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Preoperative and postoperative patient self-reported measures are the key to understanding the benefit of shoulder arthroplasty for patients with different diagnoses and having different surgical approaches. The minimal clinically important difference (MCID) for patient-reported outcomes such as the Simple Shoulder Test (SST) is often used to document the amount of improvement that is of importance to the patient; however, the MCID may differ for different types of shoulder arthroplasty. The objective of this study was to report the MCID of the SST and the MCID of the percentage of maximal possible improvement (%MPI) for 5 different arthroplasty types.Eight hundred eighty-seven patients undergoing shoulder arthroplasty with preoperative SST scores, 2-year postoperative SST scores, and patient satisfaction were included. The sample comprised 368 patients undergoing anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty (aTSA), 330 patients undergoing ream-and-run arthroplasty (RR), 80 patients undergoing reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (rTSA), 53 patients undergoing cuff tear arthropathy arthroplasty, and 56 patients undergoing hemiarthroplasty. For each type of arthroplasty, the anchor-based method was used for calculating the MCID for both absolute SST scores and %MPI.Significant improvements in SST values were seen for all arthroplasty types. The MCID for SST change was 2.3 overall but ranged from 1.6 for aTSA, to 2.6 for RR, to 3.7 for rTSA. The MCID for %MPI was 32% overall but ranged from 22% for aTSA to 42% for hemiarthroplasty. The percentage of patients exceeding the MCID threshold was highest for aTSA at 96% and lowest for hemiarthroplasty at 61%.The same MCID value may not be appropriate for different types of shoulder arthroplasty. This study reports MCID thresholds that can be used when assessing the effectiveness for each of the common types of shoulder arthroplasty.

We describe the design and performance of a lightweight broadband cavity-enhanced spectrometer for measurement of NO2 on uncrewed aerial vehicles and light aircraft. The instrument uses a light-emitting diode (LED) centered at 457 nm, high-finesse mirrors (reflectivity =0.999963 at 450 nm), and a grating spectrometer to determine optical extinction coefficients between 430 and 476 nm, which are fit with custom spectral fitting software and published absorption cross sections. The instrument weighs 3.05 kg and has a power consumption of less than 35 W at 25 ∘C. A ground calibration unit provides helium and zero air flows to periodically determine the reflectivity of the cavity mirrors using known Rayleigh scattering cross sections. The precision (1σ) for laboratory measurements is 43 ppt NO2 in 1 s and 7 ppt NO2 in 30 s. Measurement of air with known NO2 mixing ratios in the range of 0–70 ppb agreed with the known values within 0.3 % (slope =0.997±0.007; r2=0.99983). We demonstrate instrument performance using vertical profiles of the NO2 mixing ratio acquired on board an uncrewed aerial vehicle between 0 and 110 m above ground level in Boulder, Colorado.

Purpose To analyze the available literature pertaining to the indications, outcomes, and complications of both microfracture (MFX) and simple debridement for capitellar osteochondritis dissecans (OCD). Methods A comprehensive literature review was conducted according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) criteria. Studies were included if they evaluated OCD of the capitellum that underwent either arthroscopic debridement (AD) or MFX. The risk of bias was assessed using the Methodological Index for Non-randomized Studies (MINORS) scale. Patient demographic characteristics, imaging findings, return-to-sport rates, patient-reported outcomes, range of motion (ROM), complications, failures, and reoperations were recorded. Results Eleven studies with 327 patients (332 elbows) met the inclusion criteria. Methodological Index for Non-randomized Studies (MINORS) scores ranged from 63% to 75% and showed considerable heterogeneity. Both AD and MFX showed improvement in patient outcome scores, ROM, and return to play, although the data precluded relative conclusions. Improvement in motion after MFX ranged from 4.9° to 5° of flexion, 5° to 22.6° of extension, 1° to 2° of pronation, and 0.5° to 2° of supination, whereas after AD, it ranged from –4° to 6° of flexion and –0.4° to 14° of extension, with prono-supination noted in only 1 study. The rate of return to play at a similar level of preinjury athletic competition ranged from 55% to 75% after MFX and from 40% to 100% after AD. Lesion location was discussed in only 1 study. Postoperative imaging trended toward early degenerative changes, most commonly of the radial head. Complications were only reported in 1 MFX study; in all cases, the complication was transient ulnar nerve neurapraxia. Reoperation rates ranged from 0% to 10%, and reoperation was most commonly performed to address radial head enlargement. Five studies reported no reoperations. Conclusions Both AD and MFX for capitellar OCD appear to yield excellent improvements in pain, ROM, patient outcome scores, and return to sport. Given that comparable mid-term outcomes can be achieved with debridement alone, without the use of MFX, similarly to recent prospective studies in the knee, AD alone may be a reasonable approach to relatively small OCD defects. Level of Evidence Level IV, systematic review of studies, all Level IV evidence.

