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The Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) has generated a great deal of discussion on armed humanitarian intervention in states in which human rights atrocities have been or may be occurring. In contrast, there has been little systematic analysis of the capacity-building role that the international community can play in states that struggle to provide a secure environment for populations within their borders. We have termed this international commitment to build the capacity of states to resist genocide and other mass human rights atrocities the 'Responsibility to Assist'. The international commitment given at the 2005 World Summit included helping all states live up to their obligations of human rights protection. In this chapter we examine how international and regional efforts to develop state capacity in policing (police capacity-building or 'police building') may assist a state to develop a culture of human rights protection, and thus reduce the likelihood of genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes or crimes against humanity occurring.

The Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) has generated a great deal of discussion on armed humanitarian intervention in states in which human rights atrocities have been or may be occurring. In contrast, there has been little systematic analysis of the capacity-building role that the international community can play in states that struggle to provide a secure environment for populations within their borders. We have termed this international commitment to build the capacity of states to resist genocide and other mass human rights atrocities the 'Responsibility to Assist'. The international commitment given at the 2005 World Summit included helping all states live up to their obligations of human rights protection. In this chapter we examine how international and regional efforts to develop state capacity in policing (police capacity-building or 'police building') may assist a state to develop a culture of human rights protection, and thus reduce the likelihood of genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes or crimes against humanity occurring.

All rights reserved. How to sign an electronic contract online between two parties (say Alice and Bob) in a fair manner is an interesting problem, and has been extensively studied for a long time. Optimistic Fair Exchange (OFE) is an efficient solution to it, in which a semi-trusted third party, named the arbitrator, is responsible for resolving any dispute that may arise during an exchange between Alice and Bob. Recently, several variants of OFE, such as Ambiguous OFE (AOFE) and Perfect AOFE (PAOFE), have been introduced to protect the privacy of Alice and Bob. These primitives prevent any outsider from telling which parties are involved in an exchange of digital signatures before the exchange completes. However, in PAOFE, AOFE and all the existing works on OFE, the arbitrator can always learn the signer's full signature at (or even before) the end of resolution, which is undesirable in some important applications, for example, signing a contract between two parties which do not want others to find out even when there is a dispute that needs resolution by the arbitrator. In this work, we introduce a new notion called Privacy-Preserving Optimistic Fair Exchange (P2OFE) for protecting the privacy of users, in which other than Alice and Bob, no one else including the arbitrator, can collect any evidence about an exchange between them even after the resolution of a dispute. We formally define P2OFE and present the corresponding security models and propose a concrete and efficient construction of P2OFE. We also discuss about several extensions about implementation. Our scheme is proved to be secure under the given security models based on the Strong Diffie-Helllman and Decision Linear assumptions without relying on the random oracle heuristic.

Titled UNESCO Internet Study: Privacy and Journalists' Sources, this major global research project requires the direct input of editors, journalists, publishers, media organisations and associations, policy experts, media lawyers, press freedom activists and NGOs, and public interest bloggers.

We review programs and policies to prevent children from accessing alcohol marketing online. To update the literature, we present our recent studies that assess (i) in-built barriers to underage access to alcohol brand websites and (ii) commercial internet filters. Alcohol websites typically had poor filter systems for preventing entry of underage persons; only half of the sites required the user to provide a date of birth, and none had any means of preventing users from trying again. Even the most effective commercial internet filters allowed access to one-third of the sites we examined.

Titled UNESCO Internet Study: Privacy and Journalists' Sources, this major global research project requires the direct input of editors, journalists, publishers, media organisations and associations, policy experts, media lawyers, press freedom activists and NGOs, and public interest bloggers.

Within the responsibility to protect (R2P) principle, there is an assumption that is rarely questioned. Beneath the statement that states and the international community are charged with the responsibility to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing, lies the implication that vulnerable populations cannot protect themselves. In periods of crisis, when the international community might consider mobilising a response under pillar three, this is often the case. Yet outside of such crises, when pillar one - the enduring responsibility of the state to protect its own populations - and pillar two - assistance from the international community to meet this responsibility - might be invoked in a preventive capacity, vulnerable populations may not be wholly reliant upon protection from external actors. In these circumstances, persecuted groups may actively seek to protect themselves, and may be successfully able to do so. In this paper, I challenge the current understanding of prevention within R2P as an externally imposed process, by considering how persecuted groups have themselves acted in ways that mitigate their vulnerability to mass atrocities. The paper considers a number of historical case studies in which targeted groups were able to leverage their own agency, often with assistance from others, to reduce this vulnerability. These include cases that culminated in genocide, namely the experiences of German and Austrian Jews under Nazi rule, and negative cases studies in which a demonstrable risk of mass atrocities was not realised, such as the experiences of Yemenite Jews in the first half of the twentieth century and those of the Baha'i community in Iran since the 1979 Iranian revolution. These cases suggest that assisting persecuted populations to empower themselves can be an effective way to promote resilience to mass atrocities. In the final section of the paper, I explore why this approach is often overlooked, des

