High-performance infrared filters for the HIRDLS 21-channel focal plane detector array

The High Resolution Dynamics Limb Sounder is described, with particular reference to the atmospheric measurements to be made and the rationale behind the measurement strategy. The demands this strategy places on the filters to be used in the instrument and the designs to which this leads to are described. A second set of filters at an intermediate image plane to reduce "Ghost Imaging" is discussed together with their required spectral properties. A method of combining the spectral characteristics of the primary and secondary filters in each channel are combined together with the spectral response of the detectors and other optical elements to obtain the system spectral response weighted appropriately for the Planck function and atmospheric limb absorption. This method is used to demonstrate whether the out-of-band spectral blocking requirement for a channel is being met and an example calculation is demonstrated showing how the blocking is built up for a representative channel. Finally, the techniques used to produce filters of the necessary sub-millimetre sizes together with the testing methods and procedures used to assess the environmental durability and establish space flight quality are discussed.

Local agenda 21 and planning practice: structural transformation or window dressing?

Local Agenda 21 seeks the meaningful involvement of a wide range of local groups and stakeholders in the formulation and implementation of public policy and a free flow of communication and discussion between them and their respective local authorities (and other areas and levels of decision-making). This paper explores the reality of this process using case study evidence from local planning practice in Liverpool (in the north of England) and Reading (in the south of the country). It concentrates on the interaction between LA21 groups and local planning authorities around the preparation of local land use plans and other policy initiatives and the day-to-day regulation of development permits. The paper builds on ‘New Institutionalist’ theory to explore the constraints and opportunities for significant transformations in social, political and economic ‘structures’ or ‘ways of doing things’ through the LA21 process. It concludes that the two cases provide evidence of mixed success in achieving such changes in established planning practices.

Think local, act local? Issues of co-ordination and integration in Local Agenda 21

The political response to the complex package of environmental problems which threaten the future of our planet has been to introduce a new agenda of environmental action based on the principles of sustainability and subsidiarity. This has been crystallised in world agreements signed at the Earth Summit in Rio. One of these, Agenda 21, calls for the governments and communities of the world to prepare action plans for their areas which can build consensus between the various stakeholder groups and feed the principles of sustainable development back into their policies and day-to-day practices. This paper explores the experience of Local Agenda 21 type processes at three levels in the South East of England: the regional, county (sub-regional) and local level. In particular it undertakes a critical appraisal of the success of these participatory and consensus-building exercises in developing an integrated and co-ordinated approach to environmental action planning. It concludes that, although much useful work has been done in raising awareness and modifying policy and practice, there are significant cultural and institutional barriers which are hindering progress.

Pollen-based continental climate reconstructions at 6 and 21 ka: a global synthesis

Subfossil pollen and plant macrofossil data derived from 14C-dated sediment profiles can provide quantitative information on glacial and interglacial climates. The data allow climate variables related to growing season warmth, winter cold, and plant-available moisture to be reconstructed. Continental-scale reconstructions have been made for the mid-Holocene (MH, around 6 ka) and Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, around 21 ka), allowing comparison with palaeoclimate simulations currently being carried out as part of the fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The synthesis of the available MH and LGM climate reconstructions and their uncertainties, obtained using modern analogue, regression and model-inversion techniques, is presented for four temperature variables and two moisture variables. Reconstructions of the same variables based on surface-pollen assemblages are shown to be accurate and unbiased. Reconstructed LGM and MH climate anomaly patterns are coherent, consistent between variables, and robust with respect to the choice of technique. They support a conceptual model of the controls of Late Quaternary climate change whereby the first-order effects of orbital variations and greenhouse forcing on the seasonal cycle of temperature are predictably modified by responses of the atmospheric circulation and surface energy balance.

Expression of type 1 fimbriae (SEF 21) of Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis in the early colonisation of the rat intestine

The involvement of type 1 fimbriae in colonisation of the rat gastrointestinal tract in vivo was investigated with Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis LA5 and a mutant of LA5 denoted EAV3 unable to elaborate type 1 fimbriae (SEF 21), Rats were given a single dose of LA5 or EAV3 or a 1:1 mixture of both, LA5 was found in higher numbers in the stomach and small intestine than EAV3 at 6 h after infection with a single strain, but not after 6 days, LA5 did not out-compete EAV3 when the strains were administered together. Indeed, after 6 and 21 days, EAV3 was found in the distal small intestine and large intestine in far higher numbers than LA5. These findings suggest that SEF 21 have an important role(s) in the early stages of infection in vivo, However, SEF 21 expression may disadvantage the pathogen in the longer term as indicated by EAV3 out-competing LA5 in the gut at 21 days.