While there is a trend to manage failed anatomic total shoulder arthroplasties (aTSA) with revision to a reverse total shoulder arthroplasty, such revisions can be complicated by difficulties in baseplate fixation, instability, and acromial stress fractures. Some cases of failed aTSA may be safely revised to a hemiarthroplasty (HA). The objectives of this study were to report patient-reported outcomes after conversion from aTSA to HA and assess patient and shoulder characteristics associated with a successful outcome.Patients undergoing revision from aTSA to HA between 2009 and 2018 were contacted. Patient demographics, surgical history, intraoperative findings, and microbiology results were collected. Patient reported outcomes were collected with minimum two-year follow-up. Preoperative radiographic characteristics were reviewed for component positioning and component loosening. Patients with clinically significant improvement exceeding the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) of the SST were compared to those patients that did not improve past the MCID.Twenty-nine patients underwent conversion from aTSA to HA with mean follow-up of 4.5 ± 1.8 years. Intraoperative glenoid or humeral component loosening was found in all 29 patients. Pain improved in 25 of 30 patients (87%), and mean pain scores improved from 6.2 ± 2.3 to 3.1 ± 2.4 (p0.001). Simple Shoulder Test (SST) scores improved from 4.1 ± 3.1 to 7.3 ± 3.2 (p0.001), and 18 of 29 patients (62%) had improvement above the SST MCID threshold of 2.4. Mean American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) score at latest follow-up was 64 ± 19, and Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE) score was 65 ± 23. 22 of 29 (76%) of patients were satisfied with the procedure. Four patients (14%) required conversion to total shoulder arthroplasty - two to anatomic and two to reverse. An additional 3 patients (10%) had a revision hemiarthroplasty performed. No significant differences in patient or shoulder characteristics were found in those patients that improved greater than the MCID of the SST compared patients that improved less than the MCID of the SST. 59% of patients had ≥2 positive cultures with the same bacteria, and 82% of these were with Cutibacterium. Seven of 8 patients (88%) with a loose humeral component had a ≥2 positive cultures with the same bacteria.Component loosening is a common failure mode after anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty. Revision to hemiarthroplasty can improve pain and patient-reported outcomes in most patients.

Background Preoperative planning software has been developed to measure glenoid version, glenoid inclination, and humeral head subluxation on computed tomography (CT) for shoulder arthroplasty. However, most studies analyzing the effect of glenoid positioning on outcome were done prior to the introduction of planning software. Thus, measurements obtained from the software can only be extrapolated to predict failure provided they are similar to classic measurements. The purpose of this study was to compare measurements obtained using classic manual measuring techniques and measurements generated from automated image analysis software. Methods Ninety-five two-dimensional computed tomography scans of shoulders with primary glenohumeral osteoarthritis were measured for version according to Friedman method, inclination according to Maurer method, and subluxation according to Walch method. DICOM files were loaded into an image analysis software (Blueprint, Wright Medical) and the output was compared with values obtained manually using a paired sample t-test. Results Average manual measurements included 13.8° version, 13.2° inclination, and 56.2% subluxation. Average image analysis software values included 17.4° version (3.5° difference, p Conclusions Glenoid version and inclination values from the software and manual measurement on two-dimensional computed tomography were relatively similar, within approximately 4°. However, subluxation measurements differed by approximately 20%.