This paper illustrates how high-quality preschool has the potential to serve as an intervention within normal populations. Although it is well known that targeted Early Interventions can protect the development of young children from developmental risks, there remains less evidence concerning universal preschool education. To address this disparity, a longitudinal secondary analysis was conducted that examined the psychological development of 2,862 English preschoolers between the ages of 3 to 5 years. A series of aggregated multilevel structural equation models indicated that at age 5 years, instances of significantly protected development were more strongly evidenced when examining (a) cognitive rather than social development, (b) child rather than family-level risks, and (c) the quality of the processes taking place within preschools rather than just the structures. Finally, for preschools that featured only high-quality structures, any partial protection of development was limited to instances of longer durations of child attendance.

Never Again' was the refrain that reverberated around the world in the wake of the Holocaust. Stunned by this crime of unprecedented proportions, the international community responded by codifying the crime of genocide in international law at the very first session of the new United Nations (UN) General Assesbly. Yet in six decades since the Convention on the Prevention and the Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Genocide Con- vention) was established, it has never been formally invoked to prevent or bring an end to a genocide. 'Never again' became the familiar but increas- ingly meaningless mantra of world leaders, spoken in the aftermath of each new atrocity but failing to provoke a different response to the next. Few would argue with genocide scholar Jacques Semelin's declaration that after Cambodia, Srebrenica, Rwanda and Darfur, 'the cry of "Never Again!" has become almost unbearable to hear. Yet despite - or perhaps because of - the mass atrocities that have littered the latter twentieth century, 'never again' is once again featuring prominently in international parlance. This time, it is in the context of the new principle of the 'responsibility to protect', or RtoP as it is commonly known. As the Australian representative to the UN enunciated at the General Assembly, RtoP is 'the expression of our irrevocable collective commitment to ensure that never again are we confronted with the horrors of another Rwanda or Srebrenica, Cambodia or the Holocaust'. The rhetoric is powerful, but can RtoP achieve what the Genocide Convention could not?

In Australia, and indeed across the world, the proportion of children who are overweight or obese is increasing. Almost one-quarter of school-aged children are now overweight or obese. While the causes of obesity are complex and many, children's exposure to high levels of unhealthy food marketing is one factor that affects the food and drinks that children like, ask for, buy and consume. Extensive research evidence has found that, in general, children are exposed to high levels of food marketing, most of which is for unhealthy or high fat, sugar and/or salt food and drinks. The most commonly advertised foods have been found to be sugar-sweetened breakfast cereals, savoury snacks, fast food restaurants, onfectionery and soft drinks.

This paper illustrates how high-quality preschool has the potential to serve as an intervention within normal populations. Although it is well known that targeted Early Interventions can protect the development of young children from developmental risks, there remains less evidence concerning universal preschool education. To address this disparity, a longitudinal secondary analysis was conducted that examined the psychological development of 2,862 English preschoolers between the ages of 3 to 5 years. A series of aggregated multilevel structural equation models indicated that at age 5 years, instances of significantly protected development were more strongly evidenced when examining (a) cognitive rather than social development, (b) child rather than family-level risks, and (c) the quality of the processes taking place within preschools rather than just the structures. Finally, for preschools that featured only high-quality structures, any partial protection of development was limited to instances of longer durations of child attendance.

Never Again' was the refrain that reverberated around the world in the wake of the Holocaust. Stunned by this crime of unprecedented proportions, the international community responded by codifying the crime of genocide in international law at the very first session of the new United Nations (UN) General Assesbly. Yet in six decades since the Convention on the Prevention and the Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Genocide Con- vention) was established, it has never been formally invoked to prevent or bring an end to a genocide. 'Never again' became the familiar but increas- ingly meaningless mantra of world leaders, spoken in the aftermath of each new atrocity but failing to provoke a different response to the next. Few would argue with genocide scholar Jacques Semelin's declaration that after Cambodia, Srebrenica, Rwanda and Darfur, 'the cry of "Never Again!" has become almost unbearable to hear. Yet despite - or perhaps because of - the mass atrocities that have littered the latter twentieth century, 'never again' is once again featuring prominently in international parlance. This time, it is in the context of the new principle of the 'responsibility to protect', or RtoP as it is commonly known. As the Australian representative to the UN enunciated at the General Assembly, RtoP is 'the expression of our irrevocable collective commitment to ensure that never again are we confronted with the horrors of another Rwanda or Srebrenica, Cambodia or the Holocaust'. The rhetoric is powerful, but can RtoP achieve what the Genocide Convention could not?

