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Serious Questions (serious + question)
Selected AbstractsSeismic activity triggered by the 1999 Izmit earthquake and its implications for the assessment of future seismic riskGEOPHYSICAL JOURNAL INTERNATIONAL, Issue 1 2001Ali Pinar Summary A serious question has remained as to the location of the western end of the main rupture zone associated with the 1999 Izmit, Turkey, earthquake. A clear answer to this question is extremely important for the assessment of future seismic risk in the eastern Marmara Sea region, Turkey. In this paper we show an effective approach to answering this important question, unifying different kinds of information such as seismic activity, focal mechanism solutions and stress changes caused by the main shock into a clear image. We first point out that the major moment release is 1.6 × 1020 N m and covered the area between 29.7°E and 30.5°E and we then claim that the enhanced seismic activity after the main shock in the eastern Marmara Sea region should be regarded as activity triggered by the increase of stress, rather than as aftershock activity along the ruptured zone. We propose three fault segments with an average stress increase on each in the western extension of the main-shock rupture zone as potential sites for future large earthquakes, namely (i) the 50 km long Yalova,Hersek segment (0.45 MPa), (ii) the NW,SE-trending right-lateral strike-slip fault known as the Princes Islands segment (0.18 MPa), and (iii) the Çinarcik,Yalova segment (0.09 MPa) characterized by normal faulting, which was subject to rupture in 1963. [source] USE OF SOIL AND WATER PROTECTION PRACTICES AMONG FARMERS IN THE NORTH CENTRAL REGION OF THE UNITED STATES,JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION, Issue 4 2000Ted L. Napier ABSTRACT: Data were collected in the fall of 1998 and the winter of 1999 from 1,011 land owner-operators within three watersheds in the North Central Region of the United States to assess adoption of soil and water protection practices. Farm owner-operators were asked to indicate how frequently they used 18 different agricultural production practices. Many farmers within the three watersheds had adopted conservation protection practices. However, they also employed production practices that could negate many of the environmental benefits associated with conservation practices in use. Comparison of adoption behaviors used in the three watersheds revealed significant differences among the study groups. Respondents in the Iowa and Ohio watersheds reported greater use of conservation production systems than did farmers in Minnesota. However, there were no significant differences between Ohio and Iowa farmers in terms of use of conservation production practices. This was surprising, since farmers in the Ohio watershed had received massive amounts of public and private investments to motivate them to adopt and to continue using conservation production systems. These findings bring into serious question the use of traditional voluntary conservation programs such as those employed in the Ohio watershed. Study findings suggest that new policy approaches should be considered. It is argued that "whole farm planning" should be a significant component of new agricultural conservation policy. [source] FELICITOMETRY: MEASURING THE ,QUALITY' IN QUALITY OF LIFEBIOETHICS, Issue 6 2008CHARLES KOWALSKI ABSTRACT Following Bernheim,1 we examine aspects of ,felicitometrics,'2 the measurement of the ,quality' term in Quality of Life (QOL). Bernheim argued that overall QOL is best captured as the Gestalt3 of a global self-assessment and suggested that the Anamnestic Comparative Self Assessment (ACSA) approach, in which subjects' memories of the best and worst times of their lives are used to anchor a Visual Analog Scale (VAS), provided a serious answer to the serious question, ,How have you been?' Bernheim compares and contrasts the ACSA to multi-item questionnaire QOL instruments, such as the SF-36, concluding that the ACSA has a number of advantages. His discussion assumes that the use of QOL outcomes in clinical trials is both relevant and appropriate. In the present paper, we document the reasonableness of this latter assumption,4 contribute to the characterization of the similarities and differences between multi-item and individualized QOL instruments, and point to some other individualized instruments that may be used in clinical trial contexts. These ,other individualized instruments' differ from the ACSA in fundamental ways; but they are individualized in that the subject defines those areas in his/her life that are most important, and these may vary from subject-to-subject. [source] THE MISSING LINK IN GENERAL DETERRENCE RESEARCH,CRIMINOLOGY, Issue 3 2005GARY KLECK Research on the deterrent effects of punishment falls into two categories: macro-level studies of the impact of aggregate punishment levels on crime rates, and individual-level studies of the impact of perceived punishment levels on self-reported criminal behavior. For policy purposes, however, the missing link,ignored in previous research,is that between aggregate punishment levels and individual perceptions of punishment. This paper addresses whether higher actual punishment levels increase the perceived certainty, severity, or swiftness of punishment. Telephone interviews with 1,500 residents of fifty-four large urban counties were used to measure perceptions of punishment levels, which were then linked to actual punishment levels as measured in official statistics. Hierarchical linear model estimates of multivariate models generally found no detectable impact of actual punishment levels on perceptions of punishment. The findings raise serious questions about deterrence-based rationales for more punitive crime control policies. [source] A CRITICAL LOOK AT PAP ADEQUECY: ARE OUR CRITERIA SATISFACTORY?CYTOPATHOLOGY, Issue 2006D.R. Bolick Liquid based Pap (LBP) specimen adequacy is a highly documented, yet poorly understood cornerstone of our GYN cytology practice. Each day, as cytology professionals, we make adequacy assessments and seldom wonder how the criteria we use were established. Are the criteria appropriate? Are they safe? What is the scientific data that support them? Were they clinically and statistically