Let's kill the 'C' word: notions of authentic and synthetic in the teaching of journalism

One of the less desirable aftermaths of the so-called "Media Wars" - the intellectual debate over the role of cultural studies in the study of journalism - was reinforcement for some of the notion of fortress journalism: a Windschuttlian purist version of the Empire. This paper uses the alleged confrontation between the forces of that Empire (that is, proponents of pure journalism) and the forces of the Dark (that is, critics from a cultural studies tradition) as a means of examining the teaching of journalism in universities. The paper questions how the discipline of journalism should interface with others within the academy and asks what notion of journalism underpins our pedagogy and our epistemology. It is argued that it is time to discard an outdated craft model with its associations of authenticity and replace it with a model of synthetic professionalism.

Preliminary study on the use of synthetic substrate for juvenile stage production of the yabby, Cherax destructor (Clark) (Decapoda: Parastacidae)

Juvenile Cherax destructor (commonly called the yabby) (mean weight 48.3 mg) were cultured intensively (stocking density 360/m²) under controlled conditions for 48 days. The animals were provided with a combination of food (high protein pellets and/or natural feed organisms attached to a conditioned synthetic substrate) and refuge. Fastest growth and highest yield was recorded when both pellets and the conditioned synthetic material were provided. Although the yabbies sheltered in the synthetic substrate, it did not increase survival. Juvenile yabbies (< 200 mg) were able to graze on small organisms attached to the synthetic material but this ability appeared to decline as the yabbies grew to a larger size. The use of artificial substrates in the intensive nursery phase production of juvenile freshwater crayfish is discussed.

Characterization of conducting polymer coated synthetic fabrics for heat generation

Heat generation in fabrics coated with the conductive polymer polypyrrole was investigated. The PET fabrics were coated by chemical synthesis using four different oxidizing agent–dopant combinations. The samples from the four different dopant systems all show an increase in temperature when a fixed voltage is applied to the fabric. The antraquinone-2-sulfonic acid (AQSA) sodium salt doped polypyrrole coating was the most effective in heat generation whereas the sodium perchlorate dopant system was the least effective. The power density per unit area achieved in polypyrrole coated polyester–Lycra® fabric with 0.027 mol/l of AQSA acting as dopant was 430 W/m². The power density per unit area achieved for the sodium perchlorate system, using the same synthesis conditions, was 55 W/m².

A wavelet-based ammunition doppler radar system

Today’s state-of-the-art ammunition Doppler radars use the Fourier spectrogram for the joint time-frequency analysis of ammunition Doppler signals. In this paper, we implement the joint time-frequency analysis of ammunition Doppler signals based on the theory of wavelet packets. The wavelet-based approach is demonstrated on Doppler signals for projectile velocity measurement, projectile inbore velocity measurement and on modulated Doppler signal for projectile spin rate measurement. The wavelet-based representation with its good resolution in time and frequency and reasonable computational complexity as compared to the Fourier spectrogram is a good alternative for the joint time-frequency analysis of ammunition Doppler signals.

Radar target tracking via robust linear filtering

In this letter, we provide a robust version of a linear Kalman filter for target tracking based on a measurement conversion technique on the nonlinear radar measurements. We prove that the state estimation error is bounded in a probabilistic sense. We compare our approach with the current state of the art in converted radar measurement-based linear filtering.

Reconstruction of megalake Chad using shuttle radar topographic mission data

In the 2,500,000 km² Lake Chad Basin in central Africa, the 2000 Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) data have been used to supplement the existing topographic data. SRTM data produce much sharper images of the region's topography and provide new insights into debates about the nature and extent of late Quaternary Lake Chad. This paper shows that the accuracy of SRTM30, the recently released 30 arc seconds topographic data from SRTM, largely surpasses that of previous global Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) available in the region. Using a GIS we identified from SRTM30 elevation data key features in the landscape topography providing further evidence for the existence of a Megalake Chad. The SRTM30 data corroborate the presence of two ancient shorelines associated with stillstands of the paleolake at the elevation of the Mayo Kebbi and Bahr el Ghazal spillovers. We found a general flattening of the topography in the region covered by Megalake Chad which is most likely the result of wave-cut action. The SRTM30 data show that the remains of the highest paleoshoreline have a constant elevation of 325 ± 5 m amsl. At its maximum extent, Megalake Chad had an area of about 340 000 km² (only 8% less than the present-day world's largest lake, the Caspian Sea). The SRTM30 data also revealed ancient drainage networks in the Sahara that lead to Megalake Chad. We compiled available 14C dates to constrain Holocene Megalake Chad events. The results presented in this paper have significant consequences for improving our knowledge of regional paleohydrology and continental climate change. This study is also the first step for a GIS-based reconstruction of late Quaternary paleohydrology in tropical Africa.