In Australia, and indeed across the world, the proportion of children who are overweight or obese is increasing. Almost one-quarter of school-aged children are now overweight or obese. While the causes of obesity are complex and many, children's exposure to high levels of unhealthy food marketing is one factor that affects the food and drinks that children like, ask for, buy and consume. Extensive research evidence has found that, in general, children are exposed to high levels of food marketing, most of which is for unhealthy or high fat, sugar and/or salt food and drinks. The most commonly advertised foods have been found to be sugar-sweetened breakfast cereals, savoury snacks, fast food restaurants, onfectionery and soft drinks.

It is now widely accepted that significant sea level rise is taking place and that this phenomenon is likely to accelerate in the future. This poses potentially disastrous implications for many coastal States, especially those with large and heavily populated low-lying coastal areas, as well as small low-lying island States. In addition to the essentially terrestrial, inward-looking threat posed to low-lying coastal areas and their associated populations from inundation by rising seas, threats also exist looking outward from the land to the ocean spaces adjacent to such threatened territories. In particular, sea level rise has the potential to significantly affect national claims to maritime jurisdiction all the way to the outward extent of maritime zones.

It is now widely accepted that significant sea level rise is taking place and that this phenomenon is likely to accelerate in the future. This poses potentially disastrous implications for many coastal States, especially those with large and heavily populated low-lying coastal areas, as well as small low-lying island States. In addition to the essentially terrestrial, inward-looking threat posed to low-lying coastal areas and their associated populations from inundation by rising seas, threats also exist looking outward from the land to the ocean spaces adjacent to such threatened territories. In particular, sea level rise has the potential to significantly affect national claims to maritime jurisdiction all the way to the outward extent of maritime zones.

Never Again' was the refrain that reverberated around the world in the wake of the Holocaust. Stunned by this crime of unprecedented proportions, the international community responded by codifying the crime of genocide in international law at the very first session of the new United Nations (UN) General Assesbly. Yet in six decades since the Convention on the Prevention and the Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Genocide Con- vention) was established, it has never been formally invoked to prevent or bring an end to a genocide. 'Never again' became the familiar but increas- ingly meaningless mantra of world leaders, spoken in the aftermath of each new atrocity but failing to provoke a different response to the next. Few would argue with genocide scholar Jacques Semelin's declaration that after Cambodia, Srebrenica, Rwanda and Darfur, 'the cry of "Never Again!" has become almost unbearable to hear. Yet despite - or perhaps because of - the mass atrocities that have littered the latter twentieth century, 'never again' is once again featuring prominently in international parlance. This time, it is in the context of the new principle of the 'responsibility to protect', or RtoP as it is commonly known. As the Australian representative to the UN enunciated at the General Assembly, RtoP is 'the expression of our irrevocable collective commitment to ensure that never again are we confronted with the horrors of another Rwanda or Srebrenica, Cambodia or the Holocaust'. The rhetoric is powerful, but can RtoP achieve what the Genocide Convention could not?

Autoreactive T cells play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune kidney disease. T cell vaccination (TCV)may limit autoimmune disease and induce CD8+ regulatory T cells (Tregs).We usedHeymann nephritis (HN), a ratmodel of humanmembranous nephritis, to study the effects ofTCV on autoimmune kidney disease. We harvestedCD4+ T cells fromrenal tubular antigen (Fx1A) -immunized rats and activated these cells in vitro to express theMHCClass IbmoleculeQa-1. Vaccination of Lewis ratswith these autoreactive Fx1A-induced T cells protected against HN, whereas control-primed T cells did not. Rats that underwent TCV had lower levels of proteinuria and serum creatinine and significantly less glomerulosclerosis, tubular damage, and interstitial infiltrates. Furthermore, these rats expressed less IFN-g and IL-6 in splenocytes, whereas the numbers of Tregs and the expression of Foxp3 were unchanged. In vitro cytotoxicity assays showed CD8+ T cell-mediated elimination of Qa-1–expressing CD4+ T cells. In vivo, TCV abrogated the increase inQa-1–expressing CXCR5+ TFH cells observed in HN compared with controls. Taken together, these results suggest that TCV protects against autoimmune kidney disease by targeting Qa-1–expressing autoreactive CD4+ cells.

