bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Social Changes in Kyrghyz Mortuary Practice
Authors: Okada Kochi
Published: December 2010

This article views changes in the rituals of death in the context of Kyghyzstan’s dramatic sociopolitical transformation from a clan-based society, through socialist modernisation, to the ill-defined post-Socialist present. Challenging Soviet ethnographic representations of mortuary ritual as ‘tradtional’ and timeless, the paper relates changes in ritual to changes in state ideology, ethnic identity and kinship practices. Particular attention is paid to gender concepts in the context of an examination of women’s graves. It is argued that women were associated with ‘the space of death’, but subsequent Soviet citizenship and educational policies changed both gender ideas and those associated with children.
Peasants in an Era of Freedom: Property and Market Economy in Southern Xinjiang
Authors: Hann Chris
Published: December 2010

While external commentators, and the Chinese state authorities, refer to the period which began around 1980 as the ‘reform period’ and apply concepts such as ‘socialist commodity economy’, Uyghur peasants in the vicinity of Qäzqär in the extreme west of China refer to the era in which they live as an age of ‘freedom’. This paper focuses on the bundle of rights over land and other changing property rights. Karl Polanyi’s concept of a ‘Great Transformation’ based on the spread of the ‘free market’ has been influential in economic anthropology and is regularly invoked in studies of current institutional change in the former Soviet bloc countries. In the Chinese case, the sphere of ‘the market’ has been steadily expanding within a country that remains officially socialist and in which the dominant role of collectively owned property is ostensibly unchallenged. This poses a puzzle for those who believe that a successful market economy requires a structure of incentives based on private ownership. This puzzle is largely hypothetical for contemporary peasants in southern Xinjiang, who remain preoccupied with subsistence and survival strategies. There is resentment at continued state interference in the bundle of rights over land; outside agriculture, commoditisation and private ownership are more completely established, though some entrepreneurs are already pushing against state imposed limits. Property rights, construed more broadly in terms of entitlements and capacities, are of concern to all. Adoption of this broad perspective on property gives insight into the radical changes brought by the reform era, not only in production but also in other domains.
Law and Communication in Qin and Western Han China
Authors: Sanft Charles
Published: December 2010

This article gathers and examines information about the legal practices of Qin and Western Han China, and demonstrates that these served communicative functions. Law in early imperial China not only penalized antisocial behavior, it was also a medium for communication between the central government, the common population, and officials. The information so transmitted comprised institutional and personal information, including that which facilitated the function of reputation on a national scale. There is also important evidence that people at the time recognized the communicative possibilities of legal practice, as reflected in cases where they manipulated penal communication for individual benefit.
The Florentine Scolari Family at the Court of Sigismund of Luxemburg in Buda
Authors: Prajda Katalin
Published: December 2010

By the beginning of the fifteenth century, European commercial centers had already been filled with trading colonies founded by Florentine merchants. A few of them settled down for life in their host country, developing economic and social ties with local families. During Sigismund of Luxemburg’s reign (r. 1387-1437) as King of Hungary only a handful of these merchants achieved political positions. Undoubtedly the most fortunate among these Florentine citizens was Filippo di Stefano Scolari, known as Pippo Spano (c. 1369-1426), who was granted the significant honor of becoming a member of a small inner circle in the royal court. This article argues that the special status attained by Florentines in Hungarian politics and economy during the first three decades of the fifteenth century can be attributed largely to Pippo Spano’s influence. As cultural mediators, Pippo Spano and his family helped to facilitate relations between their native Florence and their adopted home. This case study focuses on the Scolari family’s migration to the Hungarian Kingdom in order to explore on a small scale the possible push-pull factors of migration flow and its impact on the relationship between the Florentine Republic and the Hungarian Kingdom.
Area-based Management on the High Seas: Possible Application of the IMO’s Particularly Sensitive Sea Area Concept
Authors: Prior Siân , Chircop Aldo , Roberts Julian
Published: December 2010

Area-based management is an important tool to improve integrated conservation of high seas biodiversity. While States clearly support the need to protect high seas biodiversity, some States remain reluctant to adopt internationally binding measures that may have an impact on high seas freedoms. Since there is limited experience to date with the application of area-based management tools on the high seas, this article examines the practical implications of establishing such measures through an analysis of the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) particularly sensitive sea area concept. After providing an overview of the legal complexities associated with the designation of high seas marine protected areas, this article introduces the PSSA concept and identifies the unique features that make it appropriate as a measure for protecting high seas biodiversity. The core of the analysis is an examination of State practice within the IMO in the context of the potential designation of a PSSA in the Southern Ocean.
Search and Rescue Operations in the Mediterranean: Factor of Cooperation or Conflict?
Authors: Trevisanut Seline
Published: December 2010

