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The Muon Spectrometer of the ATLAS detector at the LHC is designed to provide high quality stand-alone muon identification, momentum measurement and trigger capabilities with high pseudorapidity coverage. Precision tracking at the inner-most station in the high pseudorapidity regions, 2.0 < [absolute value of [eta]] < 2.7, is performed by 16 four-layered Cathode Strip Chambers on each endcap. These are multi-wire proportional chambers with segmented cathodes providing excellent spatial resolution and high counting rate capability. The second cathode of each layer is coarsely segmented, providing the transverse coordinate. The detector level performance of the system is presented. The installation and commissioning effort for the Cathode Strip Chambers is described. Finally, the in situ performance is briefly discussed. Index Terms--ATLAS, cathode strip chamber, commissioning, LHC, muon spectrometer.

Species across the tree of life can switch between asexual and sexual reproduction. In facultatively sexual species, the ability to switch between reproductive modes is often environmentally dependent and subject to local adaptation. However, the ecological and evolutionary factors that influence the maintenance and turnover of polymorphism associated with facultative sex remain unclear. We studied the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of reproductive investment in the facultatively sexual model species, Daphnia pulex. We found that patterns of clonal diversity, but not genetic diversity varied among ponds consistent with the predicted relationship between ephemerality and clonal structure. Reconstruction of a multi-year pedigree demonstrated the coexistence of clones that differ in their investment into male production. Mapping of quantitative variation in male production using lab-generated and field-collected individuals identified multiple putative quantitative trait loci (QTL) underlying this trait, and we identified a plausible candidate gene. The evolutionary history of these QTL suggests that they are relatively young, and male limitation in this system is a rapidly evolving trait. Our work highlights the dynamic nature of the genetic structure and composition of facultative sex across space and time and suggests that quantitative genetic variation in reproductive strategy can undergo rapid evolutionary turnover. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To purchase or authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.2008.00381.x Byline: Kevin Coe (1), David Tewksbury (1), Bradley J. Bond (1), Kristin L. Drogos (1), Robert W. Porter (1), Ashley Yahn (1), Yuanyuan Zhang (1) Abstract: Two trends have marked the development of U.S. cable television news in recent years: a blurring of hard and soft news and an increase in overt partisanship. This paper reports the results of 2 studies that provide insight into the nature and impact of these trends. The first study analyzes national survey data to identify the factors that lead political partisans to choose particular cable television news networks and programs. The second study employs experimental methods to demonstrate how viewers' partisan leanings influence their perceptions of content from CNN, Fox News, and The Daily Show. We found evidence of a relative hostile media phenomenon, in which partisans perceive more bias in programs that do not align with their own political perspective. Furthermore, the results indicate that partisanship informs viewers' perceptions of news content as interesting and informative. Abstract (French) Resume Nouvelles hostiles: Les perceptions et usages partisans de la programmation des bulletins d'informations cables Ces dernieres annees, le developpement des informations televisees cablees aux Etats-Unis a ete marque par deux tendances: la difference entre nouvelles chaudes et froides est de plus en plus brouillee et la partisanerie de plus en plus manifeste. Cet article rend compte des resultats de deux etudes qui donnent un apercu de la nature et de l'impact de ces tendances. La premiere etude analyse des donnees d'enquete nationale afin d'identifier les facteurs qui menent des partisans politiques a choisir des emissions et des reseaux particuliers d'informations televisees cablees. La deuxieme etude emploie des methodes experimentales afin de demontrer la maniere dont les penchants partisans des telespectateurs influencent leurs perceptions des contenus de CNN, Fox News et The Daily Show. Nous constatons un phenomene de relative hostilite mediatique, ou les partisans percoivent plus de biais dans les emissions qui ne s'alignent pas sur leurs propres idees politiques. De plus, les resultats indiquent que la partisanerie influence les telespectateurs dans leurs perceptions du contenu des informations comme etant interessant et informatif. Abstract (German): Abstract Feindliche Nachrichten: Voreingenommene Nutzung und Wahrnehmung von Kabelnachrichtenprogrammen Die Entwicklung der U.S. Kabelfernsehnachrichten ist in letzter Zeit von zwei Trends gekennzeichnet: zum einen von einer Vermischung von harten und weichen Nachrichten und zum anderen von einer Zunahme offenkundiger Parteilichkeit. Dieser Artikel dokumentiert die Ergebnisse zweier Studien, die Erkenntnisse uber die Natur und den Einfluss dieser Trends bieten. Auf Basis nationaler Umfragedaten identifiziert die erste Studie Faktoren, die politische Anhanger dazu bewegen, bestimmte Kabelfernsehnachrichtennetworks oder -programme zu wahlen. Die zweite Studie nutzt empirische Methoden, um darzustellen, wie die Parteipraferenzen der Zuschauer ihre Wahrnehmung der Inhalte von CNN, Fox News und The Daily Show beeinflussen. Die Ergebnisse bestatigen die Vermutung eines relativen feindlichen Medien-Phanomens, da Parteianhanger haufiger eine tendenzielle Berichterstattung in solchen Programmen wahrnehmen, die nicht mit ihrer eigenen politischen Uberzeugung ubereinstimmen. Au[sz]erdem zeigen die Studien, dass eine Parteipraferenz die Wahrnehmung der Zuschauer dahingehend beeinflusst, dass Nachrichteninhalte als interessant und informativ wahrgenommen werden. Abstract (Spanish): Resumen Noticias Hostiles: El Uso Partidario y las Percepciones de la Programacion de Noticias por Cable Dos tendencias han marcado el desarrollo de las noticias de la television por cable en los EE.UU. en anos recientes: una mezcla de noticias duras y suaves, y un incremento abierto de lo partidario. Este articulo reporta los resultados de dos estudios los cuales proveen de entendimiento sobre la naturaleza y el impacto de estas tendencias. El primer estudio analiza los datos de una encuesta nacional que identifica los factores que llevan a los partidarios politicos a elegir particulares redes de noticias y programas de television por cable. El segundo estudio emplea metodos experimentales para demostrar como las inclinaciones de los partidarios televidentes influyen sobre las percepciones de contenido de CNN, Fox News, y The Daily Show. Encontramos evidencia de un fenomeno de hostilidad mediatica relativa, en el cual los partidarios percibian mas prejuicios en los programas que no se alineaban con sus propias perspectivas politicas. Mas aun, los resultados indican que lo partidario informa a las percepciones de los televidentes sobre el contenido de las noticias como interesante e informativo. Author Affiliation: (1)Department of Speech Communication, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801 Article note: Kevin Coe; e-mail: kmcoe2@uiuc.edu

