bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Enhancing of the WTO Judiciary's Control over Disputes and Suggestions for the Exceptional Expansion of Such Control to Favour Developing and Least Developed Countries
Authors: Alvarez-Jiménez Alberto
Published: October 2007

The WTO judiciary has enhanced its control over WTO disputes in order to better adjudicate trade controversies. The strengthening of this control is evidenced by the increasing fact-finding powers that the WTO judiciary enjoys today and in the freedom to develop legal argumentation apart from that exposed by parties. While these are the centerpieces of this project, there are also isolated attempts that, although they do not express a deliberate intention to expand such control over the complaining parties' right to set the terms of reference, have had the effect of attenuating this right by allowing the WTO judiciary to adjudicate disputes slightly beyond the terms of reference when to do so has been necessary in order to provide a proper resolution to the conflict. The article draws on these early attempts to suggest that the WTO judiciary could assume more control over disputes in which developing and least developed countries are complainants against developed ones in order to rule on claims not included in the terms of reference originally established.
A Samson at the International Criminal Court: The Powers of the Prosecutor at the Pre-Trial Phase
Authors: Jacobs Dov
Published: October 2007

The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court is a central figure of current international justice. Given his fundamental role in the choice of situations to investigate and cases to prosecute, he will certainly shape the way the work of the Court will be perceived. In exercising his discretion, the Prosecutor will need to balance the interests of victims and the defence, accommodate the will of States and the pressure from NGOs. This balancing act first takes place at the preliminary phase where the genuineness of the information provided will need to be evaluated. During the formal investigative phase, the OTP needs to carry out its duties independently from a financial and political perspective, while trying to obtain the cooperation of States without which no investigations will be possible, respecting the rights of the defence and the views of the victims, all this under the supervision of the Pre-Trial Chamber. If this Samson at the International Criminal Court pulls on his binds too much, he risks bringing down the temple of international justice.
General Intellect
Authors: Virno Paolo
Published: October 2007

As part of the Historical Materialism research stream on immaterial labour, cognitive capitalism and the general intellect, begun in issue 15.1, this articles explores the importance of the expression 'general intellect', proposed by Marx in the Grundrisse, for an analysis of linguistic and intellectual work in contemporary capitalism. It links the notion of general intellect to the crisis of the law of value, the political significance of mass intellectuality, and the definition of democracy in a world where knowledge is a productive force in its own right.
On Materiality and Social Form: A Political Critique of Rubin's Value-Form Theory
Authors: Starosta Guido , Kicillof Axel
Published: October 2007

This paper critically examines I.I. Rubin's Essays on Marx's Theory of Value and argues that two different approaches to value theory can be found in that book: a more 'production-centred' value-form theory uneasily co-exists with a 'circulationist' perspective. This unresolved tension, the authors claim, reflects a more general theoretical shortcoming in Rubin's work, namely, a problematic conceptualisation of the inner connection between materiality and social form that eventually leads to a formalist perspective on the value-form. Furthermore, the paper argues that all those antinomies are an expression of the historical and political context underlying Rubin's work, in which Marxism was being codified as state ideology. The political implications of Rubin's formalism are explored through the critical examination of its consequences for the comprehension of the social determinations of the revolutionary subjectivity of the working class.
Symposium on Ellen Meiksins Wood's Empire of Capital: Editorial Introduction
Authors: Blackledge Paul
Published: October 2007

Ellen Wood's study of the new imperialism represents the latest instance of her broader project of reconstituting a non-deterministic form of Marxism which is able both to explain the historical specificity of capitalism and to inform socialist political activity. This essay seeks to locate her analysis of imperialism both in the wider political context within which it was written and as an example of the fecundity of her re-interpretation of historical materialism. After outlining the main themes of Wood's 'political-Marxist' project, I move on to overview the thesis of her book Empire of Capital (2003) before finally pointing to the main themes of the ensuing debate.
In What Ways Is 'The New Imperialism' Really New?
Authors: Harvey David
Published: October 2007

This essay argues that it is a matter of vital concern to develop a theoretical apparatus that is adequate to the inherent spatiotemporal dynamics of capital accumulation and the changing practices developed to manage the crisis tendencies of those dynamics. This requires integrating the a-spatial theory of capital accumulation and its internal contradictions with the spatial/geographical theory of imperialism that invokes geopolitical and geo-economic struggles between nation-states. I argue that the two are linked by the way capital deals with the problem of absorbing capital surpluses, namely through geographical (and temporal) fixes. The geographical fix requires imperialist expansionism and the battering down of all barriers to the spatial movement of capital. Such a conception provides the necessary clarity in formulating the relations between capital and state that are sometimes missing from Ellen M. Wood's arguments in Empire of Capital.
The Pitfalls of Realist Analysis of Global Capitalism: A Critique of Ellen Meiksins Wood's Empire of Capital
Authors: Robinson William
Published: October 2007

