bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Basic Law of the Special Administrative Region of Macau: Some Reflections
Authors: Ghai Yash
Published: February 2008

With China's resumption of sovereignty over Macau on 20th December 1999, another step was taken towards the reunification of Greater China. The reunification of Macau as of Hong Kong is based on the principle of “one country, two systems’, under which the socialist systems of the People's Republic of China are not applied in these territories. Instead most constituents of their previous economic, legal and social systems are preserved. In either case China negotiated what are called Joint Declarations for the resumption of sovereignty with the colonial power, under which the terms of “one country, two systems’ were spelled out. China undertook to give effect to the Declarations in Basic Laws, passed by its National People's Congress. Except for defence and foreign affairs, most matters are vested in the new entities, called Special Administrative Regions. The Basic Laws describe the constitutional system established for the regions as being characterised by a “high degree of autonomy’. As such they are an interesting addition to autonomy systems which are increasingly being applied as solutions to problems of divided societies. But the institutional support for the autonomy is particularly weak, and a closer examination of the articulation of the regions with the central authorities suggests that the primary concern in establishing the special administrative regions is less the automony for the people of Hong Kong or Macau as finding a framework for managing different economic systems from those on the mainland (I have developed these arguments in Ghai 1999).
Private Life and Public Image: Privacy Legislation in France
Authors: Trouille Helen
Published: February 2008

In October 1998, at the height of the Monicagate scandal, the publication by the French publisher Plon of a novel which recounts the adulterous relationship in the 1960s between a politician bearing a marked resemblance to Francois Mitterrand, and a journalist, provided an interesting comparison between the attitudes of the French and of the Americans to the romantic dalliances of their respective leaders. For Jeanne Dautun's work of fiction Un ami d'autrefois is most certainly no Monica's Story, and French reactions to their President's lengthy extra-marital relationship with Anne Pingeot have been at the very least understanding, if not even compassionate. In France, the small gathering of graveside mourners amongst whom Mitterrand's mistress and illegitimate daughter Mazarine took their places shocked no-one, although many an eyebrow was raised in the United States. In truth, Mitterrand manipulated the release of information about his private life all along the line, “coming clean” only progressively with his approaching death. Although the general public knew nothing of his double life, journalists had been very much aware of the existence of this second family for a great many years, but had revealed nothing. The respect of his privacy in this relationship and the reactions of fellow French politicians to his unashamed infidelity contrast sharply with the fate reserved for Bill Clinton, the indiscretions of his private life exposed in the nation's press for all to enjoy. We may ask ourselves if French journalists are perhaps more gentlemanly, less cut-throat than their Anglo-Saxon counterparts. Or are the cliches which describe latins as inveterate romantics and lovers true after all? Or are these irrational judgments supported by powerful French legislation protecting the individual's right to privacy? This article aims to examine the main texts relating to infringements of privacy in France, highlighting in particular those committed by the press against public figures and celebrities.
The Kosovo Crisis and Nato's Application of Armed Force Against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Authors: Kritsiotis Dino
Published: February 2008

In the fifth week of NATO's 78–day aerial intervention in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), the FRY initiated proceedings in the International Court of Justice against ten of its member States which it accused of violating the principles of international law in relation to the jus ad bellum and the jus in bello.1 NATO's action, known as Operation Allied Force, had commenced on the night of 24 March 1999 when cruise missiles were directed on Serbian targets located in the Kosovan capital of Pristina and in the Republic's capital of Belgrade.2 This robust application of armed force came on the eve of the 50th anniversary of NATO, an organisation which was established after the Second World War for the collective defence of its member States, and constituted the first offensive launched against another sovereign State in the organisation's entire history.
Legal Practice Rights of Domestic and Foreign Lawyers in the United States©
Authors: Goebel Roger J.
Published: February 2008

In the post-World War II international economy, with its enormous growth in transnational trade and investment, multinational legal practice has become a functional reality.1 Within the last two decades, the volume of trans-border legal practice has grown enormously in fields such as trade law, international banking and finance, international arbitration and litigation, international contractual and joint venture arrangements, transborder acquisitions and mergers, international antitrust, international tax planning, and foreign investment counselling. Domestic law firms within the leading commercial nations have not only grown substantially in size, often by merger, they have also increasingly created networks of foreign branch offices, or entered into international association or joint venture relationships with firms in other countries.2
Family Law; Civil and Commercial Matters; the Hague Conventions in the Internet Age
Authors: Kennett Wendy
Published: February 2008

On 27 July 1999 a UK Act was passed to “make provision for giving effect to the Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in respect of Intercountry Adoption concluded at the Hague on 29 May 1993” and “to make further provision in relation to adoptions with an international element”.1 At the time of writing, however, the UK had not ratified the Convention. By section. 18(3) the Act will be brought into force on a date appointed by statutory instrument.
Celebrating 200 Years Of The Conseil D'etat
Authors: Bell John
Published: February 2008