This article analyses the practice of Mediterranean States with regard to search and rescue (SAR) operations that has repeatedly given rise to much dispute. Its particular focus is on the existing disagreements concerning the interpretation and implementation of international obligations. Mediterranean States diverge on the modalities for managing SAR zones, and on the obligations of the state in whose SAR zone the rescue operation took place. The article also examines the existing attempts at cooperation and coordination among Mediterranean States and the systems of exchange of information and means created by the European Union (EU). The impact of SAR zones and activities on the relations between Mediterranean States are considered in the light of the analysis of state practice. It finds that SAR operations can be both an opportunity for cooperation as well as a source of conflict.
Enforcement Jurisdiction in the Mediterranean Sea: Illicit Activities and the Rule of Law on the High Seas
Authors: Papastavridis Efthymios
Published: December 2010

The question of jurisdiction over illicit activities in the Mediterranean Sea is the focus of the present article. It is posited that enhancement of the ordre public and the rule of law in the Mediterranean requires the prior establishment of precise, foreseeable and accessible domestic laws, as well as of the requisite jurisdictional nexus between the forum State and the illicit activity. Accordingly, the issue of legislative and enforcement jurisdiction over such activities, such as the smuggling of migrants, drug trafficking and international terrorism will be canvassed. These activities and the threats they pose for the security and the public order of the States bordering the Mediterranean Sea loom large in the current discourse over enforcement action in the region. However, the centre of attention has mainly been enforcement as such, and not the need for prior establishment of enforcement jurisdiction.
The Ageing of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
Authors: Veerman Philip
Published: December 2010

It is argued in this article that the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is no longer up to date. Compared with the new situation of children using the internet, cell phones, sending text messages, downloading videos, gaming and gambling on line, the CRC looks like an archaic document, the author found. Adolescents consume enormous amounts of alcohol and some have to be treated for addiction, but the term alcohol can't be found in the CRC. The CRC does not include the right to treatment for drug addiction. Article 33 (protection from illicit drugs) is much too weak for children and adolescents of the 21st Century, it is argued. Furthermore it was observed that globalisation and HIV/AIDS are not specifically addressed by the CRC. The author presents some proposals, one of them being a Review Conference of the States Parties to the CRC.
The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict – Towards Universal Ratification
Authors: Coomaraswamy Radhika
Published: December 2010

The changing nature of modern warfare has increasingly exposed children, both boys and girls, to direct involvement in armed conflict. In order to bring this horrible practice to a halt, the international community ten years ago adopted the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, establishing eighteen as the minimum age for compulsory recruitment and participation in hostilities. This article presents an overview of the legislative history, legal framework and key provisions of the Optional Protocol. It also discusses the experience and practices of the International Criminal Court and the issue of children and criminal responsibility. The paper further elaborates on the needs and difficulties of war-affected children for reintegration into their communities, with special attention to psychosocial health and the building of livelihood skills.
20 years of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and International Action against Child Labour
Authors: Noguchi Yoshie
Published: December 2010

The 20 years of the CRC have also been a period of dynamic change in international action against child labour; increased international attention on the issue during the 1990s – especially from the children's rights perspective – has brought new developments both in technical cooperation and in international standard-setting. The CRC and its two protocols on the one hand, and the ILO child labour Conventions on the other are complementing each other. This article will look back on the process that led to the adoption of ILO C182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour as well as its 10 years in force, as an integral part of the progress in children's rights. It is hoped to contribute in taking stock of experience and clarifying what remains to be done with the specific international goal of eliminating the worst forms of child labour by 2016.
The weight of the child's view (Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child)
Authors: Krappmann Lothar
Published: December 2010

The right of the child to be heard is an article of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which most clearly expresses the concept of the child underlying the entire Convention. In the legal history of the Convention the substance of this article evolved in close connection with the article on the child's best interests. Based on article 12 manifold practices have been developed, now often are summarized under the heading of participation – a term not used in the Convention. These practices operationalize the article to an extent that questions are raised, in which way the broadly applied procedures can be understood as covered by the article. It is crucial that children are only heard, but their views are given weight.
The protection of children from sexual exploitation Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography
Authors: Pais Marta Santos
Published: December 2010

The Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography provide a sound normative foundation for children's protection from sexual abuse and exploitation and for the adoption of legislative, policy and other measures to prevent and address these child rights violations. With the commemoration in 2010 of the 20th anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention and the 10th anniversary of the adoption of the Protocol, there is a strategic opportunity to promote universal ratification of these standards and to strengthen concerted efforts for their effective implementation. With this aim, a UN campaign has been launched to achieve universal ratification of the Protocol by 2012, to ensure the safeguard of children's protection from sexual abuse and exploitation as a legal imperative and a global priority, to prevent loopholes in child protection systems and to fight impunity within and across borders.
'Vernacularising' the Convention on the Rights of the Child: Rights and Culture as Analytic Tools
Authors: Kaime Thoko
Published: December 2010