The dynamics of the emerging transnational stage in world capitalism cannot be understood through the blinkers of nation-state-centric thinking. In her study Empire of Capital, Ellen Meiksins Wood exhibits the reification and outdated nation-state-centric thinking that plagues much recent work on world capitalism and US intervention, expressed in the confusing notion of a 'new imperialism'. The overarching problems in Wood's study – and, by extension, in much of the 'new-imperialism' literature – is a reified notion of imperialism, a refusal to draw out the analytical, theoretical, methodological, and epistemological implications of capitalist globalisation, and an incessant reification of the state. Instead of a 'new US empire', the current epoch is best understood as a new transnational phase in the ongoing evolution of world capitalism, characterised in particular by the rise of truly transnational capital, globalised circuits of accumulation, and transnational state apparatuses. 'US imperialism' refers to the use by tansnational élites of the US state apparatus to continue to attempt to expand, defend and stabilise the global capitalist system. US militarisation and intervention are best understood as a response to the intractable contradictions of global capitalism.
'New' Imperialism? On Globalisation and Nation-States
Authors: Bose Prasenjit
Published: October 2007

A major contradiction of globalisation lies in the universalisation of the imperatives of international finance-capital. The ascendancy of international finance has kept inter-imperialist rivalry under check since the past few decades, and imperialist nation-states under its imperatives have displayed greater unity under the leadership of the US. But the dominance of speculative finance and the deflationary impact it generates, threatens to precipitate worldwide recession. The US is trying to pre-empt any potential competition in this milieu, by pursuing an aggressive and unilateralist military policy of endless war. However, the capacity of the US to sustain such high levels of military expenditure and debt-induced consumer spending is circumscribed by the fragility of the dollar hegemony in the backdrop of the growing indebtedness of the US vis-à-vis the rest of the world. Re-appearance of recessionary conditions in the US would be set the stage for inter-imperialist contradictions as well as the contradiction between imperialism and the Third World to play themselves out and create possible ruptures in the present world order.
The Economic Foundations of Contemporary Imperialism
Authors: Chesnais François
Published: October 2007

This paper argues that present-day imperialism is strongly related to the domination of a precise form of capital, namely highly concentrated interest- and dividend-bearing money-capital which operates in financial markets, breeds today's pervasive fetishism of money, but is totally dependent on surplus-value and production. Two mechanisms ensure the appropriation and/or production of surplus-product and its centralisation to the world system's financial hubs. In the 1980s, foreign debt prevailed. Foreign production and profit repatriation by TNCs now represent the main channel. Following the transfer abroad of part of its production by US TNCs, the issue for the US in their relations with the rest of the world is not the commercialisation of surplus through exports, but dependency on imports and, more crucially, on large inflows of money-capital to support the stock market, buy T-bonds and refinance mortgage. This new dependency helps to explain the 'paradox' that US imperialism is increasingly forced to try and offset this through extra-economic and even military coercion where it can.
A Reply to Critics
Authors: Wood Ellen Meiksins
Published: October 2007

Ellen Wood replies here to the symposium on her book, Empire of Capital, by laying out her views on the specificity of capitalism and capitalist imperialism, the relation between global capital and territorial states, the problematic concepts of 'globalisation' and 'financialisation', and how our understanding of capitalism affects our conceptions of oppositional struggle.
Intervention The Zimbabwe Question and the Two Lefts
Authors: Moyo Sam , Yeros Paris
Published: October 2007

This article identifies the two currents that have divided the Left over the Zimbabwe question. It argues that in the course of the radicalisation of the Zimbabwean state, 'Two Lefts' emerged, the so-called 'internationalist' and the 'nationalist', to take up opposite positions over a series of political questions, most notably the agrarian question and the national question. The article defends the nationalist Left and offers a critique of the 'internationalist' Left through a discussion of contemporary imperialism, the neocolonial state, and civil society.
Tonische Bewegung, Energie und ratio: Georg Ernst Stahls Agentenmodell des ,,Organismus" und die kategorielle Differenz zwischen Lebendigem und Unlebendigem
Authors: Cheung Tobias
Published: October 2007

This essay focuses on the structure of agency in Georg Ernst Stahl's model of organic order and the role that it plays for the difference between living and non-living beings in the discourses of medicine and natural history around 1700. Stahl calls the order of organic beings an "organism". He characterizes the "organism" through the notions of tonic movement, energy and ratio. The tonic movement is a mechanism of contraction and relaxation of organic units to direct fluids to certain parts of the body; the energy represents a certain, limited potential of the living body to act spontaneously and to react if it is irritated; and the ratio expresses the logic of a processual, directed order imposed on corporeal dispositions. This ratio inheres in natural agents. However, to establish his theory of agency, Stahl first analyzes the irregular blood movements that characterize diseases. The capacity of the organic body to change these movements and to heal itself in redirecting them, leads him to the assumption that such bodies can regulate their own order and that self-regulation requires an autonomous agent.
The Invisible Hand of God in Seeds: Jacob Schegk's Theory of Plastic Faculty
Authors: Hirai Hiro
Published: October 2007