On 13 December 1999, the Conseil d'Etat celebrated 200 years since its creation in the Constitution of An VIII. Much has been written over the year on the judicial functions of the Conseil, but far less has been written on its consultative functions or on its influence on the administrative law of other jurisdictions. In one sense, this is not surprising. Since 1818, the case law of the Conseil has been published regularly and commented upon by French lawyers, as well as by those from abroad. But the consultative functions of the Conseil are not a matter of public record in the same way. The advice given to the government on draft legislation and on other matters is private. We know that the government has received advice on certain matters, but the content of the advice or opinion is not made public, except on the rare occasions in which the government chooses to make it public. (In very recent years, this is becoming more frequent.) As to the influence of the Conseil, while certain obvious influences have occurred, many of the mechanisms are not recorded and rely on actions by individual conseillers d'Etat. The following four papers try to reflect on these areas of the Conseil's activity.
Do the Opinions Expressed by the Conseil D'Etat in its Capacity as Legal Adviser to the Government Influence Policy?
Authors: Questiaux Nicole
Published: February 2008

My title for this article reflects a very proper question for a foreign audience which has become more familiar than in the past with the dual (consultative and judicial) role of the French Conseil d'etat. For many years, interest in Britain focused on the judicial function of the Conseil. More recently, attention has shifted to the activities of the “sections administratives”, which involve the screening and the drafting of all the proposed legislation and the essential part of subordinate regulations prepared by government. I have the feeling this interest is probably fuelled by the recent constitutional changes in the United Kingdom, and the need to prevent legal difficulties cropping up between different and new political bodies.
Kosovo: House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee 4th Report, June 2000
Authors: Boyle Alan
Published: February 2008

Following NATO's intervention in Kosovo in 1999, the United Kingdom House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee commenced an inquiry with the following terms of reference: “To inquire into the foreign policy lessons of the Kosovo crisis and how the Foreign and Commonwealth Office might best promote peace and stability in the region.” The Committee heard oral evidence from government ministers, diplomats, FCO staff, journalists, academics, and lawyers. It also received written memoranda. The President of Montenegro and the Foreign Minister of Albania were interviewed in private, and the Committee visited Kosovo, Macedonia and Montenegro. The Committee's Report was published on 7 June 2000 as the 4th Report of The House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee (HC28-II, ISBN 010 2331006) together with the evidence and appendices (HC28-II, ISBN 010 2333009).
The Legality Of Nato'S Action In The Former Republic Of Yugoslavia (Fry) Under International Law
Authors: Chinkin Christine
Published: February 2008

The use of force has been prohibited in international relations since at least the United Nations Charter, 1945. Article 2 (4) of the Charter states:

All members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the United Nations.
International Law And The Nato Intervention In Kosovo
Authors: Greenwood Christopher
Published: February 2008

This memorandum is submitted in response to a request from the Foreign Affairs Committee in connection with its hearings on the NATO intervention in Kosovo in March 1999. The memorandum addresses the following issues of international law:

(1) Was the resort to force by NATO consistent with international law? and

(2) Were the means employed by NATO, once the decision to use force had been taken, consistent with international law?
RESPECT FOR PRIVATE AND FAMILY LIFE UNDER ARTICLE 8 ECHR IN IMMIGRATION CASES: A HUMAN RIGHT TO REGULARIZE ILLEGAL STAY?
Authors: Thym Daniel
Published: February 2008

Applying the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to immigration cases has always been a balancing exercise between the effective protection of human rights and the Contracting States' autonomy to regulate migration flows. In its recent case law, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg (ECtHR) has considerably extended the protective scope of Article 8 ECHR by granting autonomous human rights protection to the long-term resident status independent of the existence of family bonds under the heading of ‘private life’. This has important repercussions for the status of legal and illegal immigrants across Europe, since the new case law widens the reach of human rights law to the legal conditions for leave to remain, effectively granting several applicants a human right to regularize their illegal stay. The contribution analyses the new case law and develops general criteria guiding the application of the ECHR to national immigration laws and the new EU harmonization measures adopted in recent years.
England's Maritime Empire: Seapower, Commerce and Policy, 1490–1690. By David Loades. London: Longman, 2000. Pp. xi, 277. $17.80, paper.
Authors: Scammell G. V.
Published: February 2008

To the vast and burgeoning literature on the rise, fall, and consequences of European empire-building, David Loades, a distinguished historian of Tudor England, adds this brief and stimulating book on the origins and course of the country's overseas expansion in the two centuries after 1490. He is not concerned with models or with the analysis of global balances of power. Taking a more modest perspective, he argues that between 1490 and 1690 England changed from being the decayed remnant of a once-formidable expansionist power on the Continent to a nascent oceanic and imperial state. By the mid-1500s, he claims, the foundations of the country's subsequent maritime and colonial achievements were already in place. He identifies the vital elements as the creation of a standing specialist fighting navy; the development, from the mid-sixteenth century, of an interest in long-distance voyages and trading ventures, sustained under Elizabeth I by an “enterprise partnership” between the queen and some of her subjects; and the emergence, in the years of the Commonwealth and the Cromwellian Republic, of the navy as an instrument of state rather than dynastic ambition. However, as the argument unfolds he admits the importance of other factors, not least the pursuit of profit and the desire of some of England's populace to escape from religious or political regimes they found intolerable.
Papermaking in Eighteenth Century France: Management, Labor, and Revolution at the Montgolfier Mill, 1761–1805. By Leonard N. Rosenband. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2000. Pp. xv, 210. $39.95.
Authors: Crowston Clare
Published: February 2008