Whereas the Convention on the Rights of the Child ('the CRC') provides a progressive framework capable of normative transformation, the challenge for children's rights advocates is how to translate the treaty's prescriptions into robust protection for children everywhere. A key indicator of success in this endeavour is the level and sustainability of appropriation of the CRC's principles in the local polities that have subscribed to its normative framework. In this article, I adopt culture and rights as tools for analysing the contexts, contests, processes and prospects that define such transformation.
Connecting Environmental Law and Corporate Transactions to Each Other: Transaction Triggered Environmental Acts
Authors: Mellenbergh Rik
Published: December 2010

Environmental issues, such as site contamination and compliance with environmental permits and rules, are often of importance with respect to corporate mergers and acquisitions or transfers of sites. This paper focuses on specific environmental acts applicable in some states in the United States and in the region of Flanders (Belgium), the so called transaction (or transfer) triggered environmental acts. These acts are applicable—'triggered'—if a transaction or transfer as defined in the transaction triggered environmental act occurs. The applicability of these acts is thus linked to a transaction or transfer as defined in the transaction triggered environmental act. In this paper these transaction triggered environmental acts will be analyzed, and both possible positive and negative effects linked to the introduction of such an act will be discussed with respect to the transaction triggered environmental acts currently applicable in certain states in the United States and in the region of Flanders (Belgium).
The State of Nature and Commercial Sociability in Early Modern International Legal Thought
Authors: Straumann Benjamin , Kingsbury Benedict
Published: December 2010

At the same time as the modern idea of the state was taking shape, Hugo Grotius (1583-1645), Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) and Samuel Pufendorf (1632-94) formulated three distinctive foundational approaches to international order and law beyond the state. They differed in their views of obligation in the state of nature (where ex hypothesi there was no state), in the extent to which they regarded these sovereign states as analogous to individuals in the state of nature, and in the effects they attributed to commerce as a driver of sociability and of norm-structured interactions not dependent on an overarching state. Each built on shared Roman and sixteenth-century foundations (section I). Section II argues: 1) that Grotius's natural law was not simply an anti-skeptical construction based on self-preservation (pace Richard Tuck), but continued a Roman legal tradition; 2) that Hobbes's account of natural law beyond the state was essentially prudential, not moral (pace Noel Malcolm); and 3) that commerce as a driver of social and moral order (Istvan Hont's interpretation of Pufendorf and Adam Smith) had a substantial and under-appreciated impact on international legal order. Each contributed to the thought of later writers (section III) such as Emer de Vattel (1714-67), David Hume (1711-76), and Adam Smith (1723-90), and eventually to the empirical legal methodologies of Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) and Georg Friedrich von Martens (1756-1821).
Vattel's 'Law of Nations ' and the Principle of Non-Intervention
Authors: Zurbuchen Simone
Published: December 2010

The paper attempts to show that Vattel established a duty of sovereigns not to interfere in the internal affairs of other states. Although Vattel did not use the terms 'interference' or 'intervention' in any technical sense of the term, it seems justified to see him as an early proponent of what is called today the principle of non-intervention. This will be evidenced by reviewing how Vattel rejected some of the arguments put forward by previous theorists of just war (Gentili, Grotius) who defended the right of European states to intervene in states of the New World in order to punish gross violations of the law of nature and nations. Arguing that the laws of war ought to be applied in reciprocal manner, Vattel questioned the distinction between 'civilized' and 'barbarian' nations on which these previous theorists relied. For him, the true 'barbarians' were those nations who fought wars without even attempting to publicly justify their behaviour.
Carl Schmitt's Vattel and the 'Law of Nations' between Enlightenment and Revolution
Authors: Nakhimovsky Isaac
Published: December 2010

This article questions the status of Vattel's Law of Nations as an exemplary illustration of eighteenth-century developments in the history of international law. Recent discussions of the relation between eighteenth-century thinking about the law of nations and the French Revolution have revived Carl Schmitt's contention about the nexus between just war theory and the emergence of total war. This evaluative framework has been used to identify Vattel as a moral critic of absolutism who helped undermine the barriers against total war, as well as an architect and defender of those very barriers. Neither of these opposing readings is corroborated by late-eighteenth-century commentators on Vattel's treatise. To its late-eighteenth-century critics and defenders alike, Vattel's Law of Nations was distinguished by the weakness of its derivation of the law of nations from principles of natural law. Insofar as these readers did link Vattel to justifications of relatively unrestrained forms of warfare, they did so in connection with the perceived weakness of Vattel's moral position rather than with its strength. This late-eighteenth-century consensus on the defining features of Vattel's approach to the law of nations sits uncomfortably with Schmitt's evaluative framework, and indeed with other assessments of Vattel that limit themselves to orienting his treatise along fault lines in the historiography of international law.
The phylogenetic placement of the rare North American band-winged grasshopper Shotwellia isleta Gurney, 1940 (Orthoptera: Acrididae: Oedipodinae)
Authors: Edelman William C. , Lightfoot David C. , Miller Kelly B.
Published: December 2010

