An Approach to Conservation and Presentation of the Terrazzo Map Pavement of the New York State Pavilion in Queens, New York

Philip Johnson\u27s New York State Pavilion, is one of the few remaining structures from the 1964-1965 World\u27s Fair in Queens New York, and retains one of its main attractions, the terrazzo map pavement depicting a 1960\u27s Texaco road map of New York State. The design for the terrazzo pavement consisted of 567 4\u27x 4\u27 terrazzo tiles, depicting all of the features found on the map including the roads, signs, bodies of water, place names, and the locations of the Texaco gas stations in the State of New York. The Pavilion was designed to showcase exhibitions about New York State, and included three observation towers, a cylindrical movie theater called the Theaterama, and the Tent of Tomorrow, where the terrazzo pavement was located. Additionally, the Theaterama showcased art work by emerging Pop Artists such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein as part of the first public, large scale exhibition of Pop Art, of which the terrazzo map pavement was and still is the largest example. Although the Pavilion and the pavement were intended to be temporary, they remain standing today in a state of deterioration, awaiting a decision regarding their future and hopefully their preservation

Is Grammar Religious Exercise? Addressing Transgender Students and the Limits of the Complicity Doctrine

May teachers reject transgender students’ names and pronouns on religious grounds? Across the United States, many schools and universities have adopted policies calling on staff to use all students’ designated first names and gender-congruent pronouns. A number of conservative Christian teachers have claimed that they cannot address transgender students in this way without violating their religious beliefs. In several cases, after unsuccessful attempts by administrators to accommodate these objections, teachers who were subject to employment consequences have brought lawsuits alleging violation of their religious liberty and free speech rights. This Note employs two recent cases to examine courts’ reasoning on the claims for religious exemption from using gender-congruent language. Typically, teachers claim that addressing transgender students according to gender identity would violate a sincere religious belief in binary, immutable sex. This Note examines these cases against the backdrop of an increasingly blurred boundary between First Amendment speech and free exercise analyses, waning concern in church-state separation by the Supreme Court, and a proliferation of religious exemptions from neutral, generally applicable laws. The religious exercise-speech blurring is part of a doctrine I term “religious exemptionalism” that diverges from traditional First Amendment jurisprudence, which distinguished between free exercise and freedom of speech claims. This Note contends that the Court has improperly mixed principles from each line of precedent, creating a “complicity of conscience zone” that extends religious exercise protections far beyond what was deemed religious conduct in the past. This expansion is possible because courts have gradually set aside any nexus inquiry for religious liberty claims, taking only minimal steps to examine the connection between an asserted religious belief and the conduct a party seeks to avoid. Courts have thus upheld religious exemptions that lack a concrete link between a plaintiff’s tenets of faith and the requirements of law. This Note places the school pronoun cases in the broader landscape of First Amendment jurisprudence, as a site of conservative Christian resistance to sexual and gender minority rights. It contends that teachers’ refusal to call transgender students by their names or refer to them with gender-congruent terms is a poor fit for the free exercise framework, because speaking to or about an individual student is not religious practice, nor does it express a specific belief. The mode of speaking to a student lacks a plausible nexus with religious beliefs about the nature of sex and gender because, grammatically, personal pronouns merely refer to other nouns, while first names are inherently individual and do not convey a speaker’s beliefs. Though courts may not evaluate the truth or content of a religious belief when they decide whether a person’s free exercise rights have been violated, this Note contends that they must evaluate whether a conflict actually exists between the sincerely held religious belief and the law or policy at issue. This Note proposes that courts revisit and strengthen the nexus inquiry in religious liberty cases by (1) evaluating whether the objected-to conduct has a concrete relationship to a claimant’s religious practice interests; (2) treating free speech claims as distinct, unrelated to the sincerity and religious nature of a claimant’s beliefs; and (3) accounting for whether the purpose of the exemption is fundamentally coercive. Part I of this Note provides historical and legal context for school pronoun cases in terms of past litigation over transgender people’s rights, the shifting balance in free exercise versus separation of church and state at the Supreme Court, and the First Amendment rights of government employees. As background for discussion of how blurring free speech and free exercise doctrines expands religious exemptionalism, it also delineates traditional interpretation of speech versus free exercise protections and the traditional distinction between expressive conduct and pure speech. Part II sketches the typical school pronoun cases and presents courts’ reasoning on free exercise claims for two illustrative cases. Subsequently, Part III contends that courts failed to adequately inquire into the nexus between teachers’ asserted religious beliefs and the exemptions they request. It explains how non-expressive speech-acts can cause concrete harm through differential treatment even when the words themselves lack an inherent message. Further, it critiques courts’ mixing religious liberty and free speech analyses, and concludes by arguing that even if misgendering were constitutionally protected, the balance of interests would weigh heavily in favor of educational institutions based on analysis of third party harms. Part IV considers the broader ramifications of blurring free speech and free exercise analyses and concomitant expansion of religious exemptions. Finally, it proposes a framework for distinguishing religious exemption claims that are properly protected from those that are not. This Note ends with remarks on the implications of religious exemptionalism and blurred free speech–free exercise analyses for minority protections, including religious interests