In his embryological treatise De plastica seminis facultate (Strasburg, 1580), Jacob Schegk (1511-1587), professor of philosophy and medicine at the University of Tübingen, developed, through a unique interpretation of the Aristotelian embryology, a theory of the "plastic faculty" (facultas plastica), whose origin lay in the Galenic idea of the formative power. The present study analyses the precise nature of Schegk's theory, by setting it in its historical and intellectual context. It will also discuss the hitherto unappreciated Neoplatonic dimension of Schegk's notion of the soul's vehicle.
Outlawing incitement to religious hatred—a British perspective
Authors: Cumper Peter
Published: October 2007

The recent enactment of the Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 makes it (for the first time) unlawful to incite hatred on religious grounds in England and Wales. This legislation has however been attacked by a number of Muslims on the basis that it is too rigidly drawn, and that the scope of the offence of incitement to religious hatred is narrower than comparable legislation governing incitement to racial hatred. In critically analysing the Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006, this article makes particular reference to the recent Islamic Council of Victoria case in Australia on religious vili cation and hate speech which, it is suggested, provides a salutary lesson to those who would seek to expand the remit of the Act. It is argued that the Racial and Religious Hatred Act is not merely a symbolically important measure, but is also a fair and workable compromise which protects faith groups from incitement to religious hatred without placing excessive curbs on free speech.
The Neutral State: Optional or Necessary?: A Triangular Analysis of State–Religion Relationships, Democratisation and Human Rights Compliance
Authors: Temperman Jeroen
Published: October 2007

This article suggests a signicant correlation between the notions of state neutrality and religious freedom. The absence of a considerable degree of state neutrality has a detrimental effect on human rights compliance. Under states which identify themselves strongly with a single religious denomination as well as under states which identify themselves negatively in relation to religion, there is no scope for human rights compliance. Both extreme types of state–religion identication are characterised by repression of all beliefs and manifestations thereof which do not correspond with the state sanctioned view on belief. This may be either the upholding of a specic religious denomination or of militant ideological secularism. Consequently, discrimination and marginalisation rather than compliance with the norms of freedom of religion and the promotion of non-discrimination comprise policy and practice under these regimes. Intermediate forms of state–religion afliation, i.e. types of identication in which the state is not drenched with the excluding ideals of a single denomination or with anti-religious sentiments, allow for a degree of democratic inclusion of religious difference and of religious tolerance. The most substantial scope for full compliance, however, lies in the combination of democratic inclusion of people from different religions and the indispensable political commitment characterised as state neutrality with respect to all people. State neutrality refers to a regime of state–religion identi cation that can best be understood as 'accommodative non-partisanship'.
Catholicism and Human Rights in Haiti: Past, Present, and Future
Authors: Rey Terry
Published: October 2007

This article surveys the relationship between Catholicism and human rights during four periods of Haitian history: (1) the colonial era of plantation slavery; (2) the 'antisuperstitious' campaigns from 1898 to 1943; (3) the dictatorship of François Duvalier from 1957–1971; and (4) the rise and fall of liberation theology in Haiti from the mid 1970s to the present. My primary argument is that despite a generally deplorable Catholic track record vis-à-vis human rights, there has also been a consistent ethical tributary of Catholic struggle for social justice in this poor Caribbean nation. Its strongest current fed the church-based activism that helped topple the dynastic Duavlier regime in 1986—a current that has since weakened in part due to the emergence of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. Prospects for a liberationist renewal within the Renewal, however, could dictate the future of the Haitain Catholic Church's engagement in the struggle for human rights.
Enhancement of Afternoon Thunderstorm Activity by Urbanization in a Valley: Taipei
Authors: Chen Tsing-Chang , Wang Shih-Yu , Yen Ming-Cheng
Published: October 2007

Located in northern Taiwan, Taipei is a metropolis surrounded by hills and mountains that form a basin in which two river valleys funnel the surface airflow of this basin to the open sea. Because of the southwest monsoon, summer is a dry season in northern Taiwan but is the season of maximum rainfall in the Taipei basin. This unusual summer rainfall maximum in Taipei is largely produced by afternoon/evening thunderstorms—in particular, on the downwind side and slopes of mountains south of the city. The population in the city of Taipei and the county in which this city is located has more than tripled during the past four decades while land use for building and surface construction increased by a factor of 3. This urbanization may contribute to an increase of 1.5°C in daily mean temperature, a decrease of 1°C in daily temperature range, an increase of more than 67% in the frequency of afternoon/evening thunderstorms, and an increase of 77% in rainfall generated by thunderstorms. These findings may explain the reduction in the water supply deficit to the Taipei metropolitan area and the ground subsidence of the Taipei basin caused by the excessive use of groundwater. Results of this study also provide important information for urban planning and pollution control and for management of the increasing traffic hazards caused by the enhanced thunderstorm activity and rainfall.
A Combined Local and Nonlocal Closure Model for the Atmospheric Boundary Layer. Part II: Application and Evaluation in a Mesoscale Meteorological Model
Authors: Pleim Jonathan E.
Published: October 2007