The phylogenetic placement of the North American band-winged grasshopper
Shotwellia isleta (Gurney 1940) (Orthoptera: Acrididae: Oedipodinae) has
been investigated. This rare and unique species of grasshopper belongs to a
monotypic genus known only from a few isolated locations in the Chihuahuan
Desert of Mexico and New Mexico, USA. The taxonomic status of Shotwellia has
been uncertain and historically classified in very different ways relative
to other genera. We conducted the first molecular phylogenetic cladistic
analysis of Shotwellia and of the Chortophaga (Saussure) genus group in
which it is currently classified, using three mitochondrial genes (16S, 12S
and cytochrome c oxidase II), 14 morphological characters and two behavioral
characters. Our analysis supports the current monotypic status of the genus
Shotwellia within the Chortophaga genus group and indicates that Shotwellia
is sister to the other genera in that group. Shotwellia isleta is a species
of conservation concern, and our field sampling indicates that it is a rare
specialist of freshwater ephemeral desert lake beds that are being impacted
by human activity. Understanding the phylogeny of S. isleta provides a basis
from which biological, evolutionary and conservation inferences can be
made.
Revision, phylogeny and historical biogeography of the genus Apodrosus Marshall, 1922 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Entiminae)
Authors: Girón Jennifer C. , Franz Nico M.
Published: December 2010

The Caribbean weevil genus Apodrosus Marshall, 1922 is revised, including a
redescription of A. argentatus Wolcott, 1924 and A. wolcotti Marshall, 1922
and description of 11 new species: A. adustus, sp.n. (Bahamas), A.
andersoni, sp.n. (Dominican Republic), A. artus, sp.n. (Dominican Republic),
A. earinusparsus, sp.n. (Dominican Republic), A. empherefasciatus, sp.n.
(Bahamas), A. epipolevatus, sp.n. (Puerto Rico), A. eximius, sp.n.
(Dominican Republic), A. mammuthus, sp.n. (Mona Island, Turks and Caicos
Islands), A. quisqueyanus, sp.n. (Dominican Republic), A. stenoculus, sp.n.
(Dominican Republic) and A. viridium, sp.n. (Dominican Republic). A key to
the species and illustrations of external and internal structures are
provided. Apodrosus is characterized as a monophyletic group by two
unreversed synapomorphies – i.e., the presence of a median fovea on the apex
of abdominal sternum VII and a J- or Y-shaped spermatheca – and is
furthermore differentiated from related taxa by a unique combination of
diagnostic features including the presence of premucro, a complete tegminal
plate in males, the absence of longitudinal sclerites in the genital chamber
of females, and an apical projection on the spermathecal cornu. A
phylogenetic reconstruction of 20 taxa (7 outgroup, 13 ingroup) and 25
morphological characters yielded a single most parsimonious cladogram (L=61
steps, CI=42, RI=74) with the ingroup topology (A. artus, (A. andersoni, (A.
earinusparsus, (A. epipolevatus, A. wolcotti)))), (A. eximius, ((A.
argentatus, A. mammuthus), (A. viridium, (A. stenoculus, (A. quisqueyanus,
(A. adustus, A. empherefasciatus)))))). The phylogeny indicates that
Anypotactus bicaudatus Champion (Anypotactini Champion) is the sister group
to Apodrosus, thereby calling into question the traditional tribal placement
of this genus in the Polydrusini. The host plant associations of most
species remain uncertain. A reconstruction of the historical biogeography of
Apodrosus suggests that post-GAARlandia (Greater Antillean+Aves Ridges land
span) vicariance was an important factor in the diversification of the
higher-elevation inhabiting A. artus-A. wolcotti clade. Conversely, the
species richness of the lower-elevation inhabiting A. eximius-A.
empherefasciatus clade is most plausibly explained through a series of
independent and likely more recent colonization events from the ancestral
source area of southwestern Hispaniola to several smaller western Caribbean
islands, or – in the case of Hispaniola – within-island areas of
endemism.
Transnational Fascism: Cross-Border Relations between Regimes and Movements in Europe, 1922-1939
Authors: Bauerkämper Arnd
Published: December 2010

