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Enormous Challenges (enormous + challenge)
Selected AbstractsMolecular versatility of antibodiesIMMUNOLOGICAL REVIEWS, Issue 1 2002Henry Metzger Summary: As immunology developed into a discrete discipline, the principal experimental efforts were directed towards uncovering the molecular basis of the specificity exhibited by antibodies and the mechanism by which antigens induced their production. Less attention was given to how antibodies carry out some of their effector functions, although this subject presents an interesting protein-chemical and evolutionary problem; that is, how does a family of proteins that can bind a virtually infinite variety of ligands, many of which the species producing that protein has never encountered, reproducibly initiate an appropriate response? The experimental data persuasively suggested that aggregation of the antibody was a necessary and likely sufficient initiating event, but this only begged the question: how does aggregation induce a response? I used the IgE:mast cell system as a paradigm to investigate this subject. Data from our own group and from many others led to a molecular model that appears to explain how a cell ,senses' that antigen has reacted with the IgE. The model is directly applicable to one of the fundamental questions cited above, i.e. the mechanism by which antigens induce the production of antibodies. Although the model is conceptually simple, incorporating the actual molecular events into a quantitatively accurate scheme represents an enormous challenge. [source] Studying the Polarized PresidencyPRESIDENTIAL STUDIES QUARTERLY, Issue 4 2002Charles M. Cameron For reasons that political scientists do not fully understand, American political elites are now more ideologically polarized than they have been since the end of World War I. This polarization,in combination with the rise of divided party government,has sweeping implications for the presidency. No aspect of executive-legislative relations is untouched. But also deeply affected are relations with the media, with thejudiciary, with the bureaucracy, and even the organization of the president's own staff. Presidential scholars are just beginning to grasp these changes. We face an enormous challenge but also a remarkable opportunity. The polarized presidency makes us confront a broader range of the institution's possibilities,and those of American democracy. [source] Management tools for the evaluation of compliance and costs in the production of chemical,pharmaceutical companiesQUALITY ASSURANCE JOURNAL, Issue 3 2005Franziska Rank Abstract Due to the stringent and increasingly demanding Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and customer requirements, companies within the chemical,pharmaceutical sector share the enormous challenge of evaluating and measuring compliance and costs. The need for implementing a compliance measuring tool for production was identified within the Schering AG and activities were undertaken. The established compliance evaluation system and the first model for a compliance cost system proved to be well-structured and suitable for the production. Consequently, the systems can be adapted by other areas and chemical,pharmaceutical companies and may even be expanded to other areas, such as Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) and Good Clinical Practice (GCP). Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Reproductive ecology of DrosophilaFUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY, Issue 5 2008T. A. Markow Summary 1Species of the genus Drosophila reproduce in a wide range of different resources, including fruits, sap, flowers, mushrooms and cacti. Drosophila species and their resources also exhibit considerable variability in geographic distribution. 2Habitat and resource differences pose enormous challenges for Drosophila species. Host chemistry may include highly toxic compounds and breeding sites may be characterized by extreme abiotic conditions such as high and/or low temperature and humidity. 3Drosophila reproductive biology, in terms of morphology, physiology, and behaviour, is as variable among Drosophila species as is their resource use. In some species, adults are ready to reproduce upon emergence, whereas one sex or the other in other species may require weeks to become sexually mature. 4Already a robust system for transmission and population genetic studies, the sequencing of the genomes of 12 diverse Drosophila species now brings the power of genomics to investigators wishing to understand the functional aspects of Drosophila ecology [source] Introduction: Why Reflect Collectively on Capacities for Change?,IDS BULLETIN, Issue 3 2010Peter Clarke ,Capacity development' implies a promise of growing self-reliance, national ownership and sustainability, yet practice seems consistently to fall short of this emancipatory promise. This introduction argues for a reframing of capacity development for emancipatory social change. Articles in this IDS Bulletin show how understanding and practice must engage with complexity, appreciate the importance of specific culture and context, and continually address the role of power in shaping relationships, understandings and practices. Values and leadership are fundamental drivers of capacity development processes. This IDS Bulletin argues against a deficit approach based on linear causal logic and replicable ,best practice'. Instead, practitioners are encouraged to develop a detailed understanding of the culture and dynamics of specific contexts, to detect energies for positive change and work to connect and facilitate them. Learning is at the centre of the approach. Capacity development is understood as a collective process of learning in action for social change. Support for capacity development processes demands a critical development practice that implies mutual learning, with an emphasis on reflective and experiential approaches. However, this reframing implies enormous challenges for development practice, and therefore considerable personal and organisational commitment. [source] Asthma in Latin America: a public heath challenge and research opportunityALLERGY, Issue 1 2009P. J. Cooper ,Asthma has emerged as an important public health problem in many Latin American countries over the past decade. In Brazil and Costa Rica, the prevalence of asthma and associated morbidity is as great or greater as reported in traditional high prevalence countries such as the US, but remains neglected as a public health priority. Asthma in Latin America is associated particularly with underprivileged populations living in cities but remains relatively rare in many rural populations. The causes of asthma in Latin America are likely to be associated with urbanization, migration, and the adoption of a modern ,Westernized' lifestyle and environmental changes that follow these processes that include changes in diet, physical activity, hygiene, and exposures to allergens, irritants, and outdoor and indoor pollutants. Because of the enormous social, genetic, and environmental contrasts within and between Latin American countries, and the large differences in prevalence associated with these differences, the investigation of asthma in Latin America provides important research opportunities to identify the social and biological mechanisms that underlie asthma development. Asthma in Latin America poses enormous challenges for health policy makers, health services, and researchers to respond to and alleviate the growing burden of asthma disability, particularly among marginalized urban populations. [source] Strengthening democratic governance of the security sector in conflict-affected countries,PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION & DEVELOPMENT, Issue 1 2005Nicole Ball Security for people, communities and states is essential for sustainable development, democratisation and conflict mitigation. Politicised, badly managed or ineffective security bodies and justice systems often create instability and insecurity, largely due to the lack of effective democratic systems. Strengthening democratic security-sector governance after conflict presents enormous challenges, particularly: (1) developing and implementing a legal framework consistent with international law and democratic practice; (2) developing effective, well-functioning civil management and oversight bodies; (3) developing viable, accountable and affordable security forces; (4) ensuring that the institutional culture of the security forces supports the legal framework, international law, good democratic practice and civil management and oversight bodies. Addressing these challenges requires professional security forces, capable civil authorities, rule of law and regional approaches. Reform activities should be guided by local ownership, sensitivity to the politics of reform, local capacity, local context and a comprehensive sector-wide framework. Local stakeholders must make hard decisions about priorities on the availability of domestic resources available and the costs and benefits of accepting external assistance. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | |||||||||||||