Surgical management of acute distal biceps ruptures is a relatively successful and reproducible procedure that involves reattachment of the torn tendon to the bicipital tuberosity. Two common surgical approaches have been described. The classic technique involves both an anterior and posterior incision (2-incision) and has been the gold standard, though literature describing an anterior-only incision has also been reported. The purpose of this article is to describe the 2-incision, posterior technique with a focus on the anatomical approach and tendon fixation, while highlighting its advantages through a review of the current literature.

Earth's radiation budget is affected by new particle formation (NPF) and the growth of these nanometre-scale particles to larger sizes where they can directly scatter light or act as cloud condensation nuclei (CCN). Large uncertainties remain in the magnitude and spatiotemporal distribution of nucleation (less than 10 nm diameter) and Aitken (10–60 nm diameter) mode particles. Acquiring size-distribution measurements of these particles over large regions of the free troposphere is most easily accomplished with research aircraft. We report on the design and performance of an airborne instrument, the nucleation mode aerosol size spectrometer (NMASS), which provides size-selected aerosol concentration measurements that can be differenced to identify aerosol properties and processes or inverted to obtain a full size distribution between 3 and 60 nm. By maintaining constant downstream pressure the instrument operates reliably over a large range of ambient pressures and during rapid changes in altitude, making it ideal for aircraft measurements from the boundary layer to the stratosphere. We describe the modifications, operating principles, extensive calibrations, and laboratory and in-flight performance of two NMASS instruments operated in parallel as a 10-channel battery of condensation particle counters (CPCs) in the NASA Atmospheric Tomography Mission (ATom) to investigate NPF and growth to cloud-active sizes in the remote free troposphere. An inversion technique to obtain size distributions from the discrete concentrations of each NMASS channel is described and evaluated. Concentrations measured by the two NMASS instruments flying in parallel are self-consistent and also consistent with measurements made with an optical particle counter. Extensive laboratory calibrations with a range of particle sizes and compositions show repeatability of the response function of the instrument to within 5–8 % and no sensitivity in sizing performance to particle composition. Particle number, surface area, and volume concentrations from the data inversion are determined to better than 20 % for typical particle size distributions. The excellent performance of the NMASS systems provides a strong analytical foundation to explore NPF around the globe in the ATom dataset.

Volatile organic compounds were quantified during two aircraft-based field campaigns using highly-automated, whole air samplers with expedited post-flight analysis via a new custom-built, field-deployable gas chromatography – mass spectrometry instrument. During flight, air samples were pressurized with a stainless steel bellows compressor into electropolished stainless steel canisters. The air samples were analyzed using a novel gas chromatograph system designed specifically for field-use which eliminates the need for liquid nitrogen. Instead, a Stirling cooler is used for cryogenic sample pre-concentration at temperatures as low as −165 °C. The analysis system was fully automated on a 20-minute cycle to allow for unattended processing of an entire flight of 72 sample canisters within 30 hours, thereby reducing typical sample residence times in the canisters to less than three days. The new analytical system is capable of quantifying a wide suite of C2 to C10 organic compounds at part-per-trillion sensitivity. This manuscript describes the sampling and analysis systems, along with the data analysis procedures which includes a new peak-fitting software package for rapid chromatographic data reduction. Instrument sensitivities, uncertainties and system artifacts are presented for 35 trace gas species in canister samples. Comparisons of reported mixing ratios from each field campaign with measurements from other instruments are also presented.