tested or refined to achieve optimal patient care? In this presentation, we will take a fresh look at what we know about Pap specimen adequacy and challenge some of the core assumptions of our daily practice. LBP tests have a consistent, well-defined surface area for screening, facilitating the quantitative estimates of slide cellularity. This provides an unprecedented opportunity to establish reproducible adequacy standards that can be subjected to scientific scrutiny and rigorous statistical analysis. Capitalizing on this opportunity, the TBS2001 took the landmark step to define specimen adequacy quantitatively, and set the threshold for a satisfactory LBP at greater than 5,000 well visualized squamous epithelial cells. To date, few published studies have attempted to evaluate the validity or receiver operator characteristics for this threshold, define an optimal threshold for clinical utility or assess risks of detection failure in ,satisfactory' but relatively hypocellular Pap specimens. Five years of cumulative adequacy and cellularity data of prospectively collected Pap samples from the author's laboratory will be presented, which will serve as a foundation for a discussion on ,Pap failure'. A relationship between cellularity and detection of HSIL will be presented. Risk levels for Pap failure will be presented for Pap samples of different cellularities. The effect of different cellularity criterion on unsatisfactory Pap rates and Pap failure rates will be demonstrated. Results from this data set raise serious questions as to the safety of current TBS2001 adequacy guidelines and suggest that the risk of Pap failure in specimens with 5,000 to 20 000 squamous cells on the slide is significantly higher than those assumed by the current criteria. TBS2001 designated all LBP to have the same adequacy criterion. Up to this point, it has been assumed that ThinPrep, SurePath, or any other LBP would be sufficiently similar that they should have the same adequacy criteria. Data for squamous cellularity and other performance characteristics of ThinPrep and SurePath from the author's laboratory will be compared. Intriguing data involving the recently approved MonoPrep Pap Test will be reviewed. MonoPrep clinical trial data show the unexpected finding of a strong correlation between abundance of endocervical component and the detection of high-grade lesions, provoking an inquiry of a potential new role for a quantitative assessment of the transition zone component. The current science of LBP adequacy criteria is underdeveloped and does not appear to be founded on statistically valid methods. This condition calls us forward as a body of practitioners and scientists to rigorously explore, clarify and define the fundamental nature of cytology adequacy. As we forge this emerging science, we will improve diagnostic performance, guide the development of future technologies, and better serve the patients who give us their trust. Reference:, Birdsong GG: Pap smear adequacy: Is our understanding satisfactory? Diagn Cytopathol. 2001 Feb; 24(2): 79,81. [source] Tackling the Down Side: Social Capital, Women's Empowerment and Micro-Finance in CameroonDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 3 2001Linda Mayoux Micro-finance programmes are currently dominated by the ,financial self-sustainability paradigm' where women's participation in groups is promoted as a key means of increasing financial sustainability while at the same time assumed to automatically empower them. This article examines the experience of seven micro-finance programmes in Cameroon. The evidence indicates that micro-finance programmes which build social capital can indeed make a significant contribution to women's empowerment. However, serious questions need to be asked about what sorts of norms, networks and associations are to be promoted, in whose interests, and how they can best contribute to empowerment, particularly for the poorest women. Where the complexities of power relations and inequality are ignored, reliance on social capital as a mechanism for reducing programme costs may undermine programme aims not only of empowerment but also of financial sustainability and poverty targeting. [source] The psychological contract: A critical reviewINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT REVIEWS, Issue 2 2006Niall Cullinane Literature on the psychological contract has blossomed progressively over the last ten years to the extent that it is now firmly located within the lexicon of the Human Resource Management (HRM) discipline. Yet as this review indicates, the theoretical assumptions that seem to pervade the psychological contract literature are not without major deficiencies, which in turn pose serious questions around the continued sustainability of the construct as currently constituted. This paper addresses some of the central problems presently confronting the theoretical side of the psychological contract literature. In seeking to advance knowledge and understanding, this review calls for an alternative approach to studying the psychological contract on the basis of a more critical and discursive literature analysis. From this, the authors unpick the construct of the psychological contract as portrayed in much of the extant literature and argue that, in its present form, it symbolizes an ideologically biased formula designed for a particular managerialist interpretation of contemporary work and employment. [source] Globalizing Ethics: Social Technologies of Private Regulation and the South African Wine IndustryJOURNAL OF AGRARIAN CHANGE, Issue 3 2002Andries Du Toit This paper discusses of some key issues arising from South African experience of the UK-based Ethical Trading Initiative's (ETI) pilot project in the monitoring of compliance codes of conduct for product sourcing. The paper argues that the experience of ,local stakeholder participation' in the ETI's pilot project in the South African wine industry raises serious questions about the appropriateness and efficacy of ,ethical sourcing' as a vehicle for creative global,local engagement. It explores key elements of the globalizing ,technologies of ethics' deployed by projects like the ETI, and argues that these may simply normalize and regularize power relations in trade between North and South. These limitations