A new combined local and nonlocal closure atmospheric boundary layer model called the Asymmetric Convective Model, version 2, (ACM2) was described and tested in one-dimensional form and was compared with large-eddy simulations and field data in Part I. Herein, the incorporation of the ACM2 into the fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University–NCAR Mesoscale Model (MM5) is described. Model simulations using the MM5 with the ACM2 are made for the summer of 2004 and evaluated through comparison with surface meteorological measurements, rawinsonde profile measurements, and observed planetary boundary layer (PBL) heights derived from radar wind profilers. Overall model performance is as good as or better than similar MM5 evaluation studies. The MM5 simulations with the ACM2 compare particularly well to PBL heights derived from radar wind profilers during the afternoon hours. The ACM2 is designed to simulate the vertical mixing of any modeled quantity realistically for both meteorological models and air quality models. The next step, to be described in a subsequent article, is to incorporate the ACM2 into the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model for testing and evaluation.
Development and Application of a Multipollutant Model for Atmospheric Mercury Deposition
Authors: Vijayaraghavan Krish , Seigneur Christian , Karamchandani Prakash , Chen Shu-Yun
Published: October 2007

A multipollutant model, the Community Multiscale Air Quality model paired with the Model of Aerosol Dynamics, Reaction, Ionization, and Dissolution (CMAQ-MADRID), is extended to include a comprehensive treatment of mercury processes and is applied to the simulation of the atmospheric deposition of sulfate and mercury over the United States during 1996. Model performance is evaluated first by comparison with annual sulfate wet deposition data from the National Atmospheric Deposition Program’s National Trends Network; the coefficient of determination r 2 is 0.77, and the model normalized error and bias are 53% and −8%, respectively. When actual precipitation data are used to scale the deposition fluxes, r 2 improves to 0.91 and the error and bias change to 42% and −41%, respectively. The scaled results underscore a tendency of the model to underestimate sulfate wet deposition. Model performance for mercury wet deposition is then evaluated by comparison with data from the Mercury Deposition Network. For annual mercury wet deposition, r 2 is 0.28 and the normalized error and bias are 81% and 73%, respectively, when the modeled precipitation data are used. Model performance improves when actual precipitation data are used to scale deposition fluxes: r 2 increases to 0.41 and the error and bias decrease to 40% and 29%, respectively. The model reproduces the spatial pattern of sulfate wet deposition adequately with an increasing gradient from the upper Midwest to the Northeast, that is, from upwind to downwind of large sulfur dioxide sources in the Ohio River Valley. However, the model tends to overestimate mercury wet deposition in the Northeast downwind of these sources that also emit significant amounts of mercury. This “Pennsylvania anomaly” may be due to a partial misrepresentation of the mercury reduction–oxidation cycle, uncertainties in the dry deposition of divalent gaseous mercury HgII, incorrect speciation of mercury emissions, and/or uncharacterized emissions in the upper Midwest.
Sand Flux Simulations at a Small Scale over a Heterogeneous Mesquite Area of the Northern Chihuahuan Desert
Authors: Bowker George E. , Gillette Dale A. , Bergametti Gilles , Marticorena Béatrice , Heist David K.
Published: October 2007

Within areas of the Chihuahuan Desert dominated by honey mesquite bushes (Prosopis glandulosa), soil erosion causes open eroded patches and the formation of large coppice dunes. The airflow patterns around the dunes and through the open areas are correlated with sand flux and erosion. This study uses wind velocity simulations from the Quick Urban and Industrial Complex (QUIC) model in combination with a sand flux parameterization to simulate sand fluxes for each of eight storms occurring in the springs of 2003 and 2004. Total sand fluxes based on the sum of all the sand collectors located within the study domain were usually within 50% of the measured values for each of the storms, with simulations for individual sand collectors also often within 50% of the measured values. Simulated fluxes based on two different sand flux parameterizations were generally within 10% of each other, differing substantially only when the sand flux was low (near the threshold velocity). Good agreement between the field observations with a Sensit instrument and QUIC simulations for the same location and time series suggests that QUIC could be used to predict the spatial and temporal variation of sand flux patterns for a domain.
Using CMAQ for Exposure Modeling and Characterizing the Subgrid Variability for Exposure Estimates
Authors: Isakov Vlad , Irwin John S. , Ching Jason
Published: October 2007

