National Nature Research Articles

JAMES D. DRAKE. The Nation's Nature: How Continental Presumptions Gave Rise to the United States of America.

JAMES D. DRAKE. The Nation's Nature: How Continental Presumptions Gave Rise to the United States of America.

The Nation's Nature: How Continental Presumptions Gave Rise to the United States of America

The Nation's Nature: How Continental Presumptions Gave Rise to the United States of America

Developing Links Despite the Parties – Parliament and Citizens in Portugal

This article reviews the historical and institutional context of the Portuguese parliament and its consequences in shaping its relationship with citizens. This explains the heavily party-based representative mandate, as well as its national nature. Not only do parties mediate the relationship between parliament and citizens, but also constituencies have had little meaning in the Portuguese constitutional framework. Still, the article shows that the relationship between parliament and citizens has deepened over the last decade. In particular, the parliament has opened up considerably, namely through public engagement activities and new media. The article also dedicates a considerable part to petitions, as these have become an important mechanism for Portuguese citizens to engage with parliament.

The Nation's Nature: How Continental Presumptions Gave Rise to the United States of America. By James D. Drake (Charlottesville, University of Virginia Press, 2011) 416 pp. $39.50

<i>The Nation's Nature: How Continental Presumptions Gave Rise to the United States of America.</i> By James D. Drake (Charlottesville, University of Virginia Press, 2011) 416 pp. $39.50

Defining the Borders of the Political Community: Constitutional Visions of the Nation

The nature of the political community is mainly an unexplained presupposition in constitutional reasoning. Some constitutions allow for different visions and the constitutional or supreme courts have to choose; other constitutions suggest very specific ones, but even in these cases, interpretation can change one vision into another one. Before we go into detail about the constitutional consequences of the different visions, we should, however, clarify the general political and social nature of this debate so we can see the actual stakes at issue. This is especially necessary as lawyers often tend to refer in their reasoning to social facts as obvious truths (or just presuppose them without mentioning them explicitly) even if these are based on outdated sociological, psychological or historical knowledge. As is often the case in legal scholarship, issues also become the most interesting here when the expertise of lawyers ends. When we talk about the borders of the political community, an additional problem appears: the emotional-political or ideological preferences play an even bigger role than usual, to which general phenomenon the motto of this paper also refers (lawyers like to sell these ideological preferences as purely legal-conceptual questions to conceal their actual influence on their constitutional reasoning). These constitutional issues are often partially decided by judges in courts or by legally minded politicians in parliaments or ministries. This article attempts to be a guide for them and for those outsiders who try to understand (or criticise) them. As it is impossible to talk meaningfully about the constitutional concept of the nation without some historical, sociological and political science knowledge, in the first part of the article we are going to see how the nation as a political and social phenomenon evolved. Those who are familiar with these issues can skip the first part and begin directly with the second part, where we are going to analyse the constitutional visions of the (often just implied) borders of the political community. After discussing borderline cases and secession from this perspective, the article closes by looking at the possible future scenarios faced by the European Union as to the constitutional vision of its national nature.

The effects of acoustic power and exposure time on the hyperecho in ultrasound images at 55 °C using MRI and US guided HIFU in a bovine liver specimen

Ex vivo bovine liver specimens were exposed to the MRI-guided HIFU with the focusing depth of 15 mm in the specimens and various acoustic power (50 W, 100 W, 150 W, 200 W, 250 W and 300 W). Our interest was focused on a case of 55° C in situ temperature. The temperature in situ was monitored via the T-map of MRI. The exposure time needed to reach 55° C in the focus for a acoustic power was recorded. The same procedure was repeated to new but similar bovine liver exposed to the US-guided HIFU with the same sonication parameters. The procedure was also monitored by a passive cavitation detection system. The results showed to reach 55° C in situ the exposure time decreased with the increase of acoustic power. The coagulative necrosis occurred when the acoustic power was 50 W, but no hyperecho in US images and half harmonic emission were found. The coagulative necrosis, hyperechoic US images and half harmonic emissions were observed when the acoustic power was 100 W or greater. At 55° C, since no boiling bubbles occurred, therefore we concluded that the hyperecho in US images were caused by acoustic cavitation whose occurrence is determined by the applied acoustic power. Keywords: MRI-guided HIFU, US-guided HIFU, Coagulative necrosis, hyperecho, Acoustic cavitation This work was supported by National Nature and Science Foundation of China (No. 30830040, 30970827)

