major issue with determining the genuineness of stuttering adolescent responses to psychological assessment.11 page(s