In recent debates about transnational and inter-cultural approaches in historiography, crossborder relations have usually assumed a positive connotation for mutually enriching the parties involved. However, research on bilateral relationships between Italian Fascism and German National Socialism and of fascist movements in other European states demonstrate that transnational exchange is normatively ambivalent, i.e. it can comply with our aims, wishes and expectations or not. This contribution will present evidence for the attractiveness of Italian Fascism and German Nazism throughout Europe in the 1920s and 1930s. Beyond high politics, cooperation between fascists extended to other areas, like recreation and public relations. Nevertheless, fascist movements and regimes appropriated foreign doctrines and policies selectively in order to avert the charge of copying foreign models. They also stressed their nationalist credentials. Yet hypernationalism was deeply ingrained in fascist ideology, too. Thus, cooperation between European fascists was continuously hampered by mutual antagonism. Altogether, fascist nationalism and transnationalism were interrelated rather than mutually exclusive. Nevertheless, cross-border cooperation between fascist movements should not be underestimated or reduced to wartime collaboration.
A Criterion Setting Theory of Discrimination Learning that Accounts for Anisotropies and Context Effects
Authors: Lages Martin , Treisman Michel
Published: December 2010

We can discriminate departures from the vertical or horizontal more accurately than from other orientations. This may reflect perceptual learning, but the mechanisms behind such learning are not well understood. Here we derive a theory of discrimination learning based on criterion setting theory (CST; Treisman and Williams, 1984), an extension of signal detection theory in which judgment of the current stimulus is partly determined by previous discriminations and context. The CST-based theory of discrimination learning (CST-DL) describes mechanisms which use information from previous acts of discrimination to improve current decision making. CST-DL distinguishes between types of decision criteria and provides an account of anisotropies and context effects affecting discrimination. Predictions from this model are tested in experiments on anisotropies in orientation and depth perception. The results obtained support CST-DL. They also support the conclusion that the account of the retention of sensory information in delayed discrimination provided by CST is superior to the traditional belief that information retention relies on a fixed memory trace or representation of the stimulus.
Space Constancy vs Shape Constancy
Authors: Jaekl Philip , Harris Laurence
Published: December 2010

The perceived distance between objects has been found to decrease over time in memory, demonstrating a partial failure of space constancy. Such mislocalization has been attributed to a generalized compression effect in memory. We confirmed this drift with a pair of remembered dot positions but did not find a compression of perceived distance when the space between the dots was filled with a connecting line. When the dot pairs were viewed eccentrically the compression in memory was substantially less. These results are in line with a combination of factors previously demonstrated to cause distortion in spatial memory — foveal bias and memory averaging — rather than a general compression of remembered visual space. Our findings indicate that object shape does not appear to be vulnerable to failures of space constancy observed with remembered positions.
Simulation of Asymmetric ENSO Transition in WCRP CMIP3 Multimodel Experiments
Authors: Ohba Masamichi , Nohara Daisuke , Ueda Hiroaki
Published: December 2010

Based on the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 3 (CMIP3) multimodel dataset, the relationships between the climatological states and transition processes of simulated ENSO are investigated. The air–sea coupled system of the observed ENSO can remain in the weak cold event for up to 2 yr, whereas those of the warm events tend to turn rapidly into a cold phase. Therefore, the authors separately investigate the simulated transition process of a warm-phase and a cold-phase ENSO in the CMIP3 models. Some of the models reproduce the features of the observed transition process of El Niño/La Niña, whereas most models fail to concurrently reproduce the process during both phases.

In the CMIP3 models, four climate models simulate well the rapid transition from El Niño to La Niña. The intensity of a rapid transition of El Niño is mainly related to the intensity of the simulated climatological precipitation over the western–central Pacific (WCP). The models that have strong WCP precipitation can simulate the rapid termination of the equatorial zonal wind in the WCP, which tends to result in the termination of El Niño phase. This relationship is not applicable for the La Niña transition phase. The simulation of La Niña persistency is related to the reflection of off-equatorial Rossby waves at the western boundary of the Pacific and the seasonal evolution of the climatological precipitation in the WCP. Differences in the transition processes between El Niño and La Niña events are fundamentally due to the nonlinear atmospheric (convective) response to SST, which originates from the distribution of climatological SST and its seasonal changes. The results of the present study indicate that a realistic simulation of the climatological state and its seasonality in the WCP are important to be able to simulate the observed transition process of the ENSO.
Rainfall Contributions from Precipitation Systems with Different Sizes, Convective Intensities, and Durations over the Tropics and Subtropics
Authors: Liu Chuntao
Published: December 2010