THE UNBEARABLE LIGHTNESS OF DIASPORIC SIKH NATIONALISM! FROM ANGUISHED CRIES OF ‘KHALISTAN’ TO PLEAS FOR ‘RECOGNITION’

This paper explores the nature of the diasporic Sikh nationalism in the post-1984 period. Generally labelled as a movement for an independent Sikh state, Khalistan, overseas Sikhs’ reaction was a highly emotional demonstration of anger and protest at the desecration of the Golden Temple in Amritsar – the holiest shrine of the Sikhs. While it seems certain that most Sikhs were suddenly made aware of the lack of state power, the strategy and ideas advocated by various Sikh leaders and their organizations did not produce a sustainable movement. The paper discusses reasons why such a widespread and shared diasporic nationalist movement failed to generate ideas and appropriate strategies for statehood and instead subsided with pleas for recognition.

The nation's nature: how continental presumptions gave rise to the United States of America

In one of Common Sense's most ringing phrases, Thomas Paine declared it absurd for continent to be perpetually governed by an island. Such powerful words, coupled with powerful ideas, helped spur the United States to independence.In The Nation's Nature, James D. Drake examines how a relatively small number of inhabitants of the Americas, huddled along North America's east coast, came to mentally appropriate the entire continent and to think of their nation as America. Drake demonstrates how British North American colonists' participation in scientific debates and imperial contests shaped their notions of global geography. These ideas, in turn, solidified American nationalism, spurred a revolution, and shaped the ratification of the Constitution.Winner of the Walker Cowen Memorial Prize for an outstanding work of scholarship in eighteenth century studies

Вильнюсский вопрос в международных отношениях: историография проблемы

This article considers certain historiographical aspects of the Vilnius issue as an international problem. The author analyses the origins of the Polish-Lithuanian conflict, the role of struggle for Vilnius in the general context of Polish-Lithuanian confrontation, and the origin and nature of Lithuanian nationalism. The article also examines historiographical perspectives on the seizure of Vilnius by the troops of the Polish general, L. Żeligowsky, and the international consequences of the violation of the Suwalki Agreement. The author pays special attention to the positions of western powers, the decision of the Conference of Ambassadors on March 15, 1923, and the mediation of the League of Nations in the territorial dispute between Lithuania and Poland. The article considers the existing historiographical concepts and evaluations of the role of Soviet diplomacy in the Vilnius issue. The author identifies new trends in the contemporary historiography of the Vilnius problem.

Conservative corporatist: Nationalist thoughts of aristocrats: The ideas of Soetatmo Soeriokoesoemo and Noto Soeroto

Javanese nationalism was one of the earliest nationalist thoughts to have arisen in the colony. It later bifurcated into two discourses: a leftist-inspired, revolutionary minded nationalism and a conservative, aristocratic-based Javanese nationalism based on the idea of cultural rejuvenation. Indonesian nationalism was a composite of a variety of nationalist discourses that appeared in the early twentieth century, yet present day nationalist historiography dismisses and camouflaged the influence of the conservative, feudal-minded discourse of Javanese aristocratic nationalists. The paper looks into the thoughts of two aristocratic conservative, Soetatmo Soeriokoesoemo and Noto Soeroto, and highlight the major thoughts within the conservative discourse. It points to the possible conservative origin of some of the components that represent present-day Indonesian nationalism and stress the need to understand further the intertwined and trans-ideological nature of Indonesian nationalism.

