for the past quarter of a century iran has advocated the setting up of a security regime in the persian gulf by littoral states that excludes foreign powers. this paper examines the reasons behind iran's opposition to foreign participation in persian gulf security arrangements; the steps iran has taken to gain the support of other littoral states for its scheme, and the prospects for iran&...

BACKGROUND Concerns about reproductive health persist among U.S. military members who served in the 1990-1991 Gulf War. This study explores the long-term impact of 1990-1991 Gulf War deployment on the prevalence of birth defects among infants of Gulf War veterans. METHODS Health care data from the Department of Defense Birth and Infant Health Registry and demographic and deployment informatio...

Relationships between satellite-derived sea-surface temperature (SST) patterns and the occurrence of paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxicity events caused by Alexandrium fundyense in the western Gulf of Maine are examined. Comparisons between surface A. fundyense cell distribution patterns and SST images indicate that highest cell concentrations are associated with colder waters of the eas...

BACKGROUND Veterans of the 1991 Gulf War have an increased risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), but the etiology is unknown. OBJECTIVES This study sought to identify geographic areas with elevated risk for the later development of ALS among military personnel who served in the first Gulf War. METHODS A unified geographic information system (GIS) was constructed to allow analysis of ...

Barrier islands on the north coast of the Gulf of Mexico are an internationally important coastal resource. Each spring hundreds of thousands of Nearctic-Neotropical songbirds crossing the Gulf of Mexico during spring migration use these islands because they provide the first landfall for individuals following a trans-Gulf migratory route. The effects of climate change, particularly sea level r...

The underlying etiology and pathogenesis of Gulf War veterans' illnesses continue to be under intense investigation. Reports have suggested the basis for these illnesses may be an altered immune system, but compelling evidence is lacking. We sought to determine whether in vitro immune responses were abnormal in symptomatic Gulf War veterans relative to matched controls. A randomized case-contro...

Lake Victoria, which is the largest fresh water lake in Africa, represents a unique ecosystem that has the largest fresh water fishery in the continent. However, increased anthropogenic activities has increased the potential pollution of the lake especially the heavy metal pollutants which may be toxic to humans and aquatic fauna. There is need therefore for continuous monitoring of pollution l...

Determining the relative influence of biotic and abiotic factors on genetic connectivity among populations remains a major challenge in evolutionary biology and in the management and conservation of species. North Pacific hake (Merluccius productus) inhabits upwelling regions in the California Current ecosystem from the Gulf of California to the Gulf of Alaska. In this study, we examined mitoch...

People depend on human infrastructure for a range of activities in their daily lives, such as work and socializing. In this paper we consider three different intertwined types of infrastructures of a society that may be affected in crisis situations: the physical, technological, and human infrastructures. We argue that when the human infrastructure is damaged, e.g. in a natural catastrophe or w...

18 Ophthalmic Care of the Combat Casualty