Autoreactive T cells play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune kidney disease. T cell vaccination (TCV)may limit autoimmune disease and induce CD8+ regulatory T cells (Tregs).We usedHeymann nephritis (HN), a ratmodel of humanmembranous nephritis, to study the effects ofTCV on autoimmune kidney disease. We harvestedCD4+ T cells fromrenal tubular antigen (Fx1A) -immunized rats and activated these cells in vitro to express theMHCClass IbmoleculeQa-1. Vaccination of Lewis ratswith these autoreactive Fx1A-induced T cells protected against HN, whereas control-primed T cells did not. Rats that underwent TCV had lower levels of proteinuria and serum creatinine and significantly less glomerulosclerosis, tubular damage, and interstitial infiltrates. Furthermore, these rats expressed less IFN-g and IL-6 in splenocytes, whereas the numbers of Tregs and the expression of Foxp3 were unchanged. In vitro cytotoxicity assays showed CD8+ T cell-mediated elimination of Qa-1–expressing CD4+ T cells. In vivo, TCV abrogated the increase inQa-1–expressing CXCR5+ TFH cells observed in HN compared with controls. Taken together, these results suggest that TCV protects against autoimmune kidney disease by targeting Qa-1–expressing autoreactive CD4+ cells.

Autoreactive T cells play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune kidney disease. T cell vaccination (TCV)may limit autoimmune disease and induce CD8+ regulatory T cells (Tregs).We usedHeymann nephritis (HN), a ratmodel of humanmembranous nephritis, to study the effects ofTCV on autoimmune kidney disease. We harvestedCD4+ T cells fromrenal tubular antigen (Fx1A) -immunized rats and activated these cells in vitro to express theMHCClass IbmoleculeQa-1. Vaccination of Lewis ratswith these autoreactive Fx1A-induced T cells protected against HN, whereas control-primed T cells did not. Rats that underwent TCV had lower levels of proteinuria and serum creatinine and significantly less glomerulosclerosis, tubular damage, and interstitial infiltrates. Furthermore, these rats expressed less IFN-g and IL-6 in splenocytes, whereas the numbers of Tregs and the expression of Foxp3 were unchanged. In vitro cytotoxicity assays showed CD8+ T cell-mediated elimination of Qa-1–expressing CD4+ T cells. In vivo, TCV abrogated the increase inQa-1–expressing CXCR5+ TFH cells observed in HN compared with controls. Taken together, these results suggest that TCV protects against autoimmune kidney disease by targeting Qa-1–expressing autoreactive CD4+ cells.

Resistant starch (RS), fed as high amylose maize starch (HAMS) or butyrylated HAMS (HAMSB), opposes dietary proteininduced colonocyte DNA damage in rats. In this study, rats were fed Western-type diets moderate in fat (19%) and protein (20%) containing digestible starches [low amylose maize starch (LAMS) or low amylose whole wheat (LAW)] or RS [HAMS, HAMSB, or a whole high amylose wheat (HAW) generated by RNA interference] for 11 wk (n = 10/group). A control diet included 7% fat, 13% protein, and LAMS. Colonocyte DNA single-strand breaks (SSB) were significantly higher (by 70%) in rats fed the Western diet containing LAMS relative to controls. Dietary HAW, HAMS, and HAMSB opposed this effect while raising digesta levels of SCFA and lowering ammonia and phenol levels. SSB correlated inversely with total large bowel SCFA, including colonic butyrate concentration (R2 = 0.40; P = 0.009), and positively with colonic ammonia concentration (R2 = 0.40; P = 0.014). Analysis of gut microbiota populations using a phylogenetic microarray revealed profiles that fell into 3 distinct groups: control and LAMS; HAMS and HAMSB; and LAW and HAW. The expression of colonic genes associated with the maintenance of genomic integrity (notably Mdm2, Top1, Msh3, Ung, Rere, Cebpa, Gmnn, and Parg) was altered and varied with RS source. HAW is as effective as HAMS and HAMSB in opposing diet-induced colonic DNA damage in rats, but their effects on the large bowel microbiota and colonocyte gene expression differ, possibly due to the presence of other fiber components in HAW.

The project ‘R2P in Oceania’ is a political assessment of the impact and influence of R2P principles on the developing police forces of three states, Timor-Leste, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea (PNG). It links most strongly with the Centre’s priority concept two: supporting states to build their capacities to protect their own populations from abuses of human rights, including genocide and mass atrocities. This articulates with the Responsibility to Assist, the least studied aspect of the UNSG’s ‘Three Pillars’ Approach to R2P. Our research provides empirical findings surrounding the process of police-building in these states. It points to the critical role of CSOs in monitoring police actions, and in education the community. At the same time we have identified a need for greater involvement by CSOs in the process of police-building, in particular in drawing attention to the importance of gender mainstreaming in peace-building in post conflict societies. A key finding has been identifying the disjuncture between the international norms of UNSC Resolution 1325 and their implementation by patriarchal institutions such as police forces, especially in relation to addressing the serious social problem of sexual and gender based violence. International police-building efforts are conscious of this matter, however progress is slow. A central problem is the creation or renewal of trust in police as an institution. Progress is being made, and police in Timor-Leste and Solomon Islands are showing the effects of the large international investment. Police-building in PNG is too small to expect any outcomes, and while this remains the case the propensity for abuse of power and abuse of rights by police continues.