Structure and stress of Re(11%21); chiral terraces at a racemic surface

The surface structure and morphology of the clean Re(11%21) surface has been investigated through combined low energy electron diffraction intensity analysis of data taken at multiple angles of incidence, scanning tunneling microscopy, and first-principles density functional calculations. The results show how this globally racemic surface terminates in two chirally distinct terraces, which show largescale out-of-plane atomic relaxations and in-plane lateral movement of the uppermost atoms. We further identify and discuss the initial stages of step bunching upon adsorption of oxygen that leads ultimately to the large-scale faceting of the surface. Finally, we present calculations of surface stress and the response to applied surface strain, which suggest routes to the exertion of control over the expression of chirality at the surface.

Climate and biome simulations for the past 21,000 years

This paper reports on a set of paleoclimate simulations for 21, 16, 14, 11 and 6 ka (thousands of years ago) carried out with the Community Climate Model, Version 1 (CCM1) of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). This climate model uses four interactive components that were not available in our previous simulations with the NCAR CCM0 (COHMAP, 1988Science, 241, 1043–1052; Wright et al., 1993Global Climate Since the Last Glocial Maximum, University of Minnesota Press, MN): soil moisture, snow hydrology, sea-ice, and mixed-layer ocean temperature. The new simulations also use new estimates of ice sheet height and size from ( Peltier 1994, Science, 265, 195–201), and synchronize the astronomically dated orbital forcing with the ice sheet and atmospheric CO2 levels corrected from radiocarbon years to calendar years. The CCM1 simulations agree with the previous simulations in their most general characteristics. The 21 ka climate is cold and dry, in response to the presence of the ice sheets and lowered CO2 levels. The period 14–6 ka has strengthened northern summer monsoons and warm mid-latitude continental interiors in response to orbital changes. Regional differences between the CCM1 and CCM0 simulations can be traced to the effects of either the new interactive model components or the new boundary conditions. CCM1 simulates climate processes more realistically, but has additional degrees of freedom that can allow the model to ‘drift’ toward less realistic solutions in some instances. The CCM1 simulations are expressed in terms of equilibrium vegetation using BIOME 1, and indicate large shifts in biomes. Northern tundra and forest biomes are displaced southward at glacial maximum and subtropical deserts contract in the mid-Holocene when monsoons strengthen. These vegetation changes could, if simulated interactively, introduce additional climate feedbacks. The total area of vegetated land remains nearly constant through time because the exposure of continental shelves with lowered sea level largely compensates for the land covered by the expanded ice sheets.

Clinical evaluation and COL2A1 gene analysis in 21 Brazilian families with Stickler syndrome: Identification of novel mutations, further genotype/phenotype correlation, and its implications for the diagnosis

We present clinical and molecular evaluation from a large cohort of patients with Stickler syndrome: 78 individuals from 21 unrelated Brazilian families. The patients were selected in a Hospital with a craniofacial dysmorphology assistance service and clinical diagnosis was based on the presence of cleft palate associated to facial and ocular anomalies of Stickler syndrome. Analysis of COL2A1 gene revealed 9 novel and 4 previously described pathogenic mutations. Except for the mutation c.556G>T (p.Gly186X), all the others were located in the triple helical domain. We did not find genotype/phenotype correlation in relation to type and position of the mutation in the triple helical domain. However, a significantly higher proportion of myopia in patients with mutations located in this domain was observed in relation to those with the mutation in the non-tripe helical domain (c.556G>T; P < 0.04). A trend towards a higher prevalence of glaucoma, although not statistically significant, was observed in the presence of the mutation c.556G>T. It is possible. that this mutation alters the splicing of the mRNA instead of only creating a premature stop codon and therefore it can lead to protein products of different ocular effects. One novel DNA variation (c.1266+7G>C) occurs near a splice site and it was observed to co-segregate with the phenotype in one of the two families with this DNA variation. As in silico analysis predicted that the c.1266+7G>C DNA variation can affect the efficiency of the splicing, we still cannot rule it out as non-pathogenic. Our study also showed that ascertainment through cleft palate associated to other craniofacial signs can be very efficient for identification of Stickler syndrome patients. Still, high frequency of familial cases and high frequency of underdevelopment of distal lateral tibial epiphyses observed in our patients suggested that the inclusion of this information can improve the clinical diagnosis of Stickler syndrome. (C) 2008 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Complement 4 phenotypes and genotypes in Brazilian patients with classical 21-hydroxylase deficiency

