A new signaling scheme for one-shot near-far resistant detection in DS/CDMA

This paper proposes a new signaling scheme: orthogonal on-off BPSK (O3BPSK), for near-far resistant detection in the asynchronous DS/CDMA systems (up-link). The temporally adjacent bits from different users in the received signals are decoupled by using the on-off signaling, and the original data rate is maintained with no increase in transmission rate by adopting an orthogonal structure. The detector at the receiver is a one-shot linear decorrelating detector, which depends upon neither hard-decision nor specific channel coding. Some computer simulations are shown to confirm the theoretical analysis.

Civilian casualties and nuclear weapons: the application of the rule of distinction

This chapter considers the possible use in armed conflict of low-yield (also known as tactical) nuclear weapons. The Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons Advisory Opinion maintained that it is a cardinal principle that a State must never make civilians an object of attack and must consequently never use weapons that are incapable of distinguishing between civilian and military targets. As international humanitarian law applies equally to any use of nuclear weapons, it is argued that there is no use of nuclear weapons that could spare civilian casualties particularly if you view the long-term health and environmental effects of the use of such weaponry.

Parallel declines in pollinators and insect-pollinated plants in Britain and the Netherlands

Despite widespread concern about declines in pollination services, little is known about the patterns of change in most pollinator assemblages. By studying bee and hoverfly assemblages in Britain and the Netherlands, we found evidence of declines (pre- versus post-1980) in local bee diversity in both countries; however, divergent trends were observed in hoverflies. Depending on the assemblage and location, pollinator declines were most frequent in habitat and flower specialists, in univoltine species, and/or in nonmigrants. In conjunction with this evidence, outcrossing plant species that are reliant on the declining pollinators have themselves declined relative to other plant species. Taken together, these findings strongly suggest a causal connection between local extinctions of functionally linked plant and pollinator species.

Introducing assistive technology into the homes of older people: Some lessons from the Netherlands - A case study

The authors have just completed a study of assistive technology (AT) and how it can be introduced into the existing homes of older people. As part of this empirical study some collaboration with the Netherlands took place for two reasons. First to learn about the use of assistive technology from a country where its creative use was well established and second to learn how older people influence policy. Two Dutch consultants helped the team and a short visit was paid to Eindhoven. As a result of this collaboration new ways of using AT were found and comparisons made with the policy and legislative background. In addition lessons were drawn about the involvement of older people.

Extending the human nervous system through Internet implants - Experimentation and impact

It is now possible to directly link the human nervous system to a computer and thence onto the Internet. From an electronic and mental viewpoint this means that the Internet becomes an extension of the human nervous system (and vice versa). Such a connection on a regular or mass basis will have far reaching effects for society. In this article the authors discuss their own practical implant self-experimentation, especially insofar as it relates to extending the human nervous system. Trials involving an intercontinental link up are described. As well as technical aspects of the work, social, moral and ethical issues, as perceived by the authors, are weighed against potential technical gains. The authors also look at technical limitations inherent in the co-evolution of Internet implanted individuals as well as the future distribution of intelligence between human and machine.

Comparative Analysis of ESBL-Positive Escherichia coli isolates from Animals and Humans from the UK, the Netherlands and Germany

The putative virulence and antimicrobial resistance gene contents of extended spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-positive E. coli (n=629) isolated between 2005 and 2009 from humans, animals and animal food products in Germany, The Netherlands and the UK were compared using a microarray approach to test the suitability of this approach with regard to determining their similarities. A selection of isolates (n=313) were also analysed by multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Isolates harbouring blaCTX-M-group-1 dominated (66%, n=418) and originated from both animals and cases of human infections in all three countries; 23% (n=144) of all isolates contained both blaCTX-M-group-1 and blaOXA-1-like genes, predominantly from humans (n=127) and UK cattle (n=15). The antimicrobial resistance and virulence gene profiles of this collection of isolates were highly diverse. A substantial number of human isolates (32%, n=87) did not share more than 40% similarity (based on the Jaccard coefficient) with animal isolates. A further 43% of human isolates from the three countries (n=117) were at least 40% similar to each other and to five isolates from UK cattle and one each from Dutch chicken meat and a German dog; the members of this group usually harboured genes such as mph(A), mrx, aac(6’)-Ib, catB3, blaOXA-1-like and blaCTX-M-group-1. forty-four per cent of the MLST-typed isolates in this group belonged to ST131 (n=18) and 22% to ST405 (n=9), all from humans. Among animal isolates subjected to MLST (n=258), only 1.2% (n=3) were more than 70% similar to human isolates in gene profiles and shared the same MLST clonal complex with the corresponding human isolates. The results suggest that minimising human-to-human transmission is essential to control the spread of ESBL-positive E. coli in humans.

Cosmic ray measurements in the atmosphere at several latitudes in October, 2014

Cosmic ray fluxes in the atmosphere were recorded during balloon flights in October 2014 in northern Murmansk region, Apatity (Russia; 67o33’N, 33o24’E), in Antarctica (observatory Mirny; 66o33’S, 93o00’E), in Moscow (Russia; 55o45’N, 37o37’E), in Reading (United King-dom; 51o27’N, 0o 58’W), in Mitzpe-Ramon (Israel; 30o36’N, 34o48’E) and in Zaragoza (Spain; 41o9’N, 0o54’W). Two type of cosmic ray detectors were used, namely, (1) the standard ra-diosonde and its modification constructed at the Lebedev Physical Institute (Moscow, Russia) and (2) the device manufactured at the Reading University (Reading, United Kingdom). We compare and analyze obtained data and focus on the estimation of the cosmic ray latitudinal effect in the atmosphere.