The project ‘R2P in Oceania’ is a political assessment of the impact and influence of R2P principles on the developing police forces of three states, Timor-Leste, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea (PNG). It links most strongly with the Centre’s priority concept two: supporting states to build their capacities to protect their own populations from abuses of human rights, including genocide and mass atrocities. This articulates with the Responsibility to Assist, the least studied aspect of the UNSG’s ‘Three Pillars’ Approach to R2P. Our research provides empirical findings surrounding the process of police-building in these states. It points to the critical role of CSOs in monitoring police actions, and in education the community. At the same time we have identified a need for greater involvement by CSOs in the process of police-building, in particular in drawing attention to the importance of gender mainstreaming in peace-building in post conflict societies. A key finding has been identifying the disjuncture between the international norms of UNSC Resolution 1325 and their implementation by patriarchal institutions such as police forces, especially in relation to addressing the serious social problem of sexual and gender based violence. International police-building efforts are conscious of this matter, however progress is slow. A central problem is the creation or renewal of trust in police as an institution. Progress is being made, and police in Timor-Leste and Solomon Islands are showing the effects of the large international investment. Police-building in PNG is too small to expect any outcomes, and while this remains the case the propensity for abuse of power and abuse of rights by police continues.

Resistant starch (RS), fed as high amylose maize starch (HAMS) or butyrylated HAMS (HAMSB), opposes dietary proteininduced colonocyte DNA damage in rats. In this study, rats were fed Western-type diets moderate in fat (19%) and protein (20%) containing digestible starches [low amylose maize starch (LAMS) or low amylose whole wheat (LAW)] or RS [HAMS, HAMSB, or a whole high amylose wheat (HAW) generated by RNA interference] for 11 wk (n = 10/group). A control diet included 7% fat, 13% protein, and LAMS. Colonocyte DNA single-strand breaks (SSB) were significantly higher (by 70%) in rats fed the Western diet containing LAMS relative to controls. Dietary HAW, HAMS, and HAMSB opposed this effect while raising digesta levels of SCFA and lowering ammonia and phenol levels. SSB correlated inversely with total large bowel SCFA, including colonic butyrate concentration (R2 = 0.40; P = 0.009), and positively with colonic ammonia concentration (R2 = 0.40; P = 0.014). Analysis of gut microbiota populations using a phylogenetic microarray revealed profiles that fell into 3 distinct groups: control and LAMS; HAMS and HAMSB; and LAW and HAW. The expression of colonic genes associated with the maintenance of genomic integrity (notably Mdm2, Top1, Msh3, Ung, Rere, Cebpa, Gmnn, and Parg) was altered and varied with RS source. HAW is as effective as HAMS and HAMSB in opposing diet-induced colonic DNA damage in rats, but their effects on the large bowel microbiota and colonocyte gene expression differ, possibly due to the presence of other fiber components in HAW.

Preventing genocide and mass atrocities is a core goal of the United Nations and the international community. As former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan stated in 2004, „There can be no more important issue, and no more binding obligation, than the prevention of genocide. Indeed, this may be considered one of the original purposes of the United Nations.‟ The importance of preventing genocide was first codified in the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and the Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, in the wake of the horrors of the Holocaust. The record of the United Nations with respect to genocide and mass atrocities, however, is widely recognised as abysmal. In the latter half of the twentieth century the UN was unable to respond effectively to genocides and mass atrocities in Cambodia, Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia. Partially in response to this failure, at the World Summit in 2005, UN Member States unanimously endorsed the Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) principle. This principle highlighted the responsibility of each nation state and the international community to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. Preventing the outbreak of such mass atrocities was recognized as a core component of RtoP. This paper explores opportunities and challenges associated with the preventive component of the RtoP principle. The first section of the paper explores the range of strategies that can be utilised for mass atrocity prevention. The second section analyses how these strategies can be utilised to maximum effect. Preventing genocide and mass atrocities is a complex and difficult challenge, but a concerted and informed approach offers real prospects for reducing the impact of this "odious scourge‟.