The aim of this work was to analyse C4 genotypes, C4 protein levels, phenotypes and genotypes in patients with the classical form of 21-hydroxylase deficiency. Fifty-four patients from 46 families (36 female, 18 male; mean age 10.8 years) with different clinical manifestations (31 salt-wasting; 23 simple-virilizing) were studied. Taq I Southern blotting was used to perform molecular analysis of the C4/CYP21 gene cluster and the genotypes were defined according to gene organization within RCCX modules. Serum C4 isotypes were assayed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The results revealed 12 different haplotypes of the C4/CYP21 gene cluster. Total functional activity of the classical pathway (CH50) was reduced in individuals carrying different genotypes because of low C4 concentrations (43% of all patients) to complete or partial C4 allotype deficiency. Thirteen of 54 patients presented recurrent infections affecting the respiratory and/or the urinary tracts, none of them with severe infections. Low C4A or C4B correlated well with RCCX monomodular gene organization, but no association between C4 haplotypes and recurrent infections or autoimmunity was observed. Considering this redundant gene cluster, C4 seems to be a well-protected gene segment along the evolutionary process.

Korslagde armar och tomma kassakistor : Avdelning 332 vid Grycksbo Pappersbruk och storstrejken 1909

Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka hur en fackförening på en liten ort i Dalarna upplevt den stora arbetsmarknadskonflikt hösten 1909, känd som storstrejken. Hur dess medlemmar upplevde de påfrestningar de drabbades av och hur de klarade strejken och dess följder. Materialet består av mötesprotokoll från avdelningen samt den korrespondens som förekom mellan fackföreningen och förbundsledningen, och LO:s landssekretariat. I centrum för undersökningen står den under 1907 startade fackföreningen vid J.H. Munktells pappersbruk AB i Grycksbo, avdelning 332, tillhörande Grov- och Fabriksarbetarförbundet. Resultatet av undersökningen visar att fackföreningen kände en mycket begränsad entusiasm för storstrejken, beroende på dålig ekonomi och bristande tilltro till den egna förmågan. Vid strejkens början gick fackföreningen lojalt ut i strejk. Den fortsatta utvecklingen ledde till den inte ovanliga bilden med blockad och fridlysning av arbetsplatsen, strejkbryteri och ett med tiden ökande antal arbetare som gav upp strejken och sitt fackliga engagemang. För några få arbetare blev konsekvensen avsked. För fackföreningen blev konsekvensen ett drastiskt minskande medlemsantal.

Problemlösning i matematiken : Vad har 21 lärare för syn på problemlösning inom matematiken?

Syftet med studien var att undersöka hur ett antal grundskolelärare beskriver sin egen undervisning i matematik och hur de arbetar med problemlösning i matematik. Forskningsfrågan som jag formulerade för att nå mitt syfte var: Vad har lärarna för erfarenheter och inställning till matematik och vilket tillvägagångssätt använder de för att nå eleverna med problemlösning? För att få svar på min forskningsfråga valde jag en hermeneutisk metod då jag arbetade med enkäter och intervjuer. Datainsamlingsmetoden var dels 21 enkätsvar och dels 5 intervjuer med verksamma matematiklärare. I studien skildras hur mina informanter beskriver sin undervisning i matematik och hur de arbetar med problemlösning. Läromedlet styr ofta undervisningen men alla arbetar bredvid läromedlet på olika sätt, bland annat genom problemlösning. Kommunikation mellan lärare och elever samt mellan elever och elever är något som genomsyrar hela denna studie. Ett resultat av studien är att elever via matematiska problem lär sig för livet. I vardagen löser både elever och vuxna människor vardagliga problem och matematiska problem ger eleven metoder för att finna lösning på ett problem även om det inte har med matematik att göra. Många av informanterna hänvisade också till läroplanen och kursplanen där det faktiskt står att elever skall lösa problem för att fungera som individer i det samhälle vi lever i. Mina informanters syn på problemlösning stämmer väl överens med vad som står i gällande styrdokument. Enligt informanterna är det är väldigt flexibelt hur man kan undervisa i problemlösning även om tillvägagångssätten ofta liknar varandra. Allt från att arbeta enskilt till klassvis förekom och infallsvinklarna för att finna problemlösning var många. Läromedel, internetsidor och arbetsmaterial från många olika håll användes för att arbeta med problemlösning.