Care and Global Migration in the Nursing Profession: a north Indian perspective

ABSTRACT

Globalisation, supply–demand dynamics, uneven development, enhanced connectivity including the better flow of information, communication and the reduced cost of travel have encouraged the global integration of nursing labour markets. Developed regions of the world have attracted internationally educated nurses (IENs) because of growing healthcare needs. India, along with the Philippines, has become a key supplier of nurses in the global economy. Traditionally the supply of nurses was heavily regionalised in south India, especially Kerala, but of late Punjab, in north India, has played an increasing role in nurse training and migration as the profession has become more respected and more international. This paper uses survey and interview data to detail the recent interest in nursing as a channel for independent female international migration from Punjab, and to examine how migratory ambitions have developed over the last decade in parallel with the changing status of nursing as an internationally respected profession. We identify growing interest in international migration for nursing students and their increased intention to pursue employment opportunities in Australia and New Zealand. This research highlights how nursing and care migration are increasingly structured by international circuits of training and employment, and how such circuits alter migrant and occupational geographies on the ground in sending regions.     

Shaping the Kuiper belt size distribution by shattering large but strengthless bodies

The observed size distribution of Kuiper belt objects (KBOs)—small icy and rocky Solar System bodies orbiting beyond Neptune—is well described by a power law at large KBO sizes. However, recent work by Bernstein et al. (2004, Astron. J. 128, 1364-1390) indicates that the size distribution breaks and becomes shallower for KBOs smaller than about 70 km in size. Here we show that we expect such a break at KBO radius ∼40 km since destructive collisions are frequent for smaller KBOs. Specifically, we assume that KBOs are gravity-dominated bodies with negligible material strength. This gives a power-law slope q?3 where the number N>r of KBOs larger than a size r is given by N>r∝r1−q; the break location follows from this slope through a self-consistent calculation. The existence of this break, the break's location, and the power-law slope we expect below the break are consistent with the findings of Bernstein et al. (2004, Astron. J. 128, 1364-1390). The agreement with observations indicates that KBOs as small as ∼40 km are effectively strengthless.     

The effect of source area and atmospheric transport on mineral aerosol collected over the North Pacific Ocean

Aerosol samples collected on two North Pacific cruises were analyzed for rock-magnetic properties, grain size and <2 μm and 2–20 μm mineralogy. These sedimentological results were compared with isentropic air mass trajectories in order to study the effects of source region and atmospheric transport on the mineral aerosol. The results indicate that there are differences in the aerosol composition and grain size for two broad source regions. Aerosols which originate from west of the Pacific are characterized by abundant, fine-grained aerosol, which has a high coercivity magnetic composition, and is relatively enriched in kaolinite. Aerosols originating from continents to the north and east of the Pacific basin are much less abundant, contain coarse-grained material with a low coercivity magnetic component, and the mineralogy is relatively enriched in plagioclase. Comparison of the mineral aerosol from Asia with atmospheric transport time indicated that the concentration of the mineral aerosol decreases with increasing transport time. The mineral aerosol is compositionally fractionated as it moves away from the continental source region, with a relative decrease in the primary minerals quartz and plagioclase and an increase in the smectite, illite and chlorite concentration with increasing transport time.     

Trojan-type orbits in the system of two gravitational centers with variable masses and separation

Trojan type orbits in the system of two gravitational centers with variable separation are studied within the framework of the restricted problem of three bodies. The backward numerical integration of the equations of motion of the bodies starting in the triangular libration pointsL ₄ andL ₅ (reverse problem) finds the breakdown of librations as the separation decreases because of the mass gain of the smaller component and an approach of the body of negligible, mass to the latter up to the distance below its sphere of action with a relative velocity approximately equal to the escape one on this sphere. The breakdown of librations aboutL ₅ occurs under the mass gain of the smaller component considerably larger than in the case ofL ₄ and implications are made for the asymmetry of the number of librators aboutL ₄ andL ₅ in the solar system (Greeks and Trojans). Other parameters of the libration motion near 1/1 commensurability are obtained, namely, the asymmetry of the libration amplitudes about the triangular points as well as the values of periods and amplitudes within the limits of those for real Trojan asteroids. Trojans could be supposedly, formed inside the Proto-jupiter and escape during its intensive mass loss.     

Enhanced CO2 trapping in water ice via atmospheric deposition with relevance to Mars

It has been suggested that inclusions of CO₂ or CO₂ clathrate hydrates may comprise a portion of the polar deposits on Mars. Here we present results from an experimental study in which CO₂ molecules were trapped in water ice deposited from CO₂/H₂O atmospheres at temperatures relevant for the polar regions of Mars. Fourier-Transform Infrared spectroscopy was used to monitor the phase of the condensed ice, and temperature programmed desorption was used to quantify the ratio of species in the generated ice films. Our results show that when H₂O ice is deposited at 140-165 K, CO₂ is trapped in large quantities, greater than expected based on lower temperature studies in amorphous ice. The trapping occurs at pressures well below the condensation point for pure CO₂ ice, and therefore this mechanism may allow for CO₂ deposition at the poles during warmer periods. The amount of trapped CO₂ varied from 3% to 16% by mass at 160 K, depending on the substrate studied. Substrates studied were a tetrahydrofuran (C₄H₈O) base clathrate and Fe-montmorillonite clay, an analog for Mars soil. Experimental evidence indicates that the ice structures are likely CO₂ clathrate hydrates. These results have implications for the CO₂ content, overall composition, and density of the polar deposits on Mars.     