Although anterior shoulder instability is most commonly treated with arthroscopic fixation, open labral repair with capsular shift may be best for select patients and in cases of revision stabilization without significant bone loss. The technique described in this article uses the deltopectoral interval; it involves careful dissection of the subscapularis from the anterior capsule, repair of the Bankart lesion, and a lateral and superior capsular shift using all-suture anchors in the humeral head. Advantages of this technique include meticulous control of anchor placement and the ability to provide additional stability via a lateral and superiorly directed capsular shift. This operation can be performed in a reliable, efficient, and reproducible manner.

Caguanes National Park (CNP) is one of Cuba's nine protected areas that include marine and terrestrial territory and are categorized as a National Park. It receives both domestic and international tourists who access the area by land or sea. The park's natural biodiversity has the potential to be marketed as a major draw for tourists. Flora and fauna of both terrestrial and marine environments can provide huge interest to visitors, according to their endemism, representativeness or recreational fishing interest. Additionally, exceptional speleological and cultural values characterize the area. Under the auspices of the Student Workshop on International Coastal and Marine Management (SWIMM), 18 graduate students from Cuba, Mexico, and the United States undertook a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis that focused on the area's biodiversity. Strengths and opportunities identified for CNP were rated as more important than the weaknesses and threats found. Legal designation as a protected area and the available social capital were ranked as some of the most important strengths. Some of the factors identified as weaknesses or threats may, actually, be considered as strengths or potential opportunities if they are developed and marketed effectively. Based on this analysis, the area has huge potentialities for ecotourism and educational activities. Unexpected events such as Hurricane Irma, which occurred in September 2017, will test whether CNP is a resilient system where nature and human efforts work together in the recovery.

Background The Walch classification was introduced to classify glenoid morphology in primary glenohumeral osteoarthritis. A modified Walch classification was recently proposed, with 2 additional categories, B3 (monoconcave glenoid with posterior bone loss leading to retroversion > 15° or subluxation > 70%) and D (excessive anterior subluxation), as well as a more precise definition of subtypes A2 and C. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the intraobserver and interobserver agreement of the modified Walch classification system using both plain radiographs and computed tomography (CT). Methods Three fellowship-trained shoulder surgeons blindly and independently evaluated radiographs and CT scans of 100 consecutive shoulders (98 patients) with primary glenohumeral osteoarthritis and classified all shoulders according to the modified Walch classification in 4 separate sessions, each 4 weeks apart. Statistical analysis with the κ coefficient was used to evaluate reliability. Results The first reading by the most senior observer on the basis of CT scans was used as the gold standard (distribution: A1, 18; A2, 12; B1, 20; B2, 25; B3, 22; C, 1; and D, 2). The average intraobserver agreement for radiographs and CT scans was 0.73 (substantial; 0.72, 0.74, and 0.72) and 0.73 (substantial; 0.77, 0.69, and 0.72), respectively. The average interobserver agreement was 0.55 (moderate; 0.61, 0.51, and 0.53) for radiographs and 0.52 (moderate; 0.63, 0.50, and 0.43) for CT scans. Conclusion Intraobserver agreement of the modified Walch classification was substantial both for axillary radiographs and for CT scans. Interobserver agreement was fair. Although the modified Walch classification represents an improvement over the original classification, automated computer-based analysis of CT scans may be needed to further improve the value of this classification.

Mandates to execute ecosystem-based management exist but are not implemented sufficiently enough to reap the benefits of a growing blue economy.

This research explored the conceptual compatibility of Transformative Learning Theory (TLT) in accounts of spiritual renewal at Wheaton College in 1995. TLT was applied using quadrants of experience, critical reflection, rational dialogue, and action. The sample was drawn from the Billy Graham Center Archives at Wheaton College. These audio interviews involved 28 people. The findings confirmed compatibility between TLT and these Christian spiritual renewal accounts. Implications involved prioritizing prayer, expanding vision, and clarifying intentions personally and collectively.