Atmospheric processes and the associated transport and dispersion of atmospheric pollutants are known to be highly variable in time and space. Current air-quality models that characterize atmospheric chemistry effects, for example, the Community Multiscale Air Quality model (CMAQ), provide volume-averaged concentration values for each grid cell in the modeling domain given the stated conditions. Given the assumptions made and the limited set of processes included in any model’s implementation, there are many sources of “unresolved” subgrid variability. This raises the question of the importance of the unresolved subgrid variations on exposure assessment results if such models were to be used to assess air toxics exposure. In this study, the Hazardous Air Pollutant Exposure Model (HAPEM) is applied to estimate benzene and formaldehyde inhalation exposure using ambient annually averaged concentrations predicted by CMAQ to investigate how within-grid variability can affect exposure estimates. An urban plume dispersion model was used to estimate the subgrid variability of annually averaged benzene concentration values within CMAQ grid cells for a modeling domain centered on Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Significant (greater than a factor of 2) increases in maximum exposure impacts were seen in the exposure estimates in comparison with exposure estimates generated using CMAQ grid-averaged concentration values. These results consider only one source of subgrid variability, namely, the discrete location and distribution of emissions, but they do suggest the importance and value of developing improved characterizations of subgrid concentration variability for use in air toxics exposure assessments.
A Combined Local and Nonlocal Closure Model for the Atmospheric Boundary Layer. Part I: Model Description and Testing
Authors: Pleim Jonathan E.
Published: October 2007

The modeling of the atmospheric boundary layer during convective conditions has long been a major source of uncertainty in the numerical modeling of meteorological conditions and air quality. Much of the difficulty stems from the large range of turbulent scales that are effective in the convective boundary layer (CBL). Both small-scale turbulence that is subgrid in most mesoscale grid models and large-scale turbulence extending to the depth of the CBL are important for the vertical transport of atmospheric properties and chemical species. Eddy diffusion schemes assume that all of the turbulence is subgrid and therefore cannot realistically simulate convective conditions. Simple nonlocal closure PBL models, such as the Blackadar convective model that has been a mainstay PBL option in the fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University–National Center for Atmospheric Research Mesoscale Model (MM5) for many years and the original asymmetric convective model (ACM), also an option in MM5, represent large-scale transport driven by convective plumes but neglect small-scale, subgrid turbulent mixing. A new version of the ACM (ACM2) has been developed that includes the nonlocal scheme of the original ACM combined with an eddy diffusion scheme. Thus, the ACM2 is able to represent both the supergrid- and subgrid-scale components of turbulent transport in the convective boundary layer. Testing the ACM2 in one-dimensional form and comparing it with large-eddy simulations and field data from the 1999 Cooperative Atmosphere–Surface Exchange Study demonstrates that the new scheme accurately simulates PBL heights, profiles of fluxes and mean quantities, and surface-level values. The ACM2 performs equally well for both meteorological parameters (e.g., potential temperature, moisture variables, and winds) and trace chemical concentrations, which is an advantage over eddy diffusion models that include a nonlocal term in the form of a gradient adjustment.
A MODIS Dual Spectral Rain Algorithm
Authors: Yan Hao , Yang Song
Published: October 2007

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) dual spectral rain algorithm (MODRA) is developed for rain retrievals over the northern midlatitudes. The reflectance of the MODIS water vapor absorption channel at 1.38 μm (R1.38 μm) has a potential to represent the cloud-top height displayed by the brightness temperature (TB) of the MODIS channel at 11 μm, because of an excellent negative relationship (correlation coefficient ≤−0.9) between R1.38 μm and TB11 μm for optically thick clouds with reflectance (R0.65 μm) greater than 0.75. With a training rainfall dataset from the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for Earth Observing System (AMSR-E) aboard the same Aqua satellite platform, two MODIS channels (R1.38 μm and R0.65 μm) are applied to form multiregression curves to estimate daytime rainfall. Results demonstrate that the instantaneous rain rates from MODRA, independent AMSR-E rainfall products, and surface rain gauge measurements are consistent. This study explores a new way to estimate rainfall from MODIS water vapor and cloud channels. The resulting technique could be applied to other similar satellite instruments for rain retrievals.
Year-Round Observation of Longwave Radiative Flux Divergence in Greenland
Authors: Hoch S. W. , Calanca P. , Philipona R. , Ohmura A.
Published: October 2007

