Contemporary Politics in the Middle East (Cambridge: Polity, 2011 – third edition)

The third edition of this dynamic book has been fully revised and updated to provide a comprehensive introduction to contemporary politics in the Middle East. Purposefully employing a clear thematic structure and including a wide range of case studies, data, visuals and further reading guidance the book explores and analyses the major issues which define the politics of this region of the globe.
Milton-Edwards begins by introducing and explaining key concepts and debates and goes on to outline the impact of colonialism and its legacy, the rise of Arab nationalism and anti-colonial politics. She then examines major political issues affecting the region, such as American foreign policy, political Islam, war and conflict, political economy, democratization, ethnicity and the role of women. The book concludes by highlighting the politics of the region in the twenty-first century and the future challenges it faces. This is a perfect introduction for undergraduates, covering key political, economic and social debates and providing updates and guidance for further reading.

"The genius of this book is that it integrates together the different themes which run through Middle Eastern politics. The coherence of the approach which the author has adopted is indicated by the manner in which she has updated the work in this second edition. Despite the substantial changes which the East has undergone since 9/11 and the 2003 Gulf War, the original line of analysis retains all its force. It remains a key reference for all those who are seeking to understand the region's politics, whether undergraduates, postgraduates or lay readers."
Tim Niblock, Exeter University
"I welcome the new edition of this comprehensive guide to the politics of such an important region of the world. It combines sensible generalizations with useful case studies of particularly important subjects. It is a must for all those who want to understand the complex politics of the modern Middle East."
Roger Owen, Harvard University
"Beverley Milton-Edwards has produced an excellent book, which is both wide-ranging in its coverage and punchy in its arguments. As such, its functions are dual. It works well as a text book, introducing the general reader to key themes in the contemporary region, from oil politics to ethnicity, to women and nationalism. But it also works as a running commentary on key debates, such as the rile of colonialism and the relationship between Islam and democracy. In short, this is a book with attitude."
Philip Robins, St Antony's College, Oxford

Perception de la force musculaire et de la distribution du poids lors d’activités motrices chez le sujet sain

Les résultats de récentes études supportent l’idée que la perception de la force aurait un rôle important dans la réalisation des tâches fonctionnelles telles que le passage assis à debout (PAD). Cependant, très peu d’études se sont attardées à quantifier la précision avec laquelle les individus en santé sont capables de percevoir la force musculaire. De plus, aucune étude n’a évalué la perception de la distribution du poids lors du PAD chez la clientèle saine. L’objectif principal était de recueillir des données sur la capacité des individus en santé, jeunes et âgés, à percevoir la force musculaire lors d’une contraction statique des extenseurs du genou et à percevoir la distribution du poids (DP) lorsqu’ils réalisent le passage assis à debout. Cette étude a été effectuée auprès de 31 individus, divisés en deux groupes d’âge (< 50 ans et > 60 ans). Les résultats du premier objectif visant à quantifier les erreurs de perception de la force lors d’une contraction statique des extenseurs du genou ont démontré que les erreurs absolues et brutes sont plus élevées pour les niveaux de force supérieurs à 50 % CVM et que les erreurs brutes sont plus importantes chez les jeunes pour les hauts niveaux de force. Les résultats du second objectif visant à évaluer l’effet de différentes références sensorimotrices sur les erreurs de perception de la force musculaire ont montré qu’une référence à 50 % CVM préalablement montrée au participant et qu’une contraction simultanée des muscles de la préhension de la main diminuent les erreurs brutes et absolues de perception pour le niveau de force 70%. Les résultats du troisième objectif visant à quantifier les erreurs de perception de la DP lors du PAD ont démontré que les sujets jeunes et âgés ont une bonne capacité à percevoir leur DP avec des erreurs absolues et brutes variant respectivement entre 2,9 % et 9,4 % et entre -5,7 % et 5,7 % et des coefficients de corrélations intra-classes supérieurs à 0,75 entre la DP produite et celle perçue. Les résultats contribuent à approfondir les connaissances relatives à la perception de la force et de la DP chez les individus en santé. Ces données pourront servir à titre comparatif lors d’études menées auprès des patients hémiparétiques afin d’évaluer s’ils ont des problèmes perceptifs pouvant expliquer l’asymétrie récurrente qu’ils présentent dans leurs tâches fonctionnelles.