The rainfall contributions from precipitation features (PFs) with full spectra of different sizes and convective intensities over the tropics and subtropics are summarized using 12 yr of version 6 Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Precipitation Radar (PR) and Microwave Imager (TMI) observations. Regional, seasonal, and diurnal variations of the rainfall contributions from various PFs are shown, with the global distribution of the sizes, PR echo tops, maximum heights of 30 dBZ, and minimum TMI 85-GHz brightness temperatures of PFs above which contribute half of the rainfall in each 2° × 2° region. Though the results from radar and microwave observations generally agree with each other, some large differences exist over land. Seasonal variations of sizes and intensities of precipitation systems are found over the northeast Pacific, northern SPCZ, and some land areas in addition to the well-known monsoon regions. The diurnal cycles of rainfall over land and ocean are interpreted with the combinations of life cycles of various precipitation systems, using the diurnal variations of rainfall contributions from precipitation systems with different sizes and intensities. The long-duration rainfall events with more than four consecutive 3-h periods with rain at a grid point are identified from 11 yr of TRMM 3B42 products. These “12-h rain events” contribute a larger proportion of the total rainfall over ocean than over land. They are mostly correlated with precipitation systems with large sizes and intense convection. However, they can also be caused by some shallow persistent precipitation systems, such as those over the northeast slope of the Andes in Peru in spring and fall and over the west coast of India in summer.
Potential Utility of the Real-Time TMPA-RT Precipitation Estimates in Streamflow Prediction
Authors: Su Fengge , Gao Huilin , Huffman George J. , Lettenmaier Dennis P.
Published: December 2010

The potential utility of the real-time Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Multisatellite Precipitation Analysis real-time product 3B42RT (TMPA-RT) data for streamflow prediction, both through direct comparisons of TMPA-RT estimates with a gridded gauge product and through evaluation of streamflow simulations over four tributaries of La Plata basin (LPB) in South America using the two precipitation products, is investigated. Assessments indicate that the relative accuracy and the hydrologic performance of TMPA-RT-based streamflow simulations generally improved after February 2005. The improvements in TMPA-RT since 2005 are closely related to upgrades in the TMPA-RT algorithm in early February 2005, which include use of additional microwave sensors [Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for Earth Observing System (AMSR-E) and Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit-B (AMSU-B)] and implementation of different calibration schemes. This study suggests considerable potential for hydrologic prediction using purely satellite-derived precipitation estimates (no adjustments by in situ gauges) in parts of the globe where in situ observations are sparse.
Assimilating Along-Track Altimetric Observations through Local Hydrostatic Adjustment in a Global Ocean Variational Assimilation System
Authors: Storto Andrea , Dobricic Srdjan , Masina Simona , Di Pietro Pierluigi
Published: December 2010

A global ocean three-dimensional variational data assimilation system was developed with the aim of assimilating along-track sea level anomaly observations, along with in situ observations from bathythermographs and conventional sea stations. All the available altimetric data within the period October 1992–January 2006 were used in this study. The sea level corrections were covariated with vertical profiles of temperature and salinity according to the bivariate definition of the background-error vertical covariances. Sea level anomaly observational error variance was carefully defined as a sum of instrumental, representativeness, observation operator, and mean dynamic topography error variances. The mean dynamic topography was computed from the model long-term mean sea surface height and adjusted through an optimal interpolation scheme to account for observation minus first-guess biases. Results show that the assimilation of sea level anomaly observations improves the model sea surface height skill scores as well as the subsurface temperature and salinity fields. Furthermore, the estimate of the tropical and subtropical surface circulation is clearly improved after assimilating altimetric data. Nonnegligible impacts of the mean dynamic topography used have also been found: compared to a gravimeter-based mean dynamic topography the use of the mean dynamic topography discussed in this paper improves both the consistency with sea level anomaly observations and the verification skill scores of temperature and salinity in the tropical regions. Furthermore, the use of a mean dynamic topography computed from the model long-term sea surface height mean without observation adjustments results in worsened verification skill scores and highlights the benefits of the current approach for deriving the mean dynamic topography.
Orographic Influences on an Oahu Flood
Authors: Murphy Michael J. , Businger Steven
Published: December 2010

On 2 April 2006, Oahu’s Ko‘olau Mountain Range endured more than 6 h of heavy rain with accompanying flash flooding along its northeast-facing slopes. The storm responsible for the event left a pattern of precipitation characteristic of orographic anchoring of convection with extreme rainfall gradients along the slopes and maxima along the crest of the mountain range. In fact, this was the third flash-flood event to impact the Ko‘olau Mountains in just over 1 month, with each event occurring under conditions of moist southeasterly flow at low levels and moderate conditional instability. Under these conditions persistent convection and localized heavy rainfall often occur over the Ko‘olau Mountain Range. Mesoscale analyses of the thunderstorm complex responsible for the 2 April 2006 heavy rain event and the results of a high-resolution numerical simulation employing the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model are described in this study.