Laws are like sausages. It is better not to see them being made. The above aphorism, attributed to Bismarck, was quoted by Philip Ruddock when addressing lawyers in 2007 on the subject of law reform. Interestingly, Mr Ruddock also referred to the rule of law in the same speech. Apparently the juxtaposition of the rule of law with a preference for secret law-making did not strike the (then) federal Attorney-General as odd. Perhaps this is unsurprising: the rule of law is commonly invoked for effect and may be used for a multitude of purposes. For this, and other reasons, the idea is open to challenge in terms of both its value and meaning. Arguably, however, the ‘minimum content’ of the rule of law can serve as a useful framework for reflecting on the exercise of public power, notwithstanding its contested nature. This minimum content is generally understood by reference to various accepted attributes, including generality, openness, certainty, impartiality, access to the courts and so on. These characteristics overlap with, and complement, those of transparency, accountability and public participation which are central to an effective system of responsible and representative government. In this context, the rule of law may be viewed as a means of eschewing arbitrary rule and constraining the exercise of executive power.

This paper presents preliminary research about the donor aid programs that contribute to police-building in the `Arc of Responsibility' in the Pacific and Australia's `near-abroad'. It focuses on the capacity building projects that exist in Timor Leste and Solomon Islands with respect to police training. The two cases represent examples of exogenous state-building, situations in which the form and function of the state is to a great extent being dictated by outside actors. The international community provides different forms of assistance toward strengthening state capacity in the policing sector and this paper explores how police training programs and the deployment of peacekeeping police articulate with the concept of Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) as outlined in the UN Secretary General's 2009 report. This early survey forms part of a larger project that will include Papua New Guinea. One issue so far which has become apparent is that there are a range of training programs and models in place, conducted by different international actors. While the language of police training, at this stage at least, does not specifically include references to the Responsibility to Protect, there is a great deal of intersection between the basic functions of police in Protection of Civilians (POC) in state-building missions and the broader intentions of RtoP.

It is thought that recovery of marine habitats from uncontrollable disturbance may be faster inmarine reserves than in unprotected habitats. But which marine habitats should be protected, those areas at greatest risk or those at least risk? We first defined this problem mathematically for 2 alternate conservation objectives.We then analytically solved this problem for both objectives and determined under which conditions each of the different protection strategies was optimal. If the conservation objective was to maximize the chance of having at least 1 healthy site, then the best strategy was protection of the site at lowest risk. On the other hand, if the goal was to maximize the expected number of healthy sites, the optimal strategy was more complex. If protected sites were likely to spend a significant amount of time in a degraded state, then it was best to protect low-risk sites. Alternatively, if most areas were generally healthy then, counterintuitively, it was best to protect sites at higher risk. We applied these strategies to a situation of cyclone disturbance of coral reefs on Australia¿s Great Barrier Reef. With regard to the risk of cyclone disturbance, the optimal reef to protect differed dramatically, depending on the expected speed of reef recovery of both protected and unprotected reefs. An adequate consideration of risk is fundamental to all conservation actions and can indicate surprising routes to conservation success.

It is thought that recovery of marine habitats from uncontrollable disturbance may be faster inmarine reserves than in unprotected habitats. But which marine habitats should be protected, those areas at greatest risk or those at least risk? We first defined this problem mathematically for 2 alternate conservation objectives.We then analytically solved this problem for both objectives and determined under which conditions each of the different protection strategies was optimal. If the conservation objective was to maximize the chance of having at least 1 healthy site, then the best strategy was protection of the site at lowest risk. On the other hand, if the goal was to maximize the expected number of healthy sites, the optimal strategy was more complex. If protected sites were likely to spend a significant amount of time in a degraded state, then it was best to protect low-risk sites. Alternatively, if most areas were generally healthy then, counterintuitively, it was best to protect sites at higher risk. We applied these strategies to a situation of cyclone disturbance of coral reefs on Australia¿s Great Barrier Reef. With regard to the risk of cyclone disturbance, the optimal reef to protect differed dramatically, depending on the expected speed of reef recovery of both protected and unprotected reefs. An adequate consideration of risk is fundamental to all conservation actions and can indicate surprising routes to conservation success.