The Effects of Birth Order and Sibling Dynamics on the Future

This paper explores the nature versus nurture debate and its relevance to sibling dynamics. This is followed by an exploration of the relationships between birth order and sibling dynamics on future education and possible obesity development

A Study of the Synthesis of the Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework Membrane ZIF-11

With increasing energy consumption and fossil fuels being the primary energy source, there is need to invest in alternative sources of energy. Hydrogen gas (H2) is a promising possibility because it is inexhaustible, efficient, low cost, and non-polluting. One of the greatest expenses in the production of hydrogen gas is in the separation and purification process to rid H2 of any contaminants. Because of this, there is an increased interest in developing a cost-effective method to purify Hydrogen. Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework (ZIF) membranes offer great potential for energy efficient and highly effective gas separation processes. ZIFs are microporous crystal structures, belonging to the family of metal organic frameworks (MOFs), that are highly chemically and thermally stable, and have uniformly distributed and sized pores, making them ideal candidates for gas separation. Demonstration of a general method for ZIF membrane synthesis is desired. ZIF-11 membranes are produced by growing ZIF-11 crystals, synthesized by mixing zinc nitrate hexahydrate and benzimidazole in a diethylformamide solution, on α-alumina (Al2O3) supports. The process takes between 4 and 8 hours at a temperature of 100 °C. ZIF-11 crystals were synthesized in powder form and characterized using XRay diffraction (XRD). Membranes were synthesized, examined for defects using an optical microscope, and characterized by X-Ray diffraction. The results suggest that a general process for ZIF membrane synthesis has been developed, though a recipe for consistent ZIF-11 synthesis needs to be developed. Further experiments should be done to create large well-intergrown crystals on the membrane, and hydrogen gas permeation testing of ZIF-11 membranes should be investigated for eventual industrial applications

Lithospheric mantle xenoliths sampled by melts from upwelling asthenosphere: the Quaternary Tasse alkaline basalts of southeastern British Columbia, Canada

The Tasse basalts are exposed near the north shore of Quesnel Lake in southeastern British Columbia. They host a variety of mantle xenoliths consisting predominantly of spinel lherzolite with minor dunite and pyroxenite. Mineralogically, the xenoliths are composed of olivine, orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene and spinel characterized by forsterite (Fo87-93), enstatite (En90-92), diopside (En45-50-Wo40-45-Fs5), and Cr-spinel (6−11 wt. % Cr), respectively. All of the mantle xenoliths are coarse-grained and show granoblastic textures. Clinopyroxene and spinel display textural evidence for chemical reactions with percolating melts. The mantle xenoliths are characterized by restricted Mg-numbers (89−92%) and low abundances of incompatible elements (Ba=2−11 ppm; Sr=3−31 ppm) and Yttrium (1−3 ppm). On the basis of REE patterns, the xenoliths are divided into three groups reflecting the various degrees of mantle metasomatism: (1) Group 1 consists of concave-up LREE patterns (La/Smcn=0.48−1.16; Gd/Ybcn=0.71−0.92); (2) Group 2 possesses flat to moderately LREE-enriched patterns (La/Smcn=1.14−1.92; Gd/Ybcn=0.87−1.09); and (3) Group 3 is characterized by strongly LREE-enriched patterns (La/Smcn=1.53−2.45; Gd/Ybcn=1.00−1.32). On MORB-normalized trace element diagrams, the majority of the xenolith samples share the enrichment of LILE (Rb, Ba, K), U, Th, Pb, Sr and the depletion of HFSE (Nb, Ta, Ti, Y) relative to REE. These geochemical characteristics are consistent with a compositionally heterogeneous sub-continental lithospheric mantle source that originated as sub-arc mantle wedge peridotite at a convergent plate margin. The Tasse basalts have alkalic compositions characterized by low SiO2 (44−46 wt.%) and high alkali (Na2O+K2O=5.1−6.6 wt.%) contents. They are strongly enriched in incompatible elements (TiO2=2.4−3.1 wt.%; Ba=580−797 ppm; Sr=872−993 ppm) and, display OIB-like trace element patterns (La/Smn=3.15−3.85; Gd/Ybn=3.42−4.61). They have positive eNd (+3.8 to +5.5) values, with 338−426 Ma depleted mantle model ages, and display uniform OIB-like Sr (87Sr/86Sr=0.703346−0.703591) and Pb (206Pb/204Pb=19.40−19.58; 207Pb/204Pb=15.57−15.60; 208Pb/204Pb=38.99−39.14) isotopic compositions. The basalts erupted discontinuously along a \u3e1000 km long SE-NW-trending linear belt with minimal compositional variation indicative of a homogenous mantle source. The Sr−Nd−Pb isotope and trace element systematics of the alkaline basalts suggests that they originated from partial melting of an upwelling asthenospheric mantle source. Melting of the asthenospheric mantle might have stemmed from extension of the overlying lithosphere in response to the early stages of back-arc basin opening in the Omineca and Intermontane belts. Ridge subduction beneath the Canadian Cordillera might have played an important role in the weakening of the lithospheric mantle prior to its extension. Alternatively, melting of the upwelling asthenosphere in response to the delamination of the lithospheric mantle beneath the Rocky Mountain Trench might have generated the alkaline lavas

