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This study quantitatively evaluated the impact of textile raw material access on Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) members' apparel exports to the United States. Results from the computable general equilibrium (CGE) model show that improving CAFTA-DR garment producers' textile raw material access would significantly enhance the price competitiveness of their apparel exports to the United States and increase the export volume. However, improving CAFTA-DR garment producers' textile raw material access would primarily benefit Asian textile suppliers but result in CAFTA-DR members' reduced dependence on the U.S. textile raw material supply. The study's findings provided new insights into the textile and apparel trade patterns in the Western Hemisphere and offered valuable inputs contributing to the public policy debate on expanding U.S. apparel sourcing from CAFTA-DR members from a unique supply chain perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

US policies of immigrant exclusion evolved from the so-called Asiatic barred zone of 1917 to the Asian 'triangle', but also included people of the Island Pacific. In the latter case, the test for eligibility to enter the United States (US) as a potential citizen was race based. World War II induced pressures by US citizens in the occupying armed forces for marriage to both Asian and Pacific Island women. Internal lobbying in the US plus diplomatic expediency resulted in some post-war relaxation of the ban on Asian immigration via marriage. In New Zealand there was at least one challenge to the extent of the Pacific boundary of the Western Hemisphere wherein greater mobility of migrants was acceptable to the US government. Political Cold War pressure, more than geographic boundaries, proved eventually more potent for potential immigration via marriage but this was too late for most Pacific partners of US servicemen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the export behaviors of the U.S. textile and apparel (T&A) manufacturers and related affecting factors. Based on a logistic regression analysis of the 122 U.S. T&A manufacturers collected from the Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA) 'Made in the USA' database, the study finds that the product category and the size of the firm were both statistically significant factors that affected the U.S. T&A manufacturer's likelihood of engaged in exports. The result of contingency analysis also shows that Western Hemisphere was a preferred export destination for the U.S. T&A manufacturers than other regions in the world. The findings of the study significantly enhanced our understanding of the export behaviors of the U.S. T&A manufacturers and the state of the U.S. T&A industry in today's global economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early-modern timber framing and associated finish vary significantly among the countless places settled by Europeans and Africans in the age of exploration. Most of these dots on maps of the western hemisphere remain essentially unstudied, as evidence for their vernacular architecture slips away. This is of more than local interest because the material offers opportunities to investigate how related populations share and alter cultural traits, and how the traits evolve in response to degrees of immigration, value of labour, environmental conditions and trade. This paper focuses on one of the dots, presenting new evidence for frame construction on the small British island of Bermuda, and addresses its role in the population's economic evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of the history of the Western Hemisphere, as a spatial unit, has been for the most part disregarded. In North America, historians such as Lester Langley and Herbert Bolton tried to make holistic sense of the political, economic, and social development of such a broad region, but their scope was US-centric in nature. Moreover, these transnational spatial approaches to the analysis of Inter-American relations continue to be criticized by temporal-centered nation-state historians that find the approach broad and general. This article focuses on spatial dimensions of the history of Colombian-Canadian relations as a means to question the effectiveness of traditional approaches and argues that by focusing on the transnational spatial dimensions of history, the researcher is able to construct a more holistic analysis of the political, economic, and social dynamics of nation-building. This research shows that the spaces construed by the transnational interaction between foreign and domestic public and private interests reveal complex dynamics that contradict the traditional US-centric and state-centric arguments advanced by temporal historians of Colombian and Latin American history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two primary mechanisms for managing competitive interstate claims to maritime areas are evaluated: the creation of private ownership of maritime zones in the form of Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) and the creation of a global institution, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to establish standards for maritime claims and dispute resolution procedures. Analyses of maritime claims in the Western Hemisphere and Europe from 1900 to 2001 show that declared EEZs help states reach agreements over maritime conflicts in bilateral negotiations, while membership in UNCLOS prevents the outbreak of new maritime claims and promotes third-party management efforts of maritime conflicts. Neither mechanism influences the probability of militarized conflicts over maritime areas. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Regulatory shifts in US border policy set in motion through implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative are concurrent with recent formal and functional changes to the US passport. This article examines these modifications interweaving themes of boundary, mobility, and identity. The study focuses on the tripartite means by which the state employs the passport: as the primary affixer of national identity; as a mediator of contact and mobility across national boundaries; and as a mode for the projection of a certain territorial discourse to its citizenry and ‘others.’ These concepts are developed through an analysis of the narrative and iconic representations contained within the new book itself; material sources from government archives; as well as discussions and interviews with US State Department functionaries closely associated with the design and distribution of the new e-passport. Through the latter examination, a view is afforded into the process by which key state documents are crafted and an inherent tension revealed within an agency charged with establishing a particular unifying ‘brand’ for the preeminent instrument of national identification, whilst dutifully acknowledging the diverse constituency of a nation that historically fashions itself as one constructed from the many. In conclusion, the study suggests that the new passport is the handiwork of a plethora of state actors and a servant of many masters, for it is not only a facilitator of mobility and a vouchsafe for the identity of the bearer, but also, a tiny but significant piece of US property, itself an agent of border maintenance and boundary construction that enables the state to lay claim to its citizenry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholars have argued that due to their special geographical circumstances, island states develop a different relationship with maritime space than their continental counterparts. This is generally attributed both to island residents’ greater access to and benefit from oceanic resources and also to the metaphysical qualities of life that uniquely develop on islands. This article investigates deeper into the phenomenon of geographically determined island exceptionality by considering whether island states and mainland states truly behave differently when it comes to their treatment of and behavior in maritime spaces. Through an analysis of disputed areas in the International Correlates of War maritime data, I consider whether island states are more likely to try and confirm sovereignty over disputed maritime waters than mainland states. My examination of disputed maritime areas in the Western Hemisphere and Europe from 1900 to 2001 shows that indeed island states are both more likely to try and settle a disputed maritime area, whether by force or by negotiated resolution. This finding is then used to raise new questions about the geographic differences that characterize island states in the world political system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tecoma stans (Bignoniaceae), is an evergreen shrub that has a wide natural distribution in the tropical and subtropical parts of the western hemisphere. This shrub is native to Mexico and the southern regions of the USA. This weed is widely distributed in South Africa and neighbouring countries. As part of the biological control initiative, a leafmining fly, Pseudonapomyza sp. (Diptera: Agromyzidae), was imported into South Africa, and was subsequently studied as a potential biological control agent for T. stans. During no-choice tests involving 46 plant species in 16 families, Pseudonapomyza sp. only oviposited and developed on T. stans. Neither oviposition nor larval development was recorded on the closely related and indigenous plant species. When six plant species in the Bignoniaceae family were exposed to Pseudonapomyza sp. during multi-choice tests, oviposition and larval development only occurred on T. stans. It was concluded that Pseudonapomyza sp. was sufficiently host-specific to be released against T. stans in South Africa. Pseudonapomyza sp. also displayed very promising biological attributes that could enhance its effectiveness to control T. stans. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory is a 1-km-circumference, 7-GeV, third generation synchrotron light source. It is the largest light source in the Western Hemisphere and attracts about 3,500 users every year from around the globe. The APS is currently preparing for a major upgrade, a goal of which is to focus on high brightness at photon energies of around 20 keV and higher. The APS is particularly well suited for this high photon energy range due to its higher-energy, 7-GeV electron beam, but it also needs new insertion devices with short periods and high fields, i.e., superconducting devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The study of U.S. religion, which dates from the 19th century, expanded its sources, methods, and scope during the last quarter of the 20th century, as specialists offered more inclusive historical narratives. That methodological expansion never went far enough, however, and the impulse toward narrative inclusiveness has been restrained in recent years. The subfield, I argue, now faces a number of challenges that also confront other specializations in the study of religion—contraction, overspecialization, fragmentation, and parochialism. After a focused overview of the subfield’s history, I discuss those challenges. Proposing a tentative response, I suggest that specialists celebrate methodological