Until now, the Montgolfier family's best-known historical legacy has been the name they lent to the hot-air balloon, whose development they sponsored in the 1780s. Leonard Rosenband's achievement in this book is to elucidate the industrial enterprise that laid the foundation for that adventure. In the second half of the eighteenth century, the Montgolfiers owned and operated one of the most important papermaking manufactures in France, centered in Vidalon-le-Haut in northern Languedoc. As Rosenband acknowledges, the Montgolfiers were hardly representative of the French papermaking industry. The scale of their operations, concentration on high-quality paper, and determination to compete with superior Dutch products all clearly distinguished them from their lesser brethren. Nonetheless, Rosenband claims that in their reliance on the same production techniques, division of labor, and well-organized journeymen, the Montgolfiers have much to teach us about the papermaking industry as a whole and, indeed, about the overall process of industrialization in France.
Earthly Necessities: Economic Lives in Early Modern Britain. By Keith Wrightson. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2000. Pp. xii, 372. $35.00.
Authors: Muldrew Craig
Published: February 2008

For almost 20 years now, Professor Wrightson's book English Society 1580–1680 (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1982) has probably been the most widely used text to introduce the social history of England in this period. But at the same time it is much more than this, in that it presents a powerful argument about change in religious belief, education, social hegemony, and concepts of order, all of which has provoked much scholarly debate. Now Wrightson has produced a volume on the economic history of Britain in the longer period from 1470–1750, which deserves to become as central and as widely read. Its arrival is doubly welcome because, since Christopher Clay's Economic Expansion and Social Change (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984) went out of print some time ago, there has been no current text covering the economic history of early modern England or Britain. In part this unfortunate situation has reflected declining student interest, as economic history became identified with econometrics. But this lucid and engaging work should revive interest in a vitally important subject. As its title indicates, this is economic history with a human face, in which the main focus of analysis is always the social context and meaning of economic change to those whom it affected.
Green Land, Brown Land, Black Land: An Environmental History of Africa, 1800–1990. By James C. McCann. Portsmouth: Heinemann, 1999. Pp. iii, 224. $24.95.
Authors: Doyle Shane
Published: February 2008

James McCann is the author of one of the most important agricultural and environmental histories of an African region (People of the Plow: An Agricultural History of Ethiopia, 1800–1990. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1995). As such he is well placed to attempt a modern environmental history of the African continent. Overall, he has been successful. Green Land, Brown Land, Black Land is an extremely useful survey of recent trends in research into the causes and consequences of environmental change in Africa. As an introduction to the subject, McCann's book is probably unrivaled.
Women in 1900: Gateway to the Political Economy of the 20th Century. By Christine E. Bose. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2001. Pp. xi, 257. $22.95, paper.
Authors: Fender Ann Harper
Published: February 2008

Economic historians have to respond favorably when sociologist–feminist scholar Christine Bose early in her text writes, “This book is intended to provide a historical perspective on contemporary issues that all too often are analyzed only in terms of the present” (p. 3). She returns frequently to this theme, stressing that female participation in the labor force began long before the late 1960s. Of course, numerous economic historians have noted that such participation began long before 1900 and their work, unsurprisingly, exhibits stronger understanding of historical economic conditions than does Women in 1900. Bose's intent, however, is not to study women throughout U.S. history; rather, she analyzes data on 29,673 women included in the Public Use Sample of the 1900 census to re-estimate female labor-force participation, and determine the effect of gender, race, ethnicity, and class on that participation. Her most valuable contribution comes through matching her sample observations with county economic data obtained through the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) at the University of Michigan. She uses these data to generate what she calls contextual variables, basically regional and urban or rural location of the sample respondent, and average female manufacturing wage and population characteristics of the respondent's county.
The Rise of Cotton Mills in the South. By Broadus Mitchell, with a new introduction by David L. Carlton. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 2001. Pp. lviii, 281. $18.95, paper.
Authors: Terrill Thomas E.
Published: February 2008

Written as his doctoral dissertation at Johns Hopkins University and published as a book in 1921, Mitchell's study was a highly influential study of the explosive growth of cotton manufacturing in the southeastern United States from 1880 to World War I. The first scholarly assessment of what would become the leading industry of the region and set within the historical context of that region, Mitchell's book was, as Carlton says, “[r]ooted in the militant modernizing ethos of the Progressive era reform milieu” (p. x).
Monopolies in America: Empire Builders and Their Enemies from Jay Gould to Bill Gates. By Charles R. Geisst. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000. Pp. x, 355. $30.00.
Authors: Bunting David
Published: February 2008