Longwave radiative flux divergence within the lowest 50 m of the atmospheric boundary layer was observed during the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (ETH) Greenland Summit experiment. The dataset collected at 72°35′N, 38°30′W, 3203 m MSL is based on longwave radiation measurements at 2 and 48 m that are corrected for the influence of the supporting tower structure. The observations cover all seasons and reveal the magnitude of longwave radiative flux divergence and its incoming and outgoing component under stable and unstable conditions. Longwave radiative flux divergence during winter corresponds to a radiative cooling of −10 K day−1, but values of −30 K day−1 can persist for several days. During summer, the mean cooling effect of longwave radiative flux divergence is small (−2 K day−1) but exhibits a strong diurnal cycle. With values ranging from −35 K day−1 around midnight to 15 K day−1 at noon, the heating rate due to longwave radiative flux divergence is of the same order of magnitude as the observed temperature tendency. However, temperature tendency and longwave radiative flux divergence are out of phase, with temperature tendency leading the longwave radiative flux divergence by 3 h. The vertical variation of the outgoing longwave flux usually dominates the net longwave flux divergence, showing a strong divergence at nighttime and a strong convergence during the day. The divergence of the incoming longwave flux plays a secondary role, showing a slight counteracting effect. Fog is frequently observed during summer nights. Under such conditions, a divergence of both incoming and outgoing fluxes leads to the strongest radiative cooling rates that are observed. Considering all data, a correlation between longwave radiative flux divergence and the temperature difference across the 2–48-m layer is found.
Limitations to a Geostationary Infrared Sounder due to Diffraction: The Meteosat Third Generation Infrared Sounder (MTG IRS)
Authors: Grandell Jochen , Stuhlmann Rolf
Published: October 2007

Geostationary infrared sounding missions offer good temporal coverage; however, because of the large distance to the observed earth targets, the effect of diffraction is increased compared to sounding from a low earth orbit (LEO). Because of the wavelength dependence of diffraction, the spectral channels do not sample the same volume of air, as is generally assumed by retrieval algorithms for LEO infrared (IR) sounder data. This additional error introduced in the retrieval by diffraction-limited instruments is called pseudonoise throughout the paper. One such diffraction-limited geostationary system is the candidate Infrared Sounder (IRS) mission on the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) satellites with a planned need date in 2015, due to the expected lifetime of the current Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) satellites. A simplified point spread function (PSF) is applied. To represent the channels within natural conditions, measured spectra from the LEO Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) are used as an underlying scene when integrating over the PSF. As the AIRS spatial resolution is 15 km, the basic assumption made was that the meteorological and surface features can be regarded as fractal to the extent that they can be downscaled to at least 4 km, making them useful for these investigations. The results show that the pseudonoise is highly dependent on wavelength, and highest in the window and CO2 regions (within the broader 700–1200 cm−1, or 8.3–14.3-μm, region). The worst-case pseudonoise values are approximately 1 K for these regions. A case study of the impact of the obtained pseudonoise values on temperature and water vapor retrievals shows that only with the worst-case assumptions (uncorrelated noise) is there a quantifiable impact on the results. For temperature retrievals, this ranged from 0.1 to 0.3 K in the lower and upper troposphere, respectively.
Improvement of the Temperature and Moisture Retrievals in the Lower Troposphere Using AIRS and GPS Radio Occultation Measurements
Authors: Ho Shu-Peng , Kuo Ying-Hwa , Sokolovskiy Sergey
Published: October 2007

Accurate temperature and water vapor profiles in the middle and lower troposphere (LT) are crucial for understanding the water cycle, cloud systems, and energy balance. Global positioning system (GPS) radio occultation (RO) is the first technique that can provide a high-vertical-resolution all-weather refractivity profile, which is a function of pressure, temperature, and moisture. However, in the moist LT over the Tropics, the refractivity retrievals from GPS RO data are often significantly negatively biased because of tracking errors and propagation effects related to sharp vertical moisture gradients that may result in superrefraction (SR). The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) is a nadir-viewing sounder that can measure vertical temperature and moisture profiles with about 1–2-km vertical resolution. However, AIRS observations cannot usually obtain accurate temperature and water vapor profiles in the planetary boundary layer (PBL) because of the poor resolving power in the LT. This study uses simulations based on radiosonde profiles by combining the AIRS and the GPS RO measurements to obtain the best temperature and moisture retrievals in the LT. Different approaches are used for the drier LT and the moist LT. For the drier LT, where GPS RO data are not affected by SR errors, a multivariable regression algorithm for inverting the combined AIRS and GPS RO measurements is used. In the moist LT (e.g., SR on top of PBL), the combined AIRS and GPS RO regression inversion above the LT is used as the first guess for AIRS-only physical retrieval, which is extended into the LT. The results show that combining AIRS and GPS RO data effectively constrains the individual solutions, and therefore significantly improves inversion results. The algorithm is also applied for all available radiosonde profiles (19 profiles) over a 1-month period from the site characterized by strong SR on top of the PBL. Retrieved temperature and water vapor profiles yield unbiased low-resolution refractivity profiles in the PBL.
Rainfall-Induced Changes in Actual Surface Backscattering Cross Sections and Effects on Rain-Rate Estimates by Spaceborne Precipitation Radar
Authors: Seto Shinta , Iguchi Toshio
Published: October 2007

In this study, the authors used Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission precipitation radar (TRMM PR) data to investigate changes in the actual (attenuation corrected) surface backscattering cross section (σ0e) due to changes in surface conditions induced by rainfall, the effects of changes in σ0e on the path integrated attenuation (PIA) estimates by surface reference techniques (SRTs), and the effects on rain-rate estimates by the TRMM PR standard rain-rate retrieval algorithm.