Rapid advances in attaching miniaturized electronic devices to marine animals for the purpose of learning more about their behavior and interaction with the marine environment, known as bio-logging, raise important and unsettled questions under the international law of the sea. Part XIII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) provides coastal states with the right to regulate and authorize marine scientific research in offshore areas under their sovereignty and jurisdiction. In their recent article published in this journal, James Kraska, Guillermo Ortuno, and David W. Johnston, assert that although bio-logging is a form of marine scientific research, Part XIII of UNCLOS does not apply to tagged animals that collect scientific information within a coastal state’s 200 mile exclusive economic zone, territorial sea, or internal waters. This commentary rejects Kraska et al.'s interpretation and provides evidence to support the claim that coastal state consent under Part XIII of UNCLOS may, under some circumstances, apply to bio-logging. In light of the immense scientific contributions that bio-logging research provide to global marine conservation efforts and the possible burdens that may be imposed on researchers if coastal states begin to assert their rights under UNCLOS, it is important that the international community engage in a robust and candid discussion of the issue and develop a consensus-based approach on how best to move forward.

Abstract Given today’s complex societal challenges, academia should work better with government, industry and others in offering innovative solutions that benefit our society, economy and environment. Researchers across disciplines must work together and with decision-makers to understand how science can have better on-the-ground impacts toward longer-term, resilient societal outcomes. This includes, for example, by working with end-users in problem formation and throughout research projects to ensure decision-making needs are being met, and by linking physical science to additional fields like economics, risk communication or psychology. However, persistent barriers to collaborating across disciplines and with external decision-makers remain. Despite decades of studies highlighting the need for interdisciplinary research and science for decision-making, academic institutions are still not structured to facilitate or reward such collaboration. A group of researchers and educators used a mixed-methods approach to consider the knowledge base on interdisciplinary research and evidence-based policymaking, as well as their own experiences, and formed targeted and actionable recommendations that can help academia overcome these barriers. Their recommendations, specifically targeted to administrators, institutional leads, individual researchers, and research funders, align to three categories: define the role of academia in linking to policy; incorporate nontraditional standards in evaluating success; and build trust while drawing the line between knowledge dissemination and activism. By implementing the following recommendations, academics can foster the culture change that is needed to promote interdisciplinarity, strengthen the impact of their work and help society address urgent and multi-faceted problems.

Existing conditions in the Gulf of Mexico region support an enterprise to establish an international network of marine protected areas for joint consideration by policy decision-makers from the United States, Mexico and Cuba. The analysis presented in this paper explores governance of living marine resources in the Gulf of Mexico and discusses legal frameworks and authorising laws specific to marine protected areas in the United States, Mexico, Cuba and the international arena. Although the three nations have different legal systems and regulatory frameworks, the United States, Mexico and Cuba each have governance objectives to move towards ecosystem-based management, which inherently includes protection of transboundary living marine resources. Federal and international legal mechanisms, including the creation of a tri-national memorandum of understanding and implementation of the Cartagena Convention, are identified as the most logical and efficient next steps towards creating the International Gulf of ...

Biological connections throughout the Gulf of Mexico region pervade waters of the United States, Mexico, and Cuba. Identification of important high-biodiversity habitats and the species that utilize such uncommon habitats in the Gulf of Mexico provides a scientific basis for cooperative international marine conservation and policy. A combination of a compatibility analysis of existing national marine policies and ecosystem-based marine spatial planning would improve management of transboundary living marine resources based on biophysical characteristics of the large marine ecosystem. Goals of such a science-based governance approach are to enhance the understanding of connectivity elements and processes, to map distribution of habitats with high biodiversity, to minimize discontinuity among national marine policies, and to maximize coordinated international protection. The proposed outcome is the design and implementation of an international network of marine protected areas to conserve shared transboundary living marine resources of the Gulf of Mexico. Existing conditions in the Gulf of Mexico region support an enterprise to design several alternatives for an international network of marine protected areas for joint consideration by policy decision-makers from the United States, Mexico, and Cuba. The same model combining science and policy could apply to other transboundary large marine ecosystems.