The basic problem with writing a history of American Big Business is finding some method to organize the familiar chronicles of companies and people as well as the usual stories of good and evil into some coherent book of reasonable length. The organizing method adopted by Charles Geisst is to focus on the popular reaction to “monopolies,” more accurately, private concentrations of economic power. For the most part, this method succeeds, assisted in no small part by Geisst's smooth style and cynical, perhaps jaded, attitude.
Fragile Paradise: The Impact of Tourism on Maui, 1959–2000. By Mansel Blackford. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2001. Pp. xiii, 277. $35.00.
Authors: La Croix Sumner J.
Published: February 2008

The introduction of commercial jet service in 1959 transformed the face of the Hawaiian Islands. By reducing both the time required to travel to Hawai‘i and the money price of travel, the jet plane brought increasing numbers of tourists to Hawai‘i, and in the process, triggered an enormous wave of development on the four major islands. Mansel Blackford's new book focuses on how tourism affected the development of Maui, a beautiful tropical island of just 727 square miles. In 1956 Maui had unspoiled, beautiful beaches; sugar cane and pineapple as the main industries; small towns with a relaxed lifestyle; just 37,600 residents; and only 29,000 annual visitors. By 1998 Maui had been totally transformed. The population had more than tripled to 121,000 residents; the annual visitor count had soared to 2,244,000 people; only two sugar plantations remained; bumper-to-bumper traffic jams had become the norm; planned resorts in Wailea and K\bar{{\rm a}}‘anapali and a more sprawling tourism complex in Kihei were clustered around the most beautiful beaches; and the small rural towns had grown into tourism and commercial centers.
Economic Transition in Historical Perspective: Lessons from the History of Economics. Edited by Charles M. A. Clark and Janina Rosicka. Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2000. Pp. xii, 165. $64.95.
Authors: Pryor Frederic L.
Published: February 2008

This short book contains ten essays, primarily by Polish, Portuguese, and U.S. economists, presented at a 1998 conference in Cracow. In the preface the editors tell us that “the subject of these papers is the connection between moral values and economic activities, and this ‘psychic and spiritual energy’ should supply us with a more complex and complete picture of the problems of economic transition.”
WOMEN'S WORK AND MEN'S UNEMPLOYMENT
Authors: Moehling Carolyn M.
Published: February 2008

A large literature examines men's unemployment and their wives' labor-market participation. In response to her husband's unemployment, a woman may adjust her labor supplied to household production as well as to the market. This article tests for this effect and measures its impact using the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Cost of Living survey of 1917–1919. Households altered both household-production decisions and the wife's labor supplied to the market in response to the husband's unemployment. But the household-production-response effect was smaller than the added-worker effect, in terms of women's labor hours and household consumption.
ENFORCING PROPERTY RIGHTS THROUGH REPUTATION: MEXICO'S EARLY INDUSTRIALIZATION, 1878–1913
Authors: Maurer Noel , Sharma Tridib
Published: February 2008

Mexico's initial industrialization was based on firms that were “grouped”: that is, linked to other firms through close affiliations with a common bank. Most explanations for the prevalence of groups are based on increasing returns or missing formal capital markets. We propose a simpler explanation that better fits the facts of Mexican history. In the absence of secure property rights, tangible collateral could not credibly be offered to creditors; but there remained the possibility of using reputation as a form of intangible collateral. In such circumstances, firms had incentives to group together for purposes of mutual monitoring and insurance.
Local Granaries and Central Government Disaster Relief: Moral Hazard and Intergovernmental Finance in Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century China
Authors: SHIUE CAROL H.
Published: February 2008

During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the Chinese state attempted to administer famine relief partly through a nationwide institution of local granaries. This article explores regional variations in the performance of this institution to understand the reasons for its ultimate breakdown. The evidence suggests granary storage levels were systematically lower in provinces that received more frequent central government disaster relief; and an unintended consequence of disaster relief was that it modified local incentives for self-insurance and led to an incompletely resolved moral-hazard problem. China's experience provides an instructive example of the long-term dynamics present in intergovernmental policies.
Race and Pregnancy Outcomes in the Twentieth Century: A Long-Term Comparison
Authors: COSTA DORA L.
Published: February 2008

Untreated syphilis explained one-third of the higher prematurity rates of black relative to white babies born at Johns Hopkins in the early twentieth century. Differences in prematurity rates explained 41 percent of the black-white stillbirth gap and one-quarter of the black-white birth weight gap. Black babies had lower mortality and higher weight gain than white babies during the first ten days of life spent in the hospital because of higher black breast-feeding rates. Historically low birth weights may have a long reach: in 1988 maternal birth weight accounted for 5–8 percent of the gap in black-white birth weights.
A Metaphysics of Ordinary Things and Why We Need It
Authors: Baker Lynne Rudder
Published: February 2008

