MARYLAND\u27S NEXT SMART GROWTH INITIATIVE: THE NEXT STEPS

This article discusses Maryland\u27s Smart Growth and Neighborhood Conservation Initiative, the nation\u27s first statewide, incentive-based program to reduce the impact of urban sprawl. It has been used as a model by other states and espouses the notions that no growth is bad and the economy and environment are intertwined. Maryland attempts to change the bottom line of development decisions by making it more attractive and less costly to build in designated growth areas. The article identifies the next steps in Maryland\u27s Smart Growth initiative and concludes that Maryland and the United States must be successful in these and similar efforts to avoid a future of environmental and economic harm as a result of sprawl

F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies Are Failing in America, 2005

Examines national and state obesity rates and government policies. Challenges the research community to focus on major research questions to inform policy decisions, and policymakers to pursue actions to combat the obesity crisis

Static Pairwise Annihilation in Complex Networks

We study static annihilation on complex networks, in which pairs of connected particles annihilate at a constant rate during time. Through a mean-field formalism, we compute the temporal evolution of the distribution of surviving sites with an arbitrary number of connections. This general formalism, which is exact for disordered networks, is applied to Kronecker, Erd\"os-R\'enyi (i.e. Poisson) and scale-free networks. We compare our theoretical results with extensive numerical simulations obtaining excellent agreement. Although the mean-field approach applies in an exact way neither to ordered lattices nor to small-world networks, it qualitatively describes the annihilation dynamics in such structures. Our results indicate that the higher the connectivity of a given network element, the faster it annihilates. This fact has dramatic consequences in scale-free networks, for which, once the ``hubs'' have been annihilated, the network disintegrates and only isolated sites are left.Comment: 7 Figures, 10 page

Constraining uncertainty in aerosol direct forcing

The uncertainty in present-day anthropogenic forcing is dominated by uncertainty in the strength of the contribution from aerosol. Much of the uncertainty in the direct aerosol forcing can be attributed to uncertainty in the anthropogenic fraction of aerosol in the present-day atmosphere, due to a lack of historical observations. Here we present a robust relationship between total present-day aerosol optical depth and the anthropogenic contribution across three multi-model ensembles and a large single-model perturbed parameter ensemble. Using observations of aerosol optical depth, we determine a reduced likely range of the anthropogenic component and hence a reduced uncertainty in the direct forcing of aerosol

Elevated expression of artemis in human fibroblast cells is associated with cellular radiosensitivity and increased apoptosis

Copyright @ 2012 Nature Publishing GroupThis article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.Background: The objective of this study was to determine the molecular mechanism(s) responsible for cellular radiosensitivity in two human fibroblast cell lines 84BR and 175BR derived from two cancer patients. Methods: Clonogenic assays were performed following exposure to increasing doses of gamma radiation to confirm radiosensitivity. γ-H2AX foci assays were used to determine the efficiency of DNA double strand break (DSB) repair in cells. Quantitative-PCR (Q-PCR) established the expression levels of key DNA DSB repair proteins. Imaging flow cytometry using Annexin V-FITC was used to compare artemis expression and apoptosis in cells. Results: Clonogenic cellular hypersensitivity in the 84BR and 175BR cell lines was associated with a defect in DNA DSB repair measured by the γ-H2AX foci assay. Q-PCR analysis and imaging flow cytometry revealed a two-fold overexpression of the artemis DNA repair gene which was associated with an increased level of apoptosis in the cells before and after radiation exposure. Over-expression of normal artemis protein in a normal immortalised fibroblast cell line NB1-Tert resulted in increased radiosensitivity and apoptosis. Conclusion: We conclude elevated expression of artemis is associated with higher levels of DNA DSB, radiosensitivity and elevated apoptosis in two radio-hypersensitive cell lines. These data reveal a potentially novel mechanism responsible for radiosensitivity and show that increased artemis expression in cells can result in either radiation resistance or enhanced sensitivity.This work was supported in part by The Vidal Sassoon Foundation USA. This article is made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund

Structure, magnetic and transport properties of Ti-substituted La0.7Sr0.3MnO3

Ti-substituted perovskites, La0.7Sr0.3Mn1-xTixO3, with x between 0 to 0.20, were investigated by neutron diffraction, magnetization, electric resistivity, and magnetoresistance (MR) measurements. All samples show a rhombohedral structure (space group R3c) from 10 K to room temperature. At room temperature, the cell parameters a, c and the unit cell volume increase with increasing Ti content. However, at 10 K, the cell parameter a has a maximum value for x = 0.10, and decreases for x greater than 0.10, while the unit cell volume remains nearly constant for x greater than 0.10. The average (Mn,Ti)-O bond length increases up to x=0.15, and the (Mn,Ti)-O-(Mn,Ti) bond angle decreases with increasing Ti content to its minimum value at x=0.15 at room temperature. Below the Curie temperature T_C, the resistance exhibits metallic behavior for the x _ 0.05 samples. A metal (semiconductor) to insulator transition is observed for the x_ 0.10 samples. A peak in resistivity appears below T_C for all samples, and shifts to a lower temperature as x increases. The substitution of Mn by Ti decreases the 2p-3d hybridization between O and Mn ions, reduces the bandwidth W, and increases the electron-phonon coupling. Therefore, the TC shifts to a lower temperature and the resistivity increases with increasing Ti content. A field-induced shift of the resistivity maximum occurs at x less than or equal to 0.10. The maximum MR effect is about 70% for La0.7Sr0.3Mn0.8Ti0.2O3. The separation of TC and the resistivity maximum temperature Tmax enhances the MR effect in these compounds due to the weak coupling between the magnetic ordering and the resistivity as compared with La0.7Sr0.3MnO3.Comment: zip fil

Classical motion in force fields with short range correlations

We study the long time motion of fast particles moving through time-dependent random force fields with correlations that decay rapidly in space, but not necessarily in time. The time dependence of the averaged kinetic energy and mean-squared displacement is shown to exhibit a large degree of universality; it depends only on whether the force is, or is not, a gradient vector field. When it is, p^{2}(t) ~ t^{2/5} independently of the details of the potential and of the space dimension. Motion is then superballistic in one dimension, with q^{2}(t) ~ t^{12/5}, and ballistic in higher dimensions, with q^{2}(t) ~ t^{2}. These predictions are supported by numerical results in one and two dimensions. For force fields not obtained from a potential field, the power laws are different: p^{2}(t) ~ t^{2/3} and q^{2}(t) ~ t^{8/3} in all dimensions d\geq 1

The Development and Application of the Coping with Bullying Scale for Children

The Multidimensional Model for Coping with Bullying (MMCB; Parris, in development) was conceptualized based on a literature review of coping with bullying and by combining relevant aspects of previous models. Strategies were described based on their focus (problem-focused vs. emotion-focused) and orientation (avoidance, approach – self, approach – situation). The MMCB provided the framework for the development of the Coping with Bullying Scale for Children (CBSC; Parris et al., 2011), which was administered as part of a research project in an urban, southeastern school district. The Student Survey of Bullying Behaviors – Revised 2 (SSBB-R2; Varjas et al., 2008) and the Behavior Assessment System for Children, 2nd Edition (BASC-2; Kamphaus & Reynolds, 2004) also were completed. The first research aim was to examine the factor structure of the CBSC in relation to the MMCB and investigate the relationship between coping style and student outcomes of depression, anxiety, and social stress. This study also examined the relationships between coping, victimization, and student engagement in bullying behavior, as well as the moderating effect of age, gender, and ethnicity on these relationships. The fourth research question was is there a relationship between student coping with bullying and their perceptions of control or self-reliance? Data analysis resulted in a four factor coping structure: constructive, externalizing, cognitive distancing, and self-blame. Externalizing coping was found to be a predictor of depression while constructive and self-blame coping was associated with more social stress. Self-blame also predicted higher rates of anxiety. Results indicated that more frequent victimization predicted the use of constructive and self-blame strategies, while students more often engaged in bullying behaviors indicated a higher use of externalizing and self-blame. Gender, age, and ethnicity were not found to be associated with levels of victimization, bullying behaviors, or the use of any of the four types of coping. Further, these demographic variables did not moderate the relationship between victimization and coping or bullying and coping. Finally, feelings of control were not associated with student coping; however, more self-reliance was predictive of constructive coping, cognitive distancing, and self-blame. Implications for future research and interventions for students involved in bullying are discussed

Physical and Mental Health Interventions in a Rural, School-Based Setting: A comparative analysis of academic performance, behavioral outcomes, and attendance

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine the differences in academic achievement, behavioral health outcomes and attendance in poor, rural children receiving physical and mental health services regularly as opposed to those children not receiving the intervention. The intervention was a school-based health and mental health clinic located on the school’s campus. This study was analyzed by providing descriptive information for several variables including the number of suspensions per year, number of times corporal punishment was used as a means of correction, educational outcomes, total number of clinic visits per year, attendance percentages per year, and number of teacher and parent referrals to the school clinic. Data for this study were presented in multiple charts and graphs and schools are compared using descriptive information. The results suggested that as the number of clinic visits increased across the three year period, the numbers of, and rates of, corporal punishment in the clinic school decreased. In contrast, the available data suggested that across the first two years the numbers of, and rates of, corporal punishment increased in the control school. Further, in the majority of subject areas, the percentage of students’ proficiency levels in the clinic school increased across time and the percentages exceeded these in the control school. These findings were consistent with the hypotheses that there will be improvements in the behavioral outcomes associated with the presence of the clinic in the school. Unfortunately there were not enough data to conduct a test of statistical significance of the differences between schools for the third year