Petrology and Geochemistry of the Tasse Mantle Xenoliths of the Canadian Cordillera: A Record of Archean to Quaternary Mantle Growth, Metasomatism, Removal, and Melting

Mantle xenoliths hosted by the Quaternary Tasse alkaline basalts in the Canadian Cordillera, southeastern British Columbia, are mostly spinel lherzolite originating from subcontinental lithospheric mantle. The xenoliths contain abundant feldspar veins, melt pockets and spongy clinopyroxene, recording extensive alkaline metasomatism and partial melting. Feldspar occurs as veins and interstitial crystal in melt pockets. Melt pockets occur mainly at triple junctions, along grain boundaries, and consist mainly of olivine, cpx, opx and spinel surrounded by interstitial feldspar. The Nd, Sr and Pb isotopic compositions of the xenoliths indicate that their sources are characterized by variable mixtures of depleted MORB mantle and EM1 and EM2 mantle components. Large variations in εNd values (−8.2 to +9.6) and Nd depleted mantle model ages (TDM=66 to 3380 Ma) are consistent with multiple sources and melt extraction events, and long-term (\u3e 3300 Ma) isolation of some source regions from the convecting mantle. Samples with Archean and Paleoproterozoic Nd model ages are interpreted as either have been derived from relict Laurentian mantle pieces beneath the Cordillera or have been eroded from the root of the Laurentian craton to the east and transported to the base of the Cordilleran lithosphere by edge-driven convection currents. The oxygen isotope compositions of the xenoliths (average δ18O=+5.1 ± 0.5‰) are similar to those of depleted mantle. The average δ18O values of olivine (+5.0 ± 0.2‰), opx (+5.9 ± 0.6‰), cpx (+6.0 ± 0.6‰) and spinel (+4.5 ± 0.2‰) are similar to mantle values. Large fractionations for olivine-opx, olivine-cpx and opx-cpx pairs, however, reflect disequilibrium stemming from metasomatism and partial melting. Whole-rock trace element, Nd, Sr, Pb and O isotope compositions of the xenoliths and host alkaline basalts indicate different mantle sources for these two suites of rocks. The xenoliths were derived from shallow lithospheric sources, whereas the alkaline basalts originated from a deeper asthenospheric mantle source

Mantle structure and tectonic history of SE Asia

Seismic travel-time tomography of the mantle under SE Asia reveals patterns of subduction-related seismic P-wave velocity anomalies that are of great value in helping to understand the region's tectonic development. We discuss tomography and tectonic interpretations of an area centred on Indonesia and including Malaysia, parts of the Philippines, New Guinea and northern Australia. We begin with an explanation of seismic tomography and causes of velocity anomalies in the mantle, and discuss assessment of model quality for tomographic models created from P-wave travel times. We then introduce the global P-wave velocity anomaly model UU-P07 and the tectonic model used in this paper and give an overview of previous interpretations of mantle structure. The slab-related velocity anomalies we identify in the upper and lower mantle based on the UU-P07 model are interpreted in terms of the tectonic model and illustrated with figures and movies. Finally, we discuss where tomographic and tectonic models for SE Asia converge or diverge, and identify the most important conclusions concerning the history of the region. The tomographic images of the mantle record subduction beneath the SE Asian region to depths of approximately 1600. km. In the upper mantle anomalies mainly record subduction during the last 10 to 25. Ma, depending on the region considered. We interpret a vertical slab tear crossing the entire upper mantle north of west Sumatra where there is a strong lateral kink in slab morphology, slab holes between c.200-400. km below East Java and Sumbawa, and offer a new three-slab explanation for subduction in the North Sulawesi region. There is a different structure in the lower mantle compared to the upper mantle and the deep structure changes from west to east. What was imaged in earlier models as a broad and deep anomaly below SE Asia has a clear internal structure and we argue that many features can be identified as older subduction zones. We identify remnants of slabs that detached in the Early Miocene such as the Sula slab, now found in the lower mantle north of Lombok, and the Proto-South China Sea slab now at depths below 700. km curving from northern Borneo to the Philippines. Based on our tectonic model we interpret virtually all features seen in upper mantle and lower mantle to depths of at least 1200. km to be the result of Cenozoic subduction