Paix soutenable : rapports de force et affaiblissement des extrémistes en Angola, en Colombie, au Salvador et au Mozambique de 1989 à 1999

Thèse numérisée par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

The calculation of force constants and normal coordinates III: constrained force fields for the methyl halides

A method is discussed for imposing any desired constraint on the force field obtained in a force constant refinement calculation. The application of this method to force constant refinement calculations for the methyl halide molecules is reported. All available data on the vibration frequencies, Coriolis interaction constants and centrifugal stretching constants of CH3X and CD3X molecules were used in the refinements, but despite this apparent abundance of data it was found that constraints were necessary in order to obtain a unique solution to the force field. The results of unconstrained calculations, and of three different constrained calculations, are reported in this paper. The constrained models reported are a Urey—Bradley force field, a modified valence force field, and a constraint based on orbital-following bond-hybridization arguments developed in the following paper. The results are discussed, and compared with previous results for these molecules. The third of the above models is found to reproduce the observed data better than either of the first two, and additional reasons are given for preferring this solution to the force field for the methyl halide molecules.

Phase-Locked Loop design applied to frequency-modulated atomic force microscope

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Air Force web-based preventive health assessement alcohol screening effectiveness using the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Tool (AUDIT)

Alcohol consumption has a long-standing tradition in the United States Air Force (USAF). From squadron bars to officers and enlisted clubs, alcohol has been used in social settings to increase morale and also as a way to help decrease the stress of military operations. Surveys have demonstrated that the USAF has more than double the percentage of heavy drinkers than the US population. More than one-third of the Air Force reports binge drinking in the last month while only six percent of the nation reports the same consumption pattern.^ However, alcohol has a significant harmful health effect if consumed in excess. As part of an overall prevention and treatment program aimed at curbing the harmful effects of alcohol consumption, the USAF uses the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) to screen for high-risk alcohol consumption patterns before alcohol disorder and disability occur. All Air Force active-duty members are required to complete a yearly Preventive Health Assessment questionnaire. Various health topics are included in this questionnaire including nutrition, exercise, tobacco use, family history, mental health and alcohol use. While this questionnaire has been available in a web-based format for several years, mandatory use was not implemented until 2009.^ Although the AUDIT was selected due to its effectiveness in assessing high-risk alcohol consumption in other populations, its effectiveness in the Air Force population had not been studied previously. In order to assess the sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value of this screening tool, the Air Force Web-based Preventive Health Assessment alcohol screening results were compared to whether any alcohol-related diagnosis was made from January 1, 2009 to March 31, 2010.^ While the AUDIT has previously been shown to have a high sensitivity and specificity, the Air Force screening values were 27.9% and 93.0% respectively. Positive predictive value was only 4.9%. With the screening statistics found, less than one-third of those having an alcohol disorder will be found with this screening tool and only 1 out of 20 Airmen who require further evaluation actually have an alcohol-related diagnosis.^

Heritable, population-wide damage to cells as the driving force of neoplastic transformation.

Prolonged incubation of NIH 3T3 cells under the growth constraint of confluence results in the death of some cells in a manner suggestive of apoptosis. Successive rounds of prolonged incubation at confluence of the surviving cells produce increasing neoplastic transformation in the form of increments in saturation density and transformed focus formation. Cells from the postconfluent cultures are given a recovery period of various lengths to remove the direct inhibitory effect of confluence before their growth properties are studied. It is found that with each round of confluence the exponential growth rate of the cells at low densities gets lower and the size of isolated colonies of the same cells shows a similar progressive reduction. The decreased growth rate of cells from the third round of confluence persists for > 60 generations of growth at low density. The proportion of colonies containing giant cells is much higher after a 2-day recovery from confluence than after a 7-day recovery. Retardation of growth at low density and increased saturation density appear to be two sides of the same coin: both occur in the entire population of cells and precede the formation of transformed foci. We propose that the slowdown in growth and the formation of giant cells result from heritable damage to the cells, which in turn drives their transformation. Similar results have been reported for the survivors of x-irradiation and of treatment with chemical carcinogens and are associated with the aging process in animals. We suggest that these changes result from free radical damage to membrane lipids with particular damage to lysosomes. Proteases and nucleases would then be released to progressively modify the growth behavior and genetic stability of the cells toward autonomous proliferation.