Mainstream metaphysicians today take little ontological interest in the world as we interact with it. They interpret the variety of things in the world as variety only of concepts applied to things that are basically of the same sort—e.g., sums of particles or temporal parts of particles. I challenge this approach by formulating and defending for a contrasting line of thought. Using what I call ‘the Constitution View,’ I argue that ordinary things (like screwdrivers and walnuts) are as ontologically significant as particles. I further argue for why we need recourse to such ordinary things in our basic ontology.
Adjectival ša syntagms and adjectives in Old Babylonian
Authors: Cohen Eran
Published: February 2008

This paper describes attribution in Old Babylonian. The principles drawn upon are the traditional view of Akkadian syntax, modern Semitic syntax, and the principles of European structuralism. Bringing all these together, while exemplifying and proving previous unexplained statements by using Old Babylonian material, renders the whole issue tangible for every linguistically-oriented reader. ša syntagms are described, each component separately, as a pronominal construct nucleus with an attribute; this attribute is either a nominal or a clause. ša syntagms, being appositive to a referent substantive (when occurring), are in the same paradigm with adjectives, which are shown to have the same components as ša syntagms: a pronominal nucleus, an attribute and the attributive link between them.
Three languages on one leaf: on IOL Toch 81 with special regard to the Turkic part
Authors: Maue Dieter
Published: February 2008

In this article I edit and comment on the Hoernle manuscript IOL Toch 81 (H 149.292) with fragmentary texts in three languages, Sanskrit (6 lines) TocharianB (1 line) and Turkic (15 lines). The primary interest is in the Turkic text, which probably forms part of an upāsaka's vow. Its orthography, morphology and lexis, perceptibly different from standard Uighur, show features which point to high antiquity and perhaps to non-Uighur provenance. Some Buddhist terms seem to be deliberately designed on a Manichaean foil. Thus the Turkic part of the manuscript may date back to the second half of the ninth century, or, if non-Uighur, to an even earlier period.
Fear no more: emotions and world politics
Authors: BLEIKER ROLAND , HUTCHISON EMMA
Published: February 2008

Although emotions play a significant role in world politics they have so far received surprisingly little attention by International Relations scholars. Numerous authors have emphasised this shortcoming for several years now, but strangely there are still only very few systematic inquiries into emotions and even fewer related discussions on method. The article explains this gap by the fact that much of International Relations scholarship is conducted in the social sciences. Such inquiries can assess emotions up to a certain point, as illustrated by empirical studies on psychology and foreign policy and constructivist engagements with identity and community. But conventional social science methods cannot understand all aspects of phenomena as ephemeral as those of emotions. Doing so would involve conceptualising the influence of emotions even when and where it is not immediately apparent. The ensuing challenges are daunting, but at least some of them could be met by supplementing social scientific methods with modes of inquiry emanating from the humanities. By drawing on feminist and other interpretive approaches we advance three propositions that would facilitate such cross-disciplinary inquiries. (1) The need to accept that research can be insightful and valid even if it engages unobservable phenomena, and even if the results of such inquiries can neither be measured nor validated empirically; (2) The importance of examining processes of representation, such as visual depictions of emotions and the manner in which they shape political perceptions and dynamics; (3) A willingness to consider alternative forms of insight, most notably those stemming from aesthetics sources, which, we argue, are particularly suited to capturing emotions. Taken together, these propositions highlight the need for a sustained global communication across different fields of knowledge.
Stratigraphical and geographical distribution of Mississippian (Lower Carboniferous) Crinoidea from Scotland
Authors: Kammer Thomas W. , Ausich William I.
Published: February 2008

A total of 47 genera, in 80 species, of Mississippian, or Lower Carboniferous, crinoids are evaluated from 61 localities in Scotland based on a modern update of the literature, study of museum collections, and new field work. Among the 80 species, 76 are considered valid, with eight requiring new combinations of genus and species names. In addition, one species is considered anomen dubium, and three can only be assigned at the generic level. Asbian faunas have a moderate generic richness of 13. Brigantian faunas have the highest generic richness at 40. Arnsbergian faunas have the lowest generic richness at three. There are no Mississippian crinoid faunas in Scotland older than Asbian. The dominant Brigantian crinoid faunas occur in limestones and shales in the shallow shelf marine intervals of Yoredale-style cyclothems. The Asbian faunas occur in shallower, nearshore mudstones and limestones of Yoredale-style cyclothems. The late Viséan (Brigantian) fauna is more similar in overall taxonomic composition to the global record for the Serpukhovian rather than the Viséan. This reflects the establishment of the Late Palaeozoic Crinoid Macroevolutionary Fauna, dominated by advanced cladid crinoids, by the end of the Viséan in Scotland.
The Silurian pelagic myodocope ostracod Richteria migrans
Authors: Perrier Vincent , Vannier Jean , Siveter David J.
Published: February 2008