It is thought that recovery of marine habitats from uncontrollable disturbance may be faster inmarine reserves than in unprotected habitats. But which marine habitats should be protected, those areas at greatest risk or those at least risk? We first defined this problem mathematically for 2 alternate conservation objectives.We then analytically solved this problem for both objectives and determined under which conditions each of the different protection strategies was optimal. If the conservation objective was to maximize the chance of having at least 1 healthy site, then the best strategy was protection of the site at lowest risk. On the other hand, if the goal was to maximize the expected number of healthy sites, the optimal strategy was more complex. If protected sites were likely to spend a significant amount of time in a degraded state, then it was best to protect low-risk sites. Alternatively, if most areas were generally healthy then, counterintuitively, it was best to protect sites at higher risk. We applied these strategies to a situation of cyclone disturbance of coral reefs on Australia¿s Great Barrier Reef. With regard to the risk of cyclone disturbance, the optimal reef to protect differed dramatically, depending on the expected speed of reef recovery of both protected and unprotected reefs. An adequate consideration of risk is fundamental to all conservation actions and can indicate surprising routes to conservation success.

Aim. The effects of 24(S),25-epoxycholesterol (24,25EC) on aspects of cholesterol homeostasis is well-documented. When added to cells, 24,25EC decreases cholesterol synthesis and up-regulates cholesterol efflux genes, including ABCA1. Synthesis of 24,25EC occurs in a shunt of the mevalonate pathway which also produces cholesterol. Therefore, 24,25EC synthesis should be subject to the same negative feedback regulation as cholesterol synthesis. To date, no role has been ascribed to 24,25EC in light of the fact that increased accumulation of cholesterol should decrease formation of this oxysterol through feedback inhibition. This leads to the intriguing paradox: why inhibit production of an apparently important regulator of cholesterol homeostasis when it is needed most?. Methods. We used a combination of pharmacological and genetic approaches in Chinese Hamster Ovary cell-lines to investigate this paradox. Endogenous synthesis of 24,25EC was manipulated using partial inhibition of the enzyme, Oxidosqualene Cyclase. Changes in cholesterol and 24,25EC synthesis were determined using metabolic labelling with [1- 14C]-acetate, thin-layer chromatography and phosphorimaging. Transcriptional effects mediated via SREBP and LXR were analysed by luciferase reporter assays. Results. We showed that cholesterol addition to cells lead to a rapid and preferential inhibition of 24,25EC synthesis. Addition of 24,25EC resulted in parallel inhibition of 24,25EC and cholesterol synthesis. Furthermore, we used a variety of approaches to examine the relationship between cholesterol and 24,25EC synthesis, including cell-lines with different rates of cholesterol synthesis, varying cholesterol synthetic rates by pre-treatment with a statin, or lipoprotein cholesterol loading of macrophages. In all cases, we showed that 24,25EC synthesis faithfully tracked cholesterol synthesis. Moreover, changes in 24,25EC synthesis exerted downstream effects, reducing SREBP transcriptional activity whilst in

Aim. The effects of 24(S),25-epoxycholesterol (24,25EC) on aspects of cholesterol homeostasis is well-documented. When added to cells, 24,25EC decreases cholesterol synthesis and up-regulates cholesterol efflux genes, including ABCA1. Synthesis of 24,25EC occurs in a shunt of the mevalonate pathway which also produces cholesterol. Therefore, 24,25EC synthesis should be subject to the same negative feedback regulation as cholesterol synthesis. To date, no role has been ascribed to 24,25EC in light of the fact that increased accumulation of cholesterol should decrease formation of this oxysterol through feedback inhibition. This leads to the intriguing paradox: why inhibit production of an apparently important regulator of cholesterol homeostasis when it is needed most?. Methods. We used a combination of pharmacological and genetic approaches in Chinese Hamster Ovary cell-lines to investigate this paradox. Endogenous synthesis of 24,25EC was manipulated using partial inhibition of the enzyme, Oxidosqualene Cyclase. Changes in cholesterol and 24,25EC synthesis were determined using metabolic labelling with [1- 14C]-acetate, thin-layer chromatography and phosphorimaging. Transcriptional effects mediated via SREBP and LXR were analysed by luciferase reporter assays. Results. We showed that cholesterol addition to cells lead to a rapid and preferential inhibition of 24,25EC synthesis. Addition of 24,25EC resulted in parallel inhibition of 24,25EC and cholesterol synthesis. Furthermore, we used a variety of approaches to examine the relationship between cholesterol and 24,25EC synthesis, including cell-lines with different rates of cholesterol synthesis, varying cholesterol synthetic rates by pre-treatment with a statin, or lipoprotein cholesterol loading of macrophages. In all cases, we showed that 24,25EC synthesis faithfully tracked cholesterol synthesis. Moreover, changes in 24,25EC synthesis exerted downstream effects, reducing SREBP transcriptional activity whilst in