Department of Defense appropriations for 1974 : hearings before a subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations, House of Representatives, Ninety-third congress, first session /

Individual volumes have their own indexes.

Extended nonlinear analytical models of compliant parallelogram mechanisms: third-order models

This paper proposes extended nonlinear analytical models, third-order models, of compliant parallelogram mechanisms. These models are capable of capturing the accurate effects from the very large axial force within the transverse motion range of 10% of the beam length through incorporating the terms associated with the high-order (up to third-order) axial force. Firstly, the free-body diagram method is employed to derive the nonlinear analytical model for a basic compliant parallelogram mechanism based on load-displacement relations of a single beam, geometry compatibility conditions, and load-equilibrium conditions. The procedures for the forward solutions and inverse solutions are described. Nonlinear analytical models for guided compliant multi-beam parallelogram mechanisms are then obtained. A case study of the compound compliant parallelogram mechanism, composed of two basic compliant parallelogram mechanisms in symmetry, is further implemented. This work intends to estimate the internal axial force change, the transverse force change, and the transverse stiffness change with the transverse motion using the proposed third-order model in comparison with the first-order model proposed in the prior art. In addition, FEA (finite element analysis) results validate the accuracy of the third-order model for a typical example. It is shown that in the case study the slenderness ratio affects the result discrepancy between the third-order model and the first-order model significantly, and the third-order model can illustrate a non-monotonic transverse stiffness curve if the beam is thin enough.

Sustaining a Relationship : Insights from Canada on Linking the Government and Third Sector (Working Paper 1)

The embedding of third sector organisations in the policy world is fraught with tensions. Accountability and autonomy become oppositional forces causing an uneasy relationship. Government agencies are concerned that their equity and efficiency goals and objectives be met when they enter partnerships with the third sector for the delivery of programs and services. Third sector agencies question the impact of accountability mechanisms on their independence and identities. Even if the relationship between government and third sector agencies seems to be based on cooperation, concerns about cooptation (for nonprofits) and capturing (for governments) may linger calling the legitimacy of the partnership into question. Two means of improving the relationship between the governing and third sectors have been proposed recently in Canada by the Panel on Accountability and Governance in the Voluntary Sector (PAGVS) and the Joint Tables sponsored by the Voluntary Sector Task Force (VSTF). The two endeavours represent a historic undertaking in Canada aimed at improving and facilitating the relationship between the federal government and the nonprofit sector. The reports borrow on other country models but offer new insights into mediating the relationship, including new models for a regulatory body and a charity compact for Canada. Do these recommendations adequately address concerns of autonomy, accountability and cooptation or capturing? The Canadian reports do offer new insights into resolving the four tensions inherent in partnerships between the governing and third sector but also raise important questions about the nature of these relationships and the evolution of democracy within the Canadian political system.

THE EFFECTS OF MODELING INSTRUCTION ON STUDENT LEARNING OF A NEWTONIAN FORCE CONCEPT

This study explores the effects of modeling instruction on student learning in physics. Multiple representations grounded in physical contexts were employed by students to analyze the results of inquiry lab investigations. Class whiteboard discussions geared toward a class consensus following Socratic dialogue were implemented throughout the modeling cycle. Lab investigations designed to address student preconceptions related to Newton’s Third Law were implemented. Student achievement was measured based on normalized gains on the Force Concept Inventory. Normalized FCI gains achieved by students in this study were comparable to those achieved by students of other novice modelers. Physics students who had taken a modeling Intro to Physics course scored significantly higher on the FCI posttest than those who had not. The FCI results also provided insight into deeply rooted student preconceptions related to Newton’s Third Law. Implications for instruction and the design of lab investigations related to Newton’s Third Law are discussed.