A study of type and newly collected material of the Silurian ostracodRichteria migrans(Barrande, 1872) demonstrates that it had wide distribution, occurring in at least the Czech Republic, France, Sardinia, Wales, central Asia and probably Poland.R. migranshas biostratigraphic value, as an indicator for the mid to late part of the Ludlow Series. It was almost certainly pelagic, living predominantly in probable shelf topographic lows to marginal/off-shelf environments, characteristically with cephalopod-graptolite-bivalve-dominant associates. It had at least five to six growth stages, exhibits polymorphic variation, and its morphology provides evidence to endorse the notion that ‘entomozoaceans’ are myodocopes.
Mechanics of grain‐size reduction in fault zones
Authors: Sammis Charles G. , Ben‐Zion Yehuda
Published: February 2008

Recent observations of nanometer‐scale particles in the cores of exhumed fault zones raise questions about how such small particles are formed and how they survive, especially if significant shear heating is produced during an earthquake. Commercial crushing and grinding operations encounter a grind limit near 1 μm below which particles deform plastically rather than fracturing. A fragmentation model and low‐temperature plasticity mechanics indicate that it is not possible to produce under compressive loading and short timescale significantly smaller particles at any strain rate. However, shock loading and subcritical crack growth can produce nanometer‐scale fragments in compression. Under tensile loading the fragment size is determined by a competition between the nucleation of cracks and stress relaxation in their neighborhoods. Therefore higher tensile strain rates produce smaller fragments. The ultimate limit is determined by the availability of elastic strain energy, which does not place a significant constraint on the minimum grain size. Grain growth kinetics suggests that survivability of grains is very temperature sensitive. A 10 nm quartz fragment will double its size in 0.1 s at 1000°C, in 20 s at 800°C, in 14 h at 600°C, and in 10 years at 400°C. The observation of grains smaller than 10 nm places meaningful constraints on the dynamic fields and permeability of the fault zone during a large earthquake. Microstructural analysis of the grains and rock damage may be used to infer whether fragmentation occurred under macroscopic tension or compression.
First observational estimates of global clear sky shortwave aerosol direct radiative effect over land
Authors: Patadia Falguni , Gupta Pawan , Christopher Sundar A.
Published: February 2008

Using one year (2000–2001) of merged Multiangle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR), Moderate Resolution Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MODIS) and Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) data sets from NASA's Terra satellite, we estimate the top of atmosphere cloud‐free direct radiative effect (DRE) of aerosols over global land areas. The global mean shortwave DRE is −5.1 ± 1.1 Wm−2 although substantial regional variability in DRE over land exists due to differences in aerosol properties and land cover types. This value is consistent with those reported in the literature although this is the first observational estimate of the global DRE over land using satellite data alone. Future studies need to separate the anthropogenic component of aerosols from satellite data to examine aerosol climate forcing over global scales.
Self‐regulation of deep‐ocean internal wave continuum: Observations on related near‐inertial shear and high‐frequency vertical motions
Authors: van Haren Hans
Published: February 2008

It is shown using detailed yearlong acoustic current observations between 850 and 1350 m that large‐scale and small‐scale waves in the ocean interior are coupled in a self‐regulating fashion. Vertical current shear, a key to vertical mixing, is dominated near the local inertial frequency. Its value follows details of maximum buoyancy frequency ‘Nmax’ in thin layers of different density. Its frequency however, is determined by the minimum Nmin in the near‐homogeneous layers between the Nmax‐layers. These weakly stratified layers are maintained by overturning of density surfaces due to high‐frequency internal waves guided by the shear‐layers. Rare vertical current observations show a spectral continuum between [Nmin, Nmax] of low‐mode interfacial waves rather than wave‐groups propagating through smooth large‐scale stratification.
Observation of isolated high‐speed auroral streamers and their interpretation as optical signatures of Alfvén waves generated by bursty bulk flows
Authors: Liu W. W. , Liang J. , Donovan E. F. , Trondsen T. , Baker G. , Sofko G. , Jackel B. , Wang C.‐P. , Mende S. , Frey H. U. , Angelopoulos V.
Published: February 2008

The THEMIS All‐Sky Imager at Fort Smith, Canada observed a sudden appearance and subsequent evolution of auroral streamers on April 15, 2006. The event took place in an oval that was optically dark, and evolved into a 20‐minute period of intense equatorward streaming of red aurora. We characterize the incipient event as isolated streamers, a phenomenon previously linked with bursty bulk flows in the plasma sheet. Thanks to the high time and spatial resolution of THEMIS ASI, the observed streamer reveals some detailed features hitherto not reported. Aside from their exceptionally high speed and fine transient structures, the streamers are found to exhibit an unusual convergent motion (equatorward from high latitudes and poleward from low latitudes) to form a complete flow channel. Our analysis shows that this observation is best explained with a new theory on the origin of auroral streamers.
Prestorm enhancements in NmF2 and total electron content at low latitudes
Authors: Liu Libo , Wan Weixing , Zhang Man‐Lian , Zhao Biqiang , Ning Baiqi
Published: February 2008