Methane adsorption on a martian soil analog: An abiogenic explanation for methane variability in the martian atmosphere

Recent observations suggest methane in the martian atmosphere is variable on short spatial and temporal scales. However, to explain the variability by loss reactions requires production rates much larger than expected. Here, we report results of laboratory studies of methane adsorption onto JSC-Mars-1, a martian soil simulant, and suggest that this process could explain the observations. Uptake coefficient (γ) values were measured as a function of temperature using a high-vacuum Knudsen cell able to simulate martian temperature and pressure conditions. Values of γ were measured from 115 to 135 K, and the data were extrapolated to higher temperatures with more relevance to Mars. Adsorptive uptake was found to increase at lower temperatures and larger methane partial pressures. Although only sub-monolayer methane surface coverage is likely to exist under martian conditions, a very large mineral surface area is available for adsorption as atmospheric methane can diffuse meters into the regolith. As a result, significant methane may be temporarily lost to the regolith on a seasonal time scale. As this weak adsorption is fully reversible, methane will be re-released into the atmosphere when surface and subsurface temperatures rise and so no net loss of methane occurs. Heterogeneous interaction of methane with martian soil grains is the only process proposed thus far which contains both rapid methane loss and rapid methane production mechanisms and is thus fully consistent with the reported variability of methane on Mars.     

Emerging flux in active regions

We have compared the rates at which flux emerges in active and quiet solar regions within the sunspot belts. The emerging flux regions (EFRs) were identified by the appearance of arch filament structures in H. All EFRs in high-resolution films of active regions made at Big Bear in 1978 were counted. The comparable rate of flux emergence in quiet regions was obtained from SGD data and independently from EFRs detected outside the active region perimeter on the same films. The rate of flux emergence is 10 times higher in active regions than in quiet regions. A sample of all active regions in 31 days of 1983 gave a ratio of 7.5. We discuss possible mechanisms which might funnel new magnetic flux to regions of strong magnetic field.     

The evolution of coastal barrier systems: a case study of the Middle-Late Pleistocene Wilderness barriers,South Africa

Barrier systems contain lengthy, but complex, records of long-term environmental fluctuations. The Wilderness embayment, South Africa, contains a system of shore-parallel barriers reaching up to 200 m above modern sea level. This study reports the results of chronological, topographical (both on- and off-shore), sedimentological and micromorphological analyses within the Wilderness embayment. Sixty-one new luminescence ages from sixteen sites in unconsolidated dunes and three separate barriers are presented which, when combined with previously published luminescence ages from the area, provide a high-resolution chronological framework for the emplacement and evolution of the barrier system. The preserved barriers have been constructed within at least the last two glacial–interglacial cycles with notable phases between 241–221 ka, 159–143 ka, 130–120 ka, 92–87 ka and post 6 ka. Multiple phases of barrier construction occurred during sea-level highstands, with sediment deposition on each individual barrier occurring over at least two interglacials. Holocene evolution of the system sheds light on earlier events, with dune preservation occurring only during early regression from the Mid-Holocene highstand. Tectonic stability at Wilderness allowed glacio-eustatically formed shorelines to occupy similar positions on multiple occasions. This, in conjunction with a relatively humid climate and a well-vegetated landscape, enabled deflated sediment from beaches to form dunes which stacked upon each other to form an extensive and complex vertical accretionary sequence. Repeated erosion and recycling of pre-existing barriers as well as barrier construction on what is currently the off-shore platform during still-stands in sea-level regressional cycles, when sea levels dropped below ca ?50 m from the present day, has added to the complexity of the preserved terrestrial barrier record. The Wilderness barrier system contrasts with barriers developed elsewhere in the world where higher rates of crustal uplift have allowed preservation of a more complete and more widely spaced palaeorecord. This research also shows the utility of integrating off-shore topography as revealed by bathymetry, with terrestrial topographic data for the better understanding of the evolution of palaeo-coastlines and the preserved dune record found on present-day coastal plains. Local variation in the topography of the continental shelf at Wilderness has generated spatial and temporal complexity within the sedimentary records of individual barriers as well as having a significant influence on preservation.     

QuakeSim and the Solid Earth Research Virtual Observatory

We are developing simulation and analysis tools in order to develop a solid Earth Science framework for understanding and studying active tectonic and earthquake processes. The goal of QuakeSim and its extension, the Solid Earth Research Virtual Observatory (SERVO), is to study the physics of earthquakes using state-of-the-art modeling, data manipulation, and pattern recognition technologies. We are developing clearly defined accessible data formats and code protocols as inputs to simulations, which are adapted to high-performance computers. The solid Earth system is extremely complex and nonlinear, resulting in computationally intensive problems with millions of unknowns. With these tools it will be possible to construct the more complex models and simulations necessary to develop hazard assessment systems critical for reducing future losses from major earthquakes. We are using Web (Grid) service technology to demonstrate the assimilation of multiple distributed data sources (a typical data grid problem) into a major parallel high-performance computing earthquake forecasting code. Such a linkage of Geoinformatics with Geocomplexity demonstrates the value of the Solid Earth Research Virtual Observatory (SERVO) Grid concept, and advances Grid technology by building the first real-time large-scale data assimilation grid.