This paper discusses the contrasting perspectives of academic prose versus grant writing, and lists strategies grant specialists can use to help researchers break old habits and replace them with techniques better suited to the world of competitive grant proposals., Introduction When they are new to the grant game, even scholars with fine publishing records can struggle with proposal writing. Many are surprised to find that the writing style that [...]

A detailed analysis of operation and a basic design procedure for a new high-frequency (HF) resonant-converter technology with phase-shifted regulation is presented. The new HF resonant technology has a good potential to be a cost-effective solution for the voltage regulation modules (VRMs) for the next generations of microprocessor systems. The new HF resonant technology is employed in the development of a 1.8-MHz, 48-V, 130-W (0.95-1.7 V, 100 A) VRM. Experimental results are provided. Index Terms--High-frequency (HF), phase-shifted regulations, resonant converter, voltage regulation modules (VRMs).

Limited submission grant programs force a sensitive gatekeeper role squarely on research administration. By limiting the number of proposals that an institution may submit in response to a program announcement, sponsors (both governmental and private) are, in effect, pushing down to the universities the initial triage of competitive vs. non-competitive grant proposals, thus reducing their own workloads to a considerable degree. At the other end, research administrators can view this role either as an onerous but necessary task, or they can seize opportunities tar constructive communications, proposal improvements, and faculty development. This paper describes a process at Virginia Tech that aims at the latter approach, using ten rules for managing limited submission programs., Introduction With sponsor budgets flattening as universities ramp up their research agendas, intensified competition has become the norm. In 2003 NSF underwent a near budget freeze, while the number of [...]

Review panels determine the success or failure of most proposals, and writers are well advised to polish their prose in a manner that will win their approval. Indeed, many successful proposal writers count their service on review panels among the most powerful learning experiences in their own research careers. Information on how review panels work is abundant, but little has been written on the personal perspectives of reviewers--the critical factors that lead to their support or rejection of any given proposal, how they view the strengths and weaknesses of the peer review system and whether serving on panels has shaped their own proposal writing strategies. This paper presents the findings of interviews with sixteen senior Virginia Tech faculty with extensive experience on review panels. Most participants strongly endorsed the peer review system, though reservations were expressed concerning its administrative complexities and the difficulties in assigning proposals to reviewers with appropriate expertise. The paper concludes with reviewers' recommendations to improve the overall system., Background It can be argued that most research administrators owe their jobs to a key power group in academe: grant reviewers. These folks are the gatekeepers who decide who will [...]

With pressure mounting to increase extramural funding, new faculty become increasingly important to the overall effort, as tiffs group has the greatest potential to add to the university's future crop of award winners. Ominously, evidence shows that those who fail to establish effective habits of research and writing early in their careers probably never will. The challenge new faculty present to research administration can be simply put: What is the best means to get them started on their research careers? This paper describes an approach led by the grants office that uses specially designed workshops to demystify sponsored research, build collegiality among new faculty and their more experienced colleagues, and stimulate greater participation in selected grant programs., The Challenge For research administrators, encouraging more proposal submissions is a constant challenge, and it is largely a game of numbers: The more proposals a given faculty member writes, the [...]

With increasing pressure to obtain extramural funding, success in proposal writing becomes ever more important to colleges and universities. Though the characteristics of good proposal writing are well understood, success ratios remain low and most proposals are rejected on first reading. This paper discusses the dimensions of the problem, identifies some common proposal errors and pitfalls, and suggests techniques to avert them. It concludes that grants specialists can employ intervention strategies centered around internal competitions, early career award workshops, funding search workshops and acceptance of preproposals to help faculty improve their grant writing skills., Introduction Success in proposal writing must be viewed as a low probability game. At the National Science Foundation (March 2002) and the National Institutes of Health (2002), two key federal [...]

Now is both an exciting and frightening time for the Indigenous nations located within the United States. For perhaps the first time since the European colonization of our lands began, [...], This Article argues that the meaningful revitalization of Indigenous nations depends upon engaging in a process of indigenization, the active pursuit of a distinct developmental path, culture, and identity. Significant barriers to indigenization include not only political, economic, and social obstacles, but also psychological reliance upon the colonizing nation, the inability to recall the memory of the colonization process upon one's nation, and the pursuit of remedies to colonization that have the practical effect of promoting rather than alleviating its impact. In light of these barriers, the Article critically examines the extent to which indigenization may be assisted or undermined by efforts to develop international treaty law governing the rights of Indigenous peoples.