title: Terrorism and maritime shipment of nuclear material

authors: Smith, Ron C.

subjects: terrorism

abstract: Opponents of the nuclear industry often claim that material in transit is vulnerable to attack by
terrorist groups who might seek to take the cargo and make a bomb, or otherwise cause a
radiological incident. This paper lays out a range of conceivable objectives or attack scenarios in
the context of maritime transportation and examines these in the light of what is known of the
relevant security arrangements. It concludes that these arrangements provide a very substantial
deterrent to any attempt at diversion or sabotage and that any such attempt would have little
prospect of success, beyond the immediate media impact of whatever might have occurred.

text: Terrorism and maritime shipment of nuclear material Opponents of the nuclear industry often claim that material in transit is vulnerable to attack by
terrorist groups who might seek to take the cargo and make a bomb, or otherwise cause a
radiological incident. This paper lays out a range of conceivable objectives or attack scenarios in
the context of maritime transportation and examines these in the light of what is known of the
relevant security arrangements. It concludes that these arrangements provide a very substantial
deterrent to any attempt at diversion or sabotage and that any such attempt would have little
prospect of success, beyond the immediate media impact of whatever might have occurred.

year: 2007

title: Wonder and empathy in environmental ethics

authors: van Zyl, Liezl

abstract: My aim in this article to argue that wonder is a basic moral capacity, akin to the capacity for empathy, that is required for the virtue of environmental benevolence. I begin by examining Geoffrey Frasz’s account of benevolence as a set of environmental virtues, and I identify a gap that not only threatens the coherence of Frasz’s theory, but also points to an important cause of our widespread apathy toward the environment: the inherently limited and biased nature of the capacity for empathy. My proposal is that the capacity for wonder can fill this gap, that is, I think wonder can play the role in environmental benevolence that empathy plays in interpersonal benevolence.

text: Wonder and empathy in environmental ethics My aim in this article to argue that wonder is a basic moral capacity, akin to the capacity for empathy, that is required for the virtue of environmental benevolence. I begin by examining Geoffrey Frasz’s account of benevolence as a set of environmental virtues, and I identify a gap that not only threatens the coherence of Frasz’s theory, but also points to an important cause of our widespread apathy toward the environment: the inherently limited and biased nature of the capacity for empathy. My proposal is that the capacity for wonder can fill this gap, that is, I think wonder can play the role in environmental benevolence that empathy plays in interpersonal benevolence.

year: 2025

title: Indigenous fertility in Aotearoa New Zealand: How does ethnic identity affect birth spacing and timing?

authors: Rarere, Moana

abstract: The survival of Indigenous peoples in the CANZUS states of Canada, Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, and the United States is nothing short of remarkable. Not only have Indigenous peoples thwarted colonial tropes of the vanishing native but, for decades, Indigenous population growth rates have significantly outpaced those of the dominant settler populations. The future survival of Indigenous peoples fundamentally rests on continued natural increase, and understanding the causes and consequences of fertility behaviour is critical. While total fertility rates for Indigenous women in CANZUS countries are relatively low, childbearing tends to be concentrated at younger ages in contrast to the dominant white populations. The fertility transitions of both settler and Indigenous populations in the CANZUS states are well documented, however, a significant gap remains: how cultural factors shape contemporary Indigenous fertility behaviours. Using Aotearoa as a case study, we explore the relationship between Māori cultural identity, birth timing, and the duration of birth intervals. We use the 1995 New Zealand Women: Family, Employment and Education survey data to further test the impact of cultural identity on birth transition rates using the piecewise exponential model and Kaplan-Meier estimates. We find that women who identify Mainly Māori (exclusively or primarily) are at greater risk of bearing much earlier to first birth but not necessarily subsequent births. However, because of the earlier start, Māori have a longer reproductive window to bear more children, and at higher birth orders still bear earlier than non-Māori. The empirical evidence strengthens our case to suggest that cultural orientation has some influence on Indigenous fertility and contributes to the development of Indigenous-centred theories of fertility and demography more broadly.

text: Indigenous fertility in Aotearoa New Zealand: How does ethnic identity affect birth spacing and timing? The survival of Indigenous peoples in the CANZUS states of Canada, Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, and the United States is nothing short of remarkable. Not only have Indigenous peoples thwarted colonial tropes of the vanishing native but, for decades, Indigenous population growth rates have significantly outpaced those of the dominant settler populations. The future survival of Indigenous peoples fundamentally rests on continued natural increase, and understanding the causes and consequences of fertility behaviour is critical. While total fertility rates for Indigenous women in CANZUS countries are relatively low, childbearing tends to be concentrated at younger ages in contrast to the dominant white populations. The fertility transitions of both settler and Indigenous populations in the CANZUS states are well documented, however, a significant gap remains: how cultural factors shape contemporary Indigenous fertility behaviours. Using Aotearoa as a case study, we explore the relationship between Māori cultural identity, birth timing, and the duration of birth intervals. We use the 1995 New Zealand Women: Family, Employment and Education survey data to further test the impact of cultural identity on birth transition rates using the piecewise exponential model and Kaplan-Meier estimates. We find that women who identify Mainly Māori (exclusively or primarily) are at greater risk of bearing much earlier to first birth but not necessarily subsequent births. However, because of the earlier start, Māori have a longer reproductive window to bear more children, and at higher birth orders still bear earlier than non-Māori. The empirical evidence strengthens our case to suggest that cultural orientation has some influence on Indigenous fertility and contributes to the development of Indigenous-centred theories of fertility and demography more broadly.

year: 2023