Topography of the Mantle Transition Zone Discontinuities Beneath Alaska and its Geodynamic Implications: Constraints from Receiver Function Stacking

The 410 and 660 km discontinuities (d410 and d660, respectively) beneath Alaska and adjacent areas are imaged by stacking 75,296 radial receiver functions recorded by 438 broadband seismic stations with up to 30 years of recording period. When the 1-D IASP91 Earth model is used for moveout correction and time depth conversion, significant and spatially systematic variations in the apparent depths of the d410 and d660 are observed. The mean apparent depth of the d410 and d660 for the entire study area is 417 ± 12 km and 665 ± 12 km, respectively, and the mean mantle transition zone (MTZ) thickness is 248 ± 8 km which is statistically identical to the global average. For most of the areas, the undulations of the apparent depths of the d410 and d660 are highly correlated, indicating that lateral velocity variations in the upper mantle above the d410 contribute to the bulk of the observed apparent depth variations by affecting the traveltimes of the P-to-S converted phases from both discontinuities. Beneath central Alaska, a broad zone with greater than normal MTZ thicknesses and shallower than normal d410 is imaged, implying that the subducting Pacific slab has reached the MTZ and is fragmented or significantly thickened. Within the proposed Northern Cordilleran slab window, an overall thinner than normal MTZ is observed and is most likely the result of a depressed d410. This observation, when combined with results from seismic tomography investigations, may indicate advective thermal upwelling from the upper MTZ through the slab window

Local and regional strategies for rebuilding fisheries management institutions in coastal British Columbia: what components of comanagement are most critical?

Aboriginal and nonaboriginal fishing-dependent communities on the coast of British Columbia, Canada, having lost traditional fisheries management institutions along with significant fishing opportunity, are in the process of rebuilding local and regional institutions to allow their survival. Sometimes, the rebuilding effort involves the creation of largely new institutions. It can also involve the reactivation, reinvention, or repositioning of older ones. We consider the aspirations, strategies, and activities of organizations in two regions of the coast involved in two different fisheries: salmon on the north coast and intertidal clams in the Broughton Archipelago. We analyze what the two regions have in common, as well as their differences, to generate general predictions and recommendations about what preconditions appear to be necessary for success in rebuilding institutions in communities and regions at these scales and what actions are likely to be most effective, according to a body of literature on self-management and comanagement. In both cases, we found favorable conditions in the communities, the external political arena, and in government to support the rebuilding goals of the organizations working in the two regions. Although both areas would benefit from greater financial resources, the most critical need is for external support in the form of alliances, issue networks, and access to multiple sources of power

Time to HIV viral rebound and frequency of post-treatment control after analytical interruption of antiretroviral therapy: an individual data-based meta-analysis of 24 prospective studies

The only current strategy to test efficacy of novel interventions for sustained HIV control without antiretroviral therapy (ART) among people with HIV (PWH) is through an analytical treatment interruption (ATI). Inclusion of ‘placebo’ controls in ATIs poses ethical, logistical, and economic challenges. To understand viral dynamics and rates of post-treatment control (PTC) after ATI among PWH receiving either placebo or no intervention, we undertook an individual-participant data meta-analysis. In total, 24 eligible prospective studies with 382 individuals with ≥5 plasma HIV RNA viral loads (pVLs) within the first 84 days post-ATI were included. Early-ART was defined as ART initiation within 6 months of HIV acquisition; others were classified as late-ART or unknown. Median age was 42 years, 91% male, 75% white, 45% received early-ART. Median time to pVL >50, >400, and >10,000 copies/mL was 16 days (interquartile range [IQR]:13–25), 21 (IQR:15–28), and 32 (IQR:20–35), respectively. PTC defined as pVL <50 copies/mL at day 84 occurred in 4% (n = 14) of participants (6% early-ART and 1% late-ART). Sustained PTC of pVL <50 copies/ml after 84 days is rare in PWH, especially in those starting ART late. Our findings inform future interventional HIV cure/remission trials on study size and design