Over land, σ0e is statistically higher under rainfall than under no rainfall conditions (soil moisture effect) unless the land surface is densely covered by vegetation. Over ocean, the dependence of σ0e on the incident angle differs under rainfall and no-rainfall conditions (wind speed effect). The alongtrack spatial reference (ATSR) method, one of the SRTs used in the standard algorithm, partially considers these effects, while the temporal reference (TR) method, another SRT, never involves these effects; its PIA estimates thus have negative biases over land. In the hybrid spatial reference (HSR) method used over ocean, different incident angles create different biases in PIA estimates. If the TR method is replaced by the ATSR method, the monthly rainfall amount in July 2001 all over the land within the TRMM coverage increases by 0.70%. The bias in the HSR method over ocean can be mitigated by fitting a σ0–θ curve separately to smaller incident angles and to larger incident angles. This improvement increases or decreases the monthly rainfall amounts in individual incident angle regions by up to 10%.
A Multispectral Technique for Detecting Low-Level Cloudiness near Sunrise
Authors: Schreiner Anthony J. , Ackerman Steven A. , Baum Bryan A. , Heidinger Andrew K.
Published: October 2007

A technique using the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) sounder radiance data has been developed to improve detection of low clouds and fog just after sunrise. The technique is based on a simple difference method using the shortwave (3.7 μm) and longwave (11.0 μm) window bands in the infrared range of the spectrum. The time period just after sunrise is noted for the difficulty in being able to correctly identify low clouds and fog over land. For the GOES sounder cloud product this difficulty is a result of the visible reflectance of the low clouds falling below the “cloud” threshold over land. By requiring the difference between the 3.7- and the 11.0-μm bands to be greater than 5.0 K, successful discrimination of low clouds and fog is found 85% of the time for 21 cases from 14 September 2005 to 6 March 2006 over the GOES-12 sounder domain. For these 21 clear and cloudy cases the solar zenith angle ranged from 87° to 77°; however, the range of solar zenith angles for cloudy cases was from 85° to 77°.

The success rate further improved to 95% (20 out of 21 cases) by including a difference threshold of 5.0 K between the 3.7- and 4.0-μm bands, requiring that the 11.0-μm band be greater than 260 K, and limiting the test to fields of view where the surface elevation is below 999 m. These final three limitations were needed to more successfully deal with cases involving snow cover and dead vegetation. To ensure that only the time period immediately after sunrise is included the solar zenith angle threshold for application of these tests is between 89° and 70°.
Estimation of Thin Ice Thickness and Detection of Fast Ice from SSM/I Data in the Antarctic Ocean
Authors: Tamura Takeshi , Ohshima Kay I. , Markus Thorsten , Cavalieri Donald J. , Nihashi Sohey , Hirasawa Naohiko
Published: October 2007

Antarctic coastal polynyas are important areas of high sea ice production and dense water formation, and thus their detection including an estimate of thin ice thickness is essential. In this paper, the authors propose an algorithm that estimates thin ice thickness and detects fast ice using Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSM/I) data in the Antarctic Ocean. Detection and estimation of sea ice thicknesses of <0.2 m are based on the SSM/I 85- and 37-GHz polarization ratios (PR85 and PR37) through a comparison with sea ice thicknesses estimated from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) data. The exclusion of data affected by atmospheric water vapor is discussed. Because thin ice and fast ice (specifically ice shelves, glacier tongues, icebergs, and landfast ice) have similar PR signatures, a scheme was developed to separate these two surface types before the application of the thin ice algorithm to coastal polynyas. The probability that the algorithm correctly distinguishes thin ice from thick ice and from fast ice is ∼95%, relative to the ice thicknesses estimated from AVHRR. Although the standard deviation of the difference between the thin ice thicknesses estimated from the SSM/I algorithm and AVHRR is ∼0.05 m and thus not small, the estimated ice thicknesses from the microwave algorithm appear to have small biases and the accuracies are independent of region and season. A distribution map of thin ice occurrences derived from the SSM/I algorithm represents the Ross Sea coastal polynya being by far the largest among the Antarctic coastal polynyas; the Weddell Sea coastal polynyas are much smaller. Along the coast of East Antarctica, coastal polynyas frequently form on the western side of peninsulas and glacier tongues, downstream of the Antarctic Coastal Current.
Finding Workable Levers Over Work Motivation
Authors: Moynihan Donald P. , Pandey Sanjay K.
Published: October 2007

This article draws on a sample of state government health and human service managers to develop and test a model of work motivation. The authors examine the effect of individual attributes, job characteristics, and organizational variables on three aspects of work motivation: job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and job involvement. They find that managers have varying degrees of influence over these different aspects of work motivation, with greatest influence over job satisfaction and least influence over job involvement. A number of variables are important for work motivation, including public service motivation, advancement opportunities, role clarity, job routineness, and group culture.
Financial Strain, Negative Interactions, and Mastery: Pathways to Mental Health Among Older African Americans
Authors: Lincoln Karen D.
Published: October 2007