Trust Your Senses? War, Memory, and the Racist Nervous System

ABSTRACTThe article begins with a rereading of the wartime essays of Virginia Woolf and George Orwell on the nature and affects of aerial bombing. In each case it is argued that the experience of being bombed reveals something about the nature of nationalism and the education of the senses. It is suggested that Britain can be conceived as both a bombed and a bombing culture. An account of the relationship between colonial power and bombing is presented through a review of the work of critical war historians. In addition, a brief discussion is included of the historical amnesia regarding the role of colonial soldiers in the Second World War. It is suggested that contemporary debates about nationalism and racism would benefit from being informed by analytical conversations between militarism, formations of nationalism, and the issue of contemporary multiculturalism. The article develops the notion of the racist nervous systems as an analytical metaphor which foregrounds the affective qualities of racism. The article ends with a discussion of the relationship between these processes and multiculturalism, the “war on terror” and the role of the British army—many of whose recruits continue to come from Commonwealth countries—in global counterinsurgency.

National Nature Through the Windshield: Edwin Way Teale's American Seasons

Literature has for more than a century been Americans' primary means of informal education about nature, and Edwin Way Teale's four books on the seasons, published between 1951 and 1965, constituted a high point in that period. With their immense popularity and rapid eclipse by environmentalism, they offer a window on postwar views and experiences and also show continuity and change in perspectives across the environmental divide. Literature still served as an inducement to conservation and still used natural history to organize experience in nature and reflections on its meaning. It discarded, though, the objective, detached narrators of Teale's generation, focused less on wild nature and more on humans in nature, and with global warming and biodiversity loss is taking on new themes and even new forms.

Point Zero Nation Formation for Black Americans

There is only one sizeable internationally recognized displaced group that is not already linked to land to which it has a claim: e.g., the Romani people of Europe (Gypsies). History reveals that an important goal for displaced groups is to identify a homeland and to establish a nation state. While nation formation is a very distant or nonexistent thought for Black Americans today, a series of events could unfold that precipitate nation formation efforts similar to those mounted by the Jews in founding Israel. An analytical starting point for entertaining Black American nation formation is to ask, (1) “What circumstances would motivate Black Americans to form a separate nation?” (2) “How has statehood been achieved, and how relevant would the Jewish experience be for Black Americans? (3) What special methods, tools, and resources are required to initiate an economy from point zero? (4) What should be the nature of the new Black American nation’s economy? (5) What would be the primary moves of the strategic games that Black Americans would encounter as they seek to establish their new nation? And (6) What are the benefits of Black American nation formation? This essay answers the six foregoing and ancillary questions, and it may serve as a reference point for Black Americans and other groups that find it necessary to undertake point zero nation formation at some point in the future.

Die Identifikation internationaler Konjunkturzyklen in disaggregierten Daten: Deutschland, Frankreich und Großbritannien, 1862-1913

Abstract This article analyzes international business cycles in Europe 1862-1913 using disaggregated data and Dynamic Factor Analysis. It is important to know if crises are of national or international nature in order to correctly understand their causes and develop adequate solutions to prevent future crises. In comparison with estimates of real national product there is more evidence for international business cycles in disaggregated data of Germany, France and Great Britain before World War I. This is because data used to construct historical national accounts are often not sufficient, and especially because little is known about general price fluctuations. Thus, national products in current prices show higher degrees of international correlation than deflated ones although price indices themselves are not very well correlated across countries.

Abstract 2885: The NCI-Nature Pathway Interaction Database: A comprehensive resource for cell signaling information

Abstract The NCI-Nature Pathway Interaction Database (PID, http://pid.nci.nih.gov) is a freely available collection of professionally curated and expert-reviewed signaling and regulatory pathways composed of human molecular interactions and cellular processes extracted from the primary literature. As of November 2010, the database contains 116 pathways and networks encompassing 7810 interactions, 3531 proteins, 137 small molecules, 3101 complexes, 5930 peer-reviewed publications and more than 10500 uses of evidence codes, and includes recent additions to the Notch and Wnt pathways along with the AP1 network. Created in a collaboration between the U.S. National Cancer Institute and Nature Publishing Group, the PID offers a range of tools to facilitate pathway exploration. Users can browse pathways and create network maps based on molecule or biological process queries; interactive network maps are displayed in JPG, SVG and Silverlight formats. The Batch query tool allows users to overlay molecule lists, such as those derived from microarray data, onto pathways. Users can also download a list of references used to create the pathway, pathway molecule lists, and complete database content in extensible markup language (XML) or Biological Pathways Exchange (BioPAX) Level 2 or Level 3 formats. The database is updated every month and supplemented by a concise editorial section that provides synopses of recent noteworthy papers in cell signaling and specially commissioned articles on the practical uses of other relevant Biomedical Informatics tools. Users can sign up for email alerts or RSS feeds to receive database content updates. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2885. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-2885