The enhancement of electron concentrations in the ionosphere before geomagnetic storms is one of the open questions. Using ionosonde observations and total electron content (TEC) from Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements along longitude 120°E, we analyzed three low latitude pre‐storm enhancement events that occurred on 21 April (day 111) 2001, 29 May (day 149) 2003, and 22 September (day 265) 2001, respectively, in the Asia/Australia sector. All three events (and other two cases on 9 August 2000 and 10 May 2002) show quite similar features. The strong prestorm enhancements during these events are simultaneously presented in foF2 and TEC and enhancements have latitudinal dependence, tending to occur at low latitudes with maxima near the northern and southern equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA) crests and depletions in the equatorial region. This is quite different from what reported by Burešová and Laštovička (2007) for middle latitudes. They found no systemic latitudinal dependence in prestorm enhancements over Europe. It is argued that solar flares are not the main drivers for the enhancements, at least for low‐latitude events. Main features of low‐latitude prestorm enhancements do not coincide with the solar flare effects. We postulate that the vertical plasma drift or zonal electric field is a likely cause for the low‐latitude prestorm enhancements. Its existence is supported by the facts of stronger EIA, the latitudinal coverage of the enhancements as well as the lift of the F layer peak height at an equatorward station during the prestorm enhancements. Moreover, the behaviors of hmF2 at low latitudes during the prestorm enhancements may possibly be explained in terms of the coupling nature of parallel and perpendicular dynamics at low latitudes (see, e.g., Behnke and Harper, 1973; Rishbeth et al., 1978).
Trends in the sea ice cover using enhanced and compatible AMSR‐E, SSM/I, and SMMR data
Authors: Comiso Josefino C. , Nishio Fumihiko
Published: February 2008

Arguably, the most remarkable manifestation of change in the polar regions is the rapid decline in the Arctic perennial ice cover. Changes in the global sea ice cover, however, have been more modest, being only slightly negative in the Northern Hemisphere and even slightly positive in the Southern Hemisphere, the significance of which has not been adequately assessed because of unknown errors in the satellite historical data. Recent Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR‐E) high‐resolution data are used as the baseline for generating an enhanced sea ice data set used in this study. Brightness temperature data from historical Special Scanning Microwave Imager (SSM/I) and Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer (SMMR) sensors were normalized to be consistent with those from AMSR‐E, and sea ice parameters were derived from all three data sets using the same algorithm for optimum consistency and accuracy. A small bias in sea ice extent is observed between AMSR‐E and SSM/I data which, if uncorrected, causes an error of 0.62%/decade in the Arctic and 0.26%/decade in the Antarctic. Similar corrections are not needed in trend estimates of sea ice area. Biases due to seasonal changes in the accuracy of ice edge determinations, especially during melt periods, were also evaluated, and impacts on the trend results appear to be small. When updated to 2006, the trends in ice extent and area in the Arctic are now slightly more negative at −3.4 ± 0.2 and −4.0 ± 0.2% per decade, respectively, while the corresponding trends in the Antarctic remains slight but positive at 0.9 ± 0.2 and 1.7 ± 0.3% per decade.
Predictability of European air quality: Assessment of 3 years of operational forecasts and analyses by the PREV'AIR system
Authors: Honoré Cécile , Rouïl Laurence , Vautard Robert , Beekmann Matthias , Bessagnet Bertrand , Dufour Anne , Elichegaray Christian , Flaud Jean‐Marie , Malherbe Laure , Meleux Frédérik , Menut Laurent , Martin Daniel , Peuch Aline , Peuch Vincent‐Henri , Poisson Nathalie
Published: February 2008

For the first time, the long‐term evaluation of an operational real‐time air quality forecasting and analysis system is presented, using error statistics over 3 consecutive years. This system, called PREV'AIR, is the French air quality forecasting and monitoring system. It became operational in 2003 as a result of a cooperation between several public organizations. The system forecasts and analyzes air quality throughout Europe, with a zoom over France, for regulatory pollutants: ozone (O3), particulate matter with diameter smaller than 10 μm (PM10), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). The ability of PREV'AIR to forecast, up to 3 days ahead, photochemical and particle pollution over the domains considered is demonstrated: daily ozone maxima forecasts correlate with observations with 0.75–0.85 mean coefficients; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency acceptance criteria relative to the forecast accuracy for high concentrations and daily maxima are met for more than 90% of the measurement sites. For NO2 and PM10, the performance corresponds to the state of the art. The contribution of weather forecast errors to air quality predictability is addressed: ozone daily maxima forecast errors are not dominated by meteorological forecast errors; for rural stations, only 6% (15% and 25%, respectively) of the error variance is due to meteorological forecast errors on the first 24 (48 and 72, respectively) hours. The Model Output Statistics procedure, implemented in PREV'AIR, is proved to improve ozone forecasts, especially when photochemical pollution episodes occur. The PREV'AIR real‐time analysis procedure, based on a kriging method, provides an accurate and comprehensive description of surface ozone fields over France.
Characterization of the optical properties of atmospheric aerosols in Amazônia from long‐term AERONET monitoring (1993–1995 and 1999–2006)
Authors: Schafer J. S. , Eck T. F. , Holben B. N. , Artaxo P. , Duarte A. F.
Published: February 2008