Key features of the convection that contributed to the longevity of the event include repeat formation of convective cells along the eastern side of the central Ko‘olaus, minimal horizontal cloud motion, and strong updrafts that sloped toward the northwest in the lower levels. The westerly shear of the low-level flow determined the pattern of accumulated precipitation by aligning the slope of the convective updrafts nearly parallel to the southeast-to-northwest-orientated Ko‘olau Mountain Range. The microphysical structure of the convection was complex, with the vertical advection of hydrometeors originating below the freezing level facilitating high concentrations of ice particles and an environment conducive to charge separation and lightning.
Evaluation of the Impact of Observations on Analyses in 3D- and 4D-Var Based on Information Content
Authors: Lupu Cristina , Gauthier Pierre , Laroche Stéphane
Published: December 2010

The degrees of freedom for signal (DFS) is used in data assimilation applications to measure the self-sensitivity of analysis to different observation types. This paper describes a practical method to estimate the DFS of observations from a posteriori statistics. The method does not require the consistency of the error statistics in the analysis system and it is shown that the observational impact on analyses can be estimated from observation departures with respect to analysis or the forecast. This method is first introduced to investigate the impact of a complete set, or subsets, of observations on the analysis for idealized one-dimensional variational data assimilation (1D-Var) analysis experiments and then applied in the framework of the three dimensional (3D)- and four-dimensional (4D)-Var schemes developed at Environment Canada.
A Subtropical Oceanic Mesoscale Convective Vortex Observed during SoWMEX/TiMREX
Authors: Lai Hsiao-Wei , Davis Christopher A. , Jong-Dao Jou Ben
Published: December 2010

This study examines a subtropical oceanic mesoscale convective vortex (MCV) that occurred from 1800 UTC 4 June to 1200 UTC 6 June 2008 during intensive observing period (IOP) 6 of the Southwest Monsoon Experiment (SoWMEX) and the Terrain-influenced Monsoon Rainfall Experiment (TiMREX). A dissipating mesoscale convective system reorganized within a nearly barotropic vorticity strip, which formed as a southwesterly low-level jet developed to the south of subsiding easterly flow over the southern Taiwan Strait. A cyclonic circulation was revealed on the northern edge of the mesoscale rainband with a horizontal scale of 200 km. An inner subvortex, on a scale of 25–30 km with maximum shear vorticity of 3 × 10−3 s−1, was embedded in the stronger convection. The vortex-relative southerly flow helped create local potential instability favorable for downshear convection enhancement. Strong low-level convergence suggests that stretching occurred within the MCV. Higher θe air, associated with significant potential and conditional instability, and high reflectivity signatures near the vortex center suggest that deep moist convection was responsible for the vortex stretching. Dry rear inflow penetrated into the MCV and suppressed convection in the upshear direction. A mesolow was also roughly observed within the larger vortex. The presence of intense vertical wind shear in the higher troposphere limited the vortex vertical extent to about 6 km.
The 2009 Hurricane Season in the Eastern North Pacific Basin: An Analysis of Environmental Conditions
Authors: Collins Jennifer M. , Roache David R.
Published: December 2010

Despite the presence of an intensifying El Niño event, the 2009 eastern North Pacific hurricane season was near normal when considering overall hurricane activity. This is in contrast to the relative lull in activity observed between 1998 and 2008. Previous research has noted that the eastern North Pacific should be subdivided into two development regions, the western development region (WDR; 10°–20°N, 116°W–180°) and the eastern development region (EDR; 10°–20°N, North American coastline to 115.9°W), when examining interannual hurricane variability. In 2009, the EDR saw below average numbers of tropical cyclones of all intensities, while the WDR saw near-normal activity. However, activity in both regions varied sharply from month to month with periods of high activity in August and October and lower activity in July and September. This monthly variability was also observed in primary environmental forcing factors such as total precipitable water, tropospheric vertical wind shear, and low-level relative vorticity, particularly for the WDR. This variability was obscured by simply examining seasonal means. It is shown that for the 2009 season, large-scale environmental factors forced by the El Niño event and two cycles of the Madden–Julian oscillation contributed strongly to the observed patterns of cyclone activity across the basin.
Behavior of hybrid (steel-CFRP) and CFRP bar-reinforced concrete beams in fire
Authors: Muhammad Masood Rafi  , Nadjai Ali
Published: December 2010