The three nations surrounding the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) are experiencing rapidly expanding populations and economic development. Problems associated with governing a transboundary body of water such as the GoM are becoming increasingly evident. Despite various attempts within each nation to establish more integrated ocean and coastal governance mechanisms within their own jurisdictions, there has been very little cooperation between the U.S., Mexico and Cuba in developing coordinated maritime policies for the GoM Region. After providing an overview of current marine policy initiatives in the three nations, a brief analysis of recent efforts by the European Union is presented. The paper contends that this European initiative may provide guidance for future integrated management policies in the GoM, but notes that progress depends on reducing legal and political obstacles to international collaboration in the Region.

Finding and exploiting oil and gas resources in the ultra-deepwater areas of the Gulf of Mexico is occurring at an accelerated pace. New discoveries have recently been made in a large geological structure known as the Lower Tertiary Wilcox Trend that is located in the U.S.-Mexico Maritime Boundary Region. However, due to the transboundary characteristics of many of these hydrocarbons, some form of bi-national cooperation is necessary to effectively manage the shared resources, protect the oceanic environment and comply with evolving norms of international law before commercial production can begin. Well-established international customary norms prohibit unilateral exploitation of transboundary oil and gas resources. Consequently, it is important for the two nations to address these issues today rather than putting them off until they become a critical political problem in their bilateral relations.

Marine genetic resources are increasingly being targeted as a source of drugs and other biotechnological uses. Many of these resources are located in tropical coral reef areas within the jurisdictional control of one or more developing nations. Unlike traditional marine living resources, genetic resources are not exploited for their properties as physical substances, but as sources of information. The current international regulatory regime governing access to marine genetic resources is the traditional rule of capture, which provides that ownership of natural resources coming from a common source of supply is recognized once it has been reduced to dominion and control. This contribution contends that the rule of capture coupled with exclusive access agreements and strong global intellectual property protections create a legal environment that is inequitable, economically and biologically inefficient, and ripe for international discord. This contribution advocates an alternative regulatory model that is s...

Background: One complication of anteroinferior glenohumeral shoulder dislocation is a critical bone defect that requires surgical repair to prevent recurrent instability. However, controversy exists regarding the surgical management because both open and arthroscopic surgeries have respective advantages and disadvantages. Moreover, it is difficult to determine the patient’s preferred treatment, as factors that influence treatment choice include recurrence rates, morbidity of the procedures, and patient preferences. Hypothesis: Patients who have a higher probability of recurrent instability after arthroscopic surgery will select open surgery whereas patients with a lower probability of recurrent instability after arthroscopic surgery will favor arthroscopy. Study Design: Economic and decision analysis; Level of evidence, 2. Methods: A decision tree was constructed to model each hypothetical outcome after open or arthroscopic surgery for glenohumeral instability in patients with bone defects. A literature review was performed to determine the probability of occurrence for each node while utility values for each outcome were obtained via patient-administered surveys given to 50 patients without prior history of shoulder injury or dislocation. Fold-back analysis was then performed to show the optimal treatment strategy. Finally, sensitivity analysis established the thresholds at which open treatment becomes the optimal treatment. Results: The ultimate expected value—the objective evaluation of all potential outcomes after choosing either open or arthroscopic surgery—was found to be greater for arthroscopic surgery than for open surgery (87.17 vs 81.64), indicating it to be the preferred treatment. Results of sensitivity analysis indicated that open surgery becomes the preferred treatment when probability of recurrence after arthroscopic treatment is ≥23.8%, although varying the utility, defined as an aggregate patient preference for a particular outcome, has no effect on the model. When the rate of no complication after open surgery is 97.6%, open surgery becomes the patient’s preferred treatment. Conclusion: Arthroscopic surgery is an acceptable treatment if recurrent instability occurs consistently at ≤23.8%. This has important implications given the technical difficulty of successfully performing arthroscopic fixation to resolve recurrent anteroinferior glenohumeral dislocations associated with critical osseous defects. However, due to a lack of clinical outcomes studies, more research is needed to better predict the optimal operative treatment.