We present a new climatology of atmospheric aerosols (primarily pyrogenic and biogenic) for the Brazilian tropics on the basis of a high‐quality data set of spectral aerosol optical depth and directional sky radiance measurements from Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) Cimel Sun‐sky radiometers at more than 15 sites distributed across the Amazon basin and adjacent Cerrado region. This network is the only long‐term project (with a record including observations from more than 11 years at some locations) ever to have provided ground‐based remotely‐sensed column aerosol properties for this critical region. Distinctive features of the Amazonian area aerosol are presented by partitioning the region into three aerosol regimes: southern Amazonian forest, Cerrado, and northern Amazonian forest. The monitoring sites generally include measurements from the interval 1999–2006, but some sites have measurement records that date back to the initial days of the AERONET program in 1993. Seasonal time series of aerosol optical depth (AOD), Ångström exponent, and columnar‐averaged microphysical properties of the aerosol derived from sky radiance inversion techniques (single‐scattering albedo, volume size distribution, fine mode fraction of AOD, etc.) are described and contrasted for the defined regions. During the wet season, occurrences of mineral dust penetrating deep into the interior were observed.
Cathodic oxygen reduction catalyzed by bacteria in microbial fuel cells
Authors: Rabaey Korneel , Read Suzanne T , Clauwaert Peter , Freguia Stefano , Bond Philip L , Blackall Linda L , Keller Jurg
Published: February 2008

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) have the potential to combine wastewater treatment efficiency with energetic efficiency. One of the major impediments to MFC implementation is the operation of the cathode compartment, as it employs environmentally unfriendly catalysts such as platinum. As recently shown, bacteria can facilitate sustainable and cost-effective cathode catalysis for nitrate and also oxygen. Here we describe a carbon cathode open to the air, on which attached bacteria catalyzed oxygen reduction. The bacteria present were able to reduce oxygen as the ultimate electron acceptor using electrons provided by the solid-phase cathode. Current densities of up to 2.2 A m−2 cathode projected surface were obtained (0.303±0.017 W m−2, 15 W m−3 total reactor volume). The cathodic microbial community was dominated by Sphingobacterium, Acinetobacter and Acidovorax sp., according to 16S rRNA gene clone library analysis. Isolates of Sphingobacterium sp. and Acinetobacter sp. were obtained using H2/O2 mixtures. Some of the pure culture isolates obtained from the cathode showed an increase in the power output of up to three-fold compared to a non-inoculated control, that is, from 0.015±0.001 to 0.049±0.025 W m−2 cathode projected surface. The strong decrease in activation losses indicates that bacteria function as true catalysts for oxygen reduction. Owing to the high overpotential for non-catalyzed reduction, oxygen is only to a limited extent competitive toward the electron donor, that is, the cathode. Further research to refine the operational parameters and increase the current density by modifying the electrode surface and elucidating the bacterial metabolism is warranted.
A salinity and sulfate manipulation of hypersaline microbial mats reveals stasis in the cyanobacterial community structure
Authors: Green Stefan J , Blackford Cameron , Bucki Patricia , Jahnke Linda L , Prufert-Bebout Lee
Published: February 2008

The cyanobacterial community structure and composition of hypersaline mats were characterized in an experiment in which native salinity and sulfate levels were modified. Over the course of approximately 1 year, microbial mats collected from Guerrero Negro (Baja, California Sur, Mexico) were equilibrated to lowered salinity (to 35 p.p.t.) and lowered sulfate (below 1 mm) conditions. The structure and composition of the cyanobacterial community in the top 5 mm of these mats were examined using a multifaceted cultivation-independent molecular approach. Overall, the relative abundance of cyanobacteria—roughly 20% of the total bacterial community, as assayed with a PCR-based methodology—was not significantly affected by these manipulations. Furthermore, the mat cyanobacterial community was only modestly influenced by the dramatic changes in sulfate and salinity, and the dominant cyanobacteria were unaffected. Community composition analyses confirmed the dominant presence of the cosmopolitan cyanobacterium Microcoleus chthonoplastes, but also revealed the dominance of another Oscillatorian cyanobacterial group, also detected in other hypersaline microbial mats. Cyanobacterial populations increasing in relative abundance under the modified salinity and sulfate conditions were found to be most closely related to other hypersaline microbial mat organisms, suggesting that the development of these mats under native conditions precludes the development of organisms better suited to the less restrictive experimental conditions. These results also indicate that within a significant range of salinity and sulfate concentrations, the cyanobacterial community is remarkably stable.