Validation of model-based estimates (synthetic estimates) of the prevalence of risk factors for coronary heart disease for wards in England

Several sets of model-based estimates (synthetic estimates) of the prevalence of risk factors for coronary heart disease for small areas in England have been developed. These have been used in policy documents to indicate which areas are in need of intervention. In general, these models have not been subjected to validity assessment. This paper describes a validity assessment of 16 sets of synthetic estimates, by comparison of the models with national, regional and local survey-based estimates, and local mortality rate estimates. Model-based estimates of the prevalence of smoking, low fruit and vegetable consumption, obesity, hypertension and raised cholesterol are found to be valid.

Synthetic studies towards anthraquinones

The oxidation of substituted phenols with phenyliodonium diacetate in methanol was found to afford 2,4-cyclohexadienones, 2,5-cyclohexadienones or mixtures of isomers depending on the substrate being oxidized. A reaction mechanism was proposed for this oxidation which involved an intermediate aryloxenium ion. A strong correlation was observed between the experimentally determined product ratios and the results predicted by calculation of the LUMO coefficients of the proposed intermediates, Annulation of these cyclohexadienones with the anion derived from cyanophthalide afforded substituted anthraquinones in high yields. The chemistry relating to the annulation of Michael acceptors with phthalide anions was comprehensively reviewed. A mild selective method for the oxidation of hydroquinones to quinones using dibenzoyl peroxide and base is presented. A general synthetic approach to C-glycosylanthraquinones was presented, based on the annulation of a C-glycosylcyclohexadienone with the anion derived from cyanophthalide, A suitable precursor to a C-glycosylcyclohexadienone, 2-(2’,3’,4’,6’-tetra-0-acetyl-|3-D-glucopyranosyl)benzyloxybenzene, was prepared via the reaction of benzoylbromoglucose with 2-benzyloxyphenylmagnesium bromide, A group of molecules were prepared by a Marschalk reaction between /ewcoquinizarin and aldehydo-sugsrs. These compounds are potential bioreductive alkylating agents in which molecular simplicity can be achieved without overly sacrificing DNA binding ability.

Over the border and under the radar : can illegal migrants be active citizens?

Active citizens can become a powerful driver of development by holding to popular account those who traditionally wield decision-making power at the local and national levels. Active citizenship draws from a long history of understanding the importance of community participation and ownership of development interventions. However, in spite of its inherent strengths, active citizenship may not be a possible (or optimal) outcome in all circumstances. This article argues for the realistic expectation of active citizenship (and indeed participation) of one specific sub-population in Thailand, where the overwhelming majority of illegal migrants (of an estimated total of 800,000-1.5 million) are Burmese. Their precarious existence as illegal migrants compounds the development needs that confront any poor community. This in turn hinders their ability to engage actively in the development process. This article reviews the lessons learned by a Thai-based NGO that has worked with illegal Burmese migrants for more than 15 years. It discusses the unique strengths and weakness of these illegal communities, whether or not it is appropriate to seek to engage them as active citizens, and the implications for NGOs working with such communities. It suggests that the unique role that NGOs must play, in cases where public participation could endanger the lives of community members, is that of advocate-guardians, whereby they assume the role of active citizen on behalf of the community in question and simultaneously provide development interventions and advocate on its behalf.

A wavelet-based ammunition Doppler radar system

Current ammunition Doppler radar systems use Fourier spectrogram for the joint time-frequency analysis (JFTA) of the radar signals. Two wavelet-based systems are presented for the JFTA of the radar signals. This research concludes that the proposed wavelet-based implementations are able to overcome this resolution limitation of the Fourier spectrogram method.