Aim. The effects of 24(S),25-epoxycholesterol (24,25EC) on aspects of cholesterol homeostasis is well-documented. When added to cells, 24,25EC decreases cholesterol synthesis and up-regulates cholesterol efflux genes, including ABCA1. Synthesis of 24,25EC occurs in a shunt of the mevalonate pathway which also produces cholesterol. Therefore, 24,25EC synthesis should be subject to the same negative feedback regulation as cholesterol synthesis. To date, no role has been ascribed to 24,25EC in light of the fact that increased accumulation of cholesterol should decrease formation of this oxysterol through feedback inhibition. This leads to the intriguing paradox: why inhibit production of an apparently important regulator of cholesterol homeostasis when it is needed most?. Methods. We used a combination of pharmacological and genetic approaches in Chinese Hamster Ovary cell-lines to investigate this paradox. Endogenous synthesis of 24,25EC was manipulated using partial inhibition of the enzyme, Oxidosqualene Cyclase. Changes in cholesterol and 24,25EC synthesis were determined using metabolic labelling with [1- 14C]-acetate, thin-layer chromatography and phosphorimaging. Transcriptional effects mediated via SREBP and LXR were analysed by luciferase reporter assays. Results. We showed that cholesterol addition to cells lead to a rapid and preferential inhibition of 24,25EC synthesis. Addition of 24,25EC resulted in parallel inhibition of 24,25EC and cholesterol synthesis. Furthermore, we used a variety of approaches to examine the relationship between cholesterol and 24,25EC synthesis, including cell-lines with different rates of cholesterol synthesis, varying cholesterol synthetic rates by pre-treatment with a statin, or lipoprotein cholesterol loading of macrophages. In all cases, we showed that 24,25EC synthesis faithfully tracked cholesterol synthesis. Moreover, changes in 24,25EC synthesis exerted downstream effects, reducing SREBP transcriptional activity whilst in

I. Introduction The threat of maritime terrorism has been of growing concern to the international community since the attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. This concern had already been significant due to terrorist attacks on vessels such as the American warship, the U.S.S. COLE, in October 2000 1 and grew substantially with the attack on a French-registered oil tanker, the M/V LIMBURG, in the port of Aden in October 2002. 2 Nations and individual states have asserted tremendous efforts to safeguard ships and ports, at both international and domestic levels, with a rarely seen degree of swiftness. 3 The responses to threats to shipping and ports are relatively straightforward jurisdictionally. A port is part of the sovereignty of a coastal State, and it can legislate for such an area in the same way it can protect other facilities within its territory. Similarly, a flag State retains jurisdiction over vessels it registers. 4 It can provide for on-board protection of its vessels in a fashion that is clearly within its jurisdiction. This Article will consider the jurisdictional issues surrounding a similar but distinct threat, the threat posed by the possibility of terrorist attack on submarine cables and oil and gas platforms and their related facilities, including pipelines. International law clearly provides that a coastal State can regulate matters in its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), including such platforms. However, the extent of measures a state can implement to protect such platforms and their associated facilities is undefined. ...

Aim. The effects of 24(S),25-epoxycholesterol (24,25EC) on aspects of cholesterol homeostasis is well-documented. When added to cells, 24,25EC decreases cholesterol synthesis and up-regulates cholesterol efflux genes, including ABCA1. Synthesis of 24,25EC occurs in a shunt of the mevalonate pathway which also produces cholesterol. Therefore, 24,25EC synthesis should be subject to the same negative feedback regulation as cholesterol synthesis. To date, no role has been ascribed to 24,25EC in light of the fact that increased accumulation of cholesterol should decrease formation of this oxysterol through feedback inhibition. This leads to the intriguing paradox: why inhibit production of an apparently important regulator of cholesterol homeostasis when it is needed most?. Methods. We used a combination of pharmacological and genetic approaches in Chinese Hamster Ovary cell-lines to investigate this paradox. Endogenous synthesis of 24,25EC was manipulated using partial inhibition of the enzyme, Oxidosqualene Cyclase. Changes in cholesterol and 24,25EC synthesis were determined using metabolic labelling with [1- 14C]-acetate, thin-layer chromatography and phosphorimaging. Transcriptional effects mediated via SREBP and LXR were analysed by luciferase reporter assays. Results. We showed that cholesterol addition to cells lead to a rapid and preferential inhibition of 24,25EC synthesis. Addition of 24,25EC resulted in parallel inhibition of 24,25EC and cholesterol synthesis. Furthermore, we used a variety of approaches to examine the relationship between cholesterol and 24,25EC synthesis, including cell-lines with different rates of cholesterol synthesis, varying cholesterol synthetic rates by pre-treatment with a statin, or lipoprotein cholesterol loading of macrophages. In all cases, we showed that 24,25EC synthesis faithfully tracked cholesterol synthesis. Moreover, changes in 24,25EC synthesis exerted downstream effects, reducing SREBP transcriptional activity whilst in