The interplay between the principles of free trade and protection of the environment has emerged in the 1990s as one of the most significant and contentious issues facing the international community. This article examines the debate and its impact on ocean governance issues in the United States. Special attention is paid to the implications of the controversial Tuna/Dolphin Decision handed down by a GATT dispute resolution panel. It suggests that the decision has the potential to undermine US fisheries and marine conservation laws, coastal pollution programs, and existing trade provisions found in several international environmental agreements. Finding a solution that is acceptable to opposing sides of the free trade versus environment dispute will be a difficult and time-consuming task. Members of the ocean and coastal policymaking community should be prepared to serve on the front lines of the upcoming battle .

This chapter examines the international laws and policies governing the exploitation of genetic resources in areas beyond national jurisdiction. Because of the huge costs and advanced technology associated with harvesting marine genetic resources (MGRs) from deep-seabed areas, only industrialized nations have the capability to develop and commercialise these resources. This inequity, coupled with the observation that the commercialisation of genetic resources was not contemplated when the LOS Convention was negotiated, has led the 'Group of 77' (G77) to argue that MGRs in areas beyond national jurisdiction should fall within the common heritage regime. Intellectual property rights (IPR) play a central role in commercializing MGRs. The issues may be resolved amicably through a negotiated agreement that provides royalties to the international community. All parties should gain a better understanding of the trade-offs that each have to make in order to devise a constructive and effective approach to managing these important resources. Keywords: 'Group of 77' (G77); Intellectual Property rights; LOS Convention; marine genetic resources(MGR); national jurisdiction

The Gulf of Mexico has long been recognized as one of the world's most important oil and gas provinces. Discoveries of hydrocarbon resources in the ultra-deepwater areas of the Gulf of Mexico are occurring at an accelerated pace. This chapter examines the geographical locations and commercial potentials of these newly discovered ultra-deepwater production zones. It analyzes evolving customary and conventional legal norms that encourage cooperation in the exploration and exploitation of transboundary hydrocarbon resources such as those found in the maritime boundary region of the Gulf of Mexico. The chapter highlights the existing legal and political obstacles to improved collaboration. It concludes by recommending future actions that will improve the prospects of creating an effective joint development mechanism for transboundary hydrocarbons in the Gulf of Mexico. Keywords: Gulf of Mexico; maritime boundary region; transboundary hydrocarbon; ultra-deepwater

The International Space Station (ISS) Program utilizes the Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM) hardware to mate/berth or demate/deberth two pressurized elements on-orbit. Berthing and deberthing of two elements together on-orbit occurs many times throughout the Space Station Assembly Sequence to provide pressurized access between the module vestibules via hatches. The CBM system was developed by Boeing at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Huntsville, Alabama, under contract to NASA, and the CBM Control and Actuation Components were developed by Honeywell Engines & Systems in Torrance, California, under contract to Boeing.

Currently, the United States recognizes the right of foreign coastal states to control American marine scientific research within their EEZs, yet refuses to exercise jurisdiction over foreign research in U.S. waters based upon its desire to encourage freedom of international oceanic research. This article proposes a reexami‐nation of current U.S. MSR policy in light of the recent U.S. decision to give NOAA produced multi‐beam bathymetric maps of the U.S. EEZ a security classification of “confidential.”; The author argues that present U.S. policy is not effectively influencing the MSR policies of other coastal states and is not fully protecting U.S. security and economic interests. A policy which requires foreign research vessels to give notice and to agree to share data prior to working within the U.S. EEZ is suggested as a more appropriate alternative.