This study examines the impact of financial strain, social support, and negative interactions on depressive symptoms among African Americans and the role of mastery as a mediator in these relationships. Structural equation modeling and baseline data from the Americans' Changing Lives Study were used to test these relationships among a sample of African Americans aged 50 to 96 years (N = 583). Findings illustrate the mechanistic pathways whereby financial strain is associated with depressive symptoms. Moreover, the study findings give further credence to the notion that positive and negative aspects of social relationships are distinctive with respect to social status factors, financial strain, and their relationship to depressive symptoms. This research suggests that mastery is an important mechanism linking negative interaction to mental health. The collection of findings provide a number of provocative departures from research conducted primarily using White samples and identifies important areas of intervention with older African Americans.
Black Students on White Campuses: Toward a Two-Dimensional Model of Black Acculturation
Authors: Cole Elizabeth R. , Jacob Arriola Kimberly R.
Published: October 2007

This article conceptualizes Black students' adaptation to a predominantly White institution in terms of a model of acculturation that includes one orientation toward maintaining the cultural heritage and identity of one's own group and a second one tapping relations with the majority group. This approach acknowledges that acculturation need not entail exchanging one's cultural heritage for a new one. The present research developed an instrument to measure these orientations. In Study 1, factor analysis of responses from Black students (N = 216) revealed two factors: Culture, Heritage, and Identity (CHI) and Out-Group Comfort (OC). Study 2 (n = 83), found that CHI was positively associated with measures of Black identity and collective self-esteem and that OC was associated with intergroup anxiety. In Study 3 (n = 143), CHI was independently associated with viewing education as affording opportunities for success and recognizing that discrimination might temper those opportunities. Both aspects of acculturation were related in predicted ways with the Racelessness Scale. Implications of the results for Black college students' adjustment are discussed.
Revolt Against Sprawl
Authors: Dyble Louise Nelson
Published: October 2007

Popular protest stopped a freeway to California's Point Reyes peninsula in 1966, and along with it plans for the development of Marin County. The campaign against this road united property owners, business leaders, conservationists, and politicians. A destiny of parkland, agriculture, and permanent open space replaced expectations of suburban development and steady population growth. This vision of Marin's future was institutionalized through policy and planning, which reinforced and defined a growth-control regime. This regime dominated and ultimately transcended Marin's fragmented local government, coordinating and guiding policy, philanthropy, and multifarious public and private institutions.
Challenging the Negative Assumptions Surrounding Civil Protection Orders
Authors: Postmus Judy L.
Published: October 2007

Restraining orders, often used as the first line of protection for battered women, are surrounded by negative assumptions and beliefs held by key stakeholders who question their use and effectiveness. This article evaluates current research on restraining orders by describing four negative assumptions that were found in a review of qualitative and quantitative research. Each negative assumption includes a brief discussion of the origin of the assumption and a synthesis of the research that has addressed each assumption. The article concludes with strategies for advocates for battered women and practitioners to use when challenging the negative assumptions held by others.
The Supreme Court and Opinion Content
Authors: Corley Pamela C.
Published: October 2007

Do parties' briefs influence the content of Supreme Court opinions? The author contends that the parties, through the briefs submitted on the merits, have the ability to influence the content of opinions and, consequently, have the ability to influence the law. Utilizing plagiarism software, the author compares the parties' briefs with the majority opinion of the Court. The results indicate that there is a connection between the language of the parties' briefs and the language of the opinions, which means that parties have the potential to influence the law.
Life, Pocketbook, or Culture
Authors: Canetti-Nisim Daphna , Ariely Gal , Halperin Eran
Published: October 2007

This article tests the role played by different sources of threat perception in shaping exclusionist political attitudes of the majority toward two distinct minority groups in Israel: non-Jewish immigrants from the former Soviet Union and Palestinian citizens of Israel. The authors distinguish between the impact of security, economic, and symbolic threats on exclusionist political attitudes. A structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis indicated that regardless of the different levels of each threat posed by a minority group, a perceived security threat is a key predictor of exclusionist political attitudes toward different minority groups.
The Impact of the Australian Ballot on Member Behavior in the U.S. House of Representatives
Authors: Wittrock Jill N. , Nemeth Stephen C. , Sanborn Howard , DiSarro Brian , Squire Peverill
Published: October 2007

Katz and Sala linked the development of committee property rights in the late-nineteenth-century U.S. House of Representatives to the introduction of the Australian ballot. If, as they posited, members sought personal reputations to carry them to reelection in the new electoral environment, the current article argues that behaviors with more immediate political payoffs also should have changed in ways their theory would predict. The article examines whether committee assignments, floor voting behavior, and the distribution of pork barrel projects changed in predicted ways and finds supportive outcomes, but usually only when the office bloc ballot, and not the party bloc ballot, was in use.