Albert Russell ('Bert') Main 1919 - 2009

Bert Main (1919?2009)was recognized both nationally and internationally as one of Australia's leading zoologists and a gifted naturalist. His research and ecological teaching on a wide variety of animals, including frogs, reptiles, birds, insects and marsupials, laid the foundations for three generations of graduate students who were inspired by his imagination and biological insight. His foresight and energy as an administrator on government bodies also led to the creation of some of Western Australia's most important National Parks and Nature Reserves that are vital for the preservation of Australia's rich biodiversity and form part of his enduring legacy.

Let’s Leave the Bias to the Mainstream Media: A Wikipedia Community Fighting for Information Neutrality

Let’s Leave the Bias to the Mainstream Media: A Wikipedia Community Fighting for Information Neutrality

The political leadership factor in the Spanish Local Elections

The present research looks at personal following and voting in the Spanish local elections held in 2007. In doing so, the study addresses three principal questions, each focusing on a different dimension of the effects of political leadership on local voting. These are: What is the relative impact of leadership evaluation vis-à-vis other contingent and structural factors of a local, regional and national nature? What is the relative impact of the local party leaders vis-à-vis the leaders of the national and regional party strata? and Do leadership evaluations count differently for voters politically identified with particular parties?&#x0D; &#x0D; KEYWORDS: • political leadership • local elections • political parties • democracy • Spain

Abstract LB-130: The NCI-Nature Pathway Interaction Database: A cell signaling resource

Abstract The NCI-Nature Pathway Interaction Database (PID, http://pid.nci.nih.gov) is a freely available collection of professionally curated and expert-reviewed signaling and regulatory pathways composed of human molecular interactions, signaling events and cellular processes extracted from primary literature. Pathways selected for curation are based on potential drug targets, suggestions made by our users and reviewers, and other prominent cell signaling molecules. As of February 2010, the database contains 106 pathways encompassing 6696 interactions, 3231 proteins, 142 small molecules, 2622 complexes and 4843 peer-reviewed publications, and includes recent additions to both the p53 and EGFR pathways. Created in a collaboration between the U.S. National Cancer Institute and Nature Publishing Group, the PID is aimed at researchers interested in cell signaling pathways, such as molecular cell biologists, and bioinformaticians. The database offers a range of tools to facilitate pathway exploration. Users can browse the pre-defined set of pathways and create network maps centered on a single molecule or biological process of interest. The Batch query tool allows users to upload molecule lists, such as those derived from microarray data, and visualize the resulting molecular connectivity map. In addition, users can download lists of proteins, references used to create the pathway and complete database content in extensible markup language (XML) or Biological Pathways Exchange (BioPAX) format. The database is updated every month and supplemented by a concise editorial section that provides synopses of recent noteworthy papers in cell signaling and specially commissioned articles on the practical uses of other relevant Bioinformatics tools. Users can sign up for email alerts or RSS feeds to receive database updates. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-130.

Nature Trails: The Production of Instructive Landscapes in Britain, 1960–72

AbstractThis paper examines the introduction of a novel and modern form of natural history education in Britain in the 1960s, the nature trail. The rise in the number of nature reserves owned by county conservation trusts and the Nature Conservancy after the Second World War raised the issue of how they might best be used by members of the public. Reserves were initially seen by many as places from which the public should be excluded. The American concept of Nature Trails was introduced by a powerful group of nature conservationists to raise the profile of nature conservation and educate people. The role of the two National Nature Weeks of 1963 and 1966 is examined. The paper concludes with a detailed case study of the planning and management of the nature trail at East Wretham Heath, Norfolk.