The establishment of fire resistance of the fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) bar-reinforced concrete (RC) is a prerequisite to the widespread applications of these bars. The use of FRP bars in residential and commercial buildings could result in their increased applications. This article presents an experimental study on the performance of carbon FRP (CFRP) and hybrid (steel—CFRP) RC beams at elevated temperatures. The beams were tested in a floor furnace and carried a load of 40% of ambient load capacity. Temperature rise in the compression concrete was found insignificant and its mechanical properties were nearly unaffected. All the tested beams failed in flexure which was also the intended failure mode at ambient temperature. The slip of CFRP bars was a major contributing factor to the beam failure. Influence of temperature rise was not found on the bar slip. A hybrid bar-reinforced beam showed better strength and stiffness characteristics in comparison with the steel- or FRP-reinforced beams. The beam reinforced with two CFRP bar layers was the strongest but the least ductile beam.
Social Diffusion of Campaign Effects
Authors: Hwang Yoori
Published: December 2010

This study examines the role of campaign conversation in the generation and diffusion of campaign effects. Based on Hornik’s social diffusion model of campaign influence, this study tests whether campaign conversation, along with campaign exposure, can be a process through which a campaign affects a person’s health perceptions using secondary analyses of the TruthSM campaign data. The results of a multilevel modeling of the Legacy Media Tracking Survey (LMTS) data ( n = 10,357) show that the effect of the TruthSM campaign activity in the media on individuals’ smoking-related beliefs was conveyed through campaign exposure and campaign conversation. Theoretical and practical implications for campaign planning and evaluation are discussed in this article.
Women Stereotypes in Shi Zhecun’s Short Stories
Authors: Rosenmeier Christopher
Published: December 2010

This article analyses the representation of women in two 1933 short story collections by Shi Zhecun: An Evening of Spring Rain and Exemplary Conduct of Virtuous Women. It discusses how the New Woman image was a site of contestation in Republican China, and argues that Shi Zhecun’s short stories contain four basic stereotypes: the enigmatic woman, the estranged wife, the prostitute, and the inhibited woman. Using these narratives of women and how they were perceived by men, Shi Zhecun deconstructed the New Woman image by subverting the various ways modernity was projected onto women.
The Theoretical and Practical Implications of China’s Development Experience: The Role of Informal Economic Practices
Authors: Huang Philip C. C.
Published: December 2010

China’s economic reform has been understood mainly in terms of the "new institutional economics," emphasizing the role of marketized private firms and related laws. Andrew Walder and Yingyi Qian, however, have pointed out instead the crucial role played by Chinese local governments, especially their township and village enterprises. Neither interpretation, however, can account for what has happened in China since the mid-1990s, when the main engine for development shifted to local governments’ competition for and active support of outside investment. Typically, local governments have provided land and related infrastructural support below cost, plus special subsidies and tax privileges, and also circumvented formal rules and regulations on labor use and environmental protection. Those informal practices and the huge accompanying informal economy, not just the new enterprises drawn in, have been the main dynamic both for China’s striking GDP growth and its mounting social and environmental crises. The analysis presented here is historical-cum-theoretical and calls for a new understanding of China’s development experience and of its practical implications.
Families With Children Who Are Technology Dependent
Authors: Toly Valerie Boebel , Musil Carol M. , Carl John C.
Published: December 2010

This cross-sectional study examined family functioning and normalization in 103 mothers of children ≤16 years of age dependent on medical technology (mechanical ventilation, intravenous nutrition/medication, respiratory/nutritional support) following initiation of home care. Differences in outcomes (mother’s depressive symptoms, normalization, family functioning), based on the type of technology used, were also examined. Participants were interviewed face-to-face using the Demographic Characteristics Questionnaire, the Functional Status II–Revised Scale, the Center for Epidemiological Studies–Depression Scale, a Normalization Scale subscale, and the Feetham Family Functioning Survey. Thirty-five percent of the variance in family functioning was explained primarily by the mothers’ level of depressive symptoms. Several variables were significant predictors of normalization. Analysis of variance revealed no significant difference in outcomes based on the type of technology used. Mothers of technology-dependent children are at high risk for clinical depression that may affect family functioning. This article concludes with clinical practice and policy implications.
Gunshot wounds of the temporal bone: A rational approach to evaluation and management
Authors: Shindo Maisie L. , Fetterman Bruce L. , Shih Lucy , Maceri Dennis R. , Rice Dale H.
Published: December 2010

Gunshot injuries of the temporal bone are uncommon but are being seen more frequently with the increasing incidence of violent crimes and use of firearms. A retrospective analysis of 43 consecutive patients treated at our institution with this injury was undertaken to determine the clinical symptoms, associated injuries, and treatment outcome. This is the largest series from a single institution treated by a single group during a brief period of time. Most of these patients had injury to various structures within and around the temporal bone, including hearing loss (29), intracranial injury (23), facial nerve injury (22), vascular injury (14), and mandible fracture (6). Ocular trauma and paralysis of cranial nerves V and IX, X, XI, and XII were rare occurrences. A rational approach to the evaluation and management of these injuries will be discussed in detail to optimize outcome.