are particularly serious in light of the course of labour market restructuring in South Africa, which has reshaped agricultural employment in ways that limit the ability of employment standards to address real difficulties faced by agricultural workers. This does not render ,ethical sourcing' irrelevant, nor does it mean that it can be read as simply securing retailer interests. It does mean, however, that a key question facing ,Southern' organizations and their allies is how to increase the scope for engagement and contestation around the implementation of such initiatives. [source] When the Levee Breaks: Treating Adolescents and Families in the Aftermath of Hurricane KatrinaJOURNAL OF MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY, Issue 2 2008Cynthia L. Rowe Hurricane Katrina brought to the surface serious questions about the capacity of the public health system to respond to community-wide disaster. The storm and its aftermath severed developmentally protective family and community ties; thus its consequences are expected to be particularly acute for vulnerable adolescents. Research confirms that teens are at risk for a range of negative outcomes under conditions of life stress and family disorganization. Specifically, the multiple interacting risk factors for substance abuse in adolescence may be compounded when families and communities have experienced a major trauma. Further, existing service structures and treatments for working with young disaster victims may not address their risk for co-occurring substance abuse and traumatic stress reactions because they tend to be individually or peer group focused, and fail to consider the multi-systemic aspects of disaster recovery. This article proposes an innovative family-based intervention for young disaster victims, based on an empirically supported model for adolescent substance abuse, Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT; Liddle, 2002). Outcomes and mechanisms of the model's effects are being investigated in a randomized clinical trial with clinically referred substance-abusing teens in a New Orleans area community impacted by Hurricane Katrina. [source] The True and the False: Pixel-Byte SyndromePEDIATRIC DERMATOLOGY, Issue 6 2001Mario Cutrone MD The possible use of retouched images for fraudulent purposes in scientific articles, posters, and conferences is not a future but a present possibility (probably already used) that poses serious questions as to the need for additional control mechanisms other than scientific peer quality review in evaluating and accepting articles. We propose the term "pixel-byte syndrome" to illustrate how easy it might be to electronically create a new syndrome for fraudulent purposes. The aim of this article is to stimulate discussion among professionals, add some examples of easy-to-realize frauds and sow the seeds of doubt in the minds of some of the referees of journal articles and the scientific secretariat of congresses in reviewing digitally retouched images. [source] The personal is political, the professional is not: Conscientious objection to obtaining/providing/acting on genetic information,AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MEDICAL GENETICS, Issue 1 2009Joel Frader Abstract Conscientious objection (CO) to genetic testing raises serious questions about what it means to be a health-care professional (HCP). Most of the discussion about CO has focused on the logic of moral arguments for and against aspects of CO and has ignored the social context in which CO occurs. Invoking CO to deny services to patients violates both the professional's duty to respect the patient's autonomy and also the community standards that determine legitimate treatment options. The HCP exercising the right of CO may make it impossible for the patient to exercise constitutionally guaranteed rights to self-determination around reproduction. This creates a decision-making imbalance between the HCP and the patient that amounts to an abuse of professional power. To prevent such abuses, professionals who wish to refrain from participating have an obligation to warn prospective patients of their objections prior to establishing a professional,patient relationship or, if a relationship already exists, to arrange for alternative care expeditiously. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Modeling and Parameter Identification of the Simultaneous Saccharification-Fermentation Process for Ethanol ProductionBIOTECHNOLOGY PROGRESS, Issue 6 2007Silvia Ochoa Despite many environmental advantages of using alcohol as a fuel, there are still serious questions about its economical feasibility when compared with oil-based fuels. The bioethanol industry needs to be more competitive, and therefore, all stages of its production process must be simple, inexpensive, efficient, and "easy" to control. In recent years, there have been significant improvements in process design, such as in the purification technologies for ethanol dehydration (molecular sieves, pressure swing adsorption, pervaporation, etc.) and in genetic modifications of microbial strains. However, a lot of research effort is still required in optimization and control, where the first step is the development of suitable models of the process, which can be used as a simulated plant, as a soft sensor or as part of the control algorithm. Thus, toward developing good, reliable, and simple but highly predictive models that can be used in the future for optimization and process control applications, in this paper an unstructured and a cybernetic model are proposed and compared for the simultaneous saccharification-fermentation process (SSF) for the production of ethanol from starch by a recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain. The cybernetic model proposed is a new one that considers the degradation of starch not only into glucose but also into dextrins (reducing sugars) and takes into account the intracellular reactions occurring inside the cells, giving a more detailed description of the process. Furthermore, an identification procedure based on the Metropolis Monte Carlo optimization method coupled with a sensitivity analysis is proposed for the identification of the modelapos;s parameters, employing experimental data reported in the literature. [source] | ||||||||||||||||