diversity and theoretical sophistication, encourage comparative and translocative studies, and increase collaboration across disciplinary boundaries and national borders. Finally, I suggest that we expand the subfield’s temporal span and geographical scope and reframe the study of U.S. religion in terms of the Atlantic World, the Pacific World, and the Western Hemisphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Is free trade always good for advanced industrialized countries? Are fears of globalization and outsourcing imaginary, totally unfounded, and misguided? Is the West always going to benefit from technological improvements in the East? This article constructs a few thought experiments to analyze such issues. The article provides some rational insight into the puzzle of why global trade is so controversial. The effects of technological improvements in the East on the welfare of both the East and the West are analyzed. The conclusion highlights some of the less desirable effects of outsourcing in a more globalized world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Western managers typically rate their performance higher than their bosses, peers, or subordinates do; research on Asian managers, however, has been both sparse and conflicting. In examining data from six Asian countries, Japanese managers were found to rate themselves lower than others in their organization do. This “modesty bias,” however, varies considerably among Asian countries; in other countries, including India and China, self-inflation was more comparable to typical Western findings. Findings lend initial support to the ability of national collectivism to explain differences in modesty and leniency bias when institutional collectivism is distinguished from in-group collectivism using data from the GLOBE Project (House, Hanges, Javidan, Dorfman, & Gupta, 2004). Theoretical basis for modesty bias, and implications for Asian and American expatriates are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the definitive source of the left hemisphere's superiority for visual word recognition remains illusive, some argue that the left (LH) and right (RH) hemispheres engage different strategies during early perceptual processes involved in stimulus encoding. In particular, it is proposed that the LH treats a word as a unitary perceptual group whereas the RH processes the letters comprising a word as a series of individual perceptual units. The present study investigated support for this processing distinction by examining hemispheric strategies for temporal integration using Prinzmetal and Millis-Wright's (1984) feature-binding paradigm. A total of 20 participants identified the colour and identity of a target letter, presented within a three-letter word (e.g., ART) or nonword (e.g., HRF), directed to their left or right visual field. Errors were classified on the basis of whether they involved substitution of a colour present within the stimulus but at a different location (ON error), or the substitution of a colour not present within the stimulus (OFF error). As anticipated, for word stimuli there was a higher proportion of OFF errors associated with trials directed to the RH, consistent with the notion that the LH treats words as single perceptual units and is hence biased toward miscombination of perceptual information present within the stimulus. The pattern of ON errors across stimulus type provided clear evidence of RH sequential encoding effects, with the number of errors increasing markedly across the ordinal position of the letters comprising the stimulus string. As such, these data provide new evidence that the LH's advantage for visual word recognition arises, at least in part, from the ability to encode verbal stimuli as single perceptual units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ramachandran (1995) theorised that the left hemisphere (LH) is specialised for making a single and consistent interpretation of the self and the world, whereas the right hemisphere (RH) is responsible for monitoring anomalies in reference to these interpretations. If the anomalous information reaches a threshold, it interacts with the LH to update these interpretations or beliefs. Because mixed handers may have greater degrees of interhemispheric interaction compared to strong handers, they may have a lower threshold for updating beliefs. Two previous studies found this to be the case (Niebauer, Aselage, & Schutte, 2002a; Niebauer, Christman, & Reid, 2002b). Because monitoring one's beliefs may involve metacognitive processes, i.e., cognitions about cognitions, this model was extended to help explain individual differences in understanding self-referential concepts. In the first two studies, mixed-handed participants displayed a greater understanding of self-reference using a conceptual description of Gödel's Incompleteness Theorem. In a third study, mixed-handed participants displayed greater appreciation for self-referential works of M. C. Escher. Implications for a neuropsychological model of metacognition are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) is the most recent in a long line of innovative marketing concepts widely endorsed by marketing and advertising academics and practitioners along the whole spectrum of industry and commerce in the Western hemisphere. Despite its continuing appeal, however, little is known about the actual embodiment of IMC within contemporary marketing communications practice. The article therefore reviews the extant literature and research studies with the purpose of drawing out whether IMC can indeed be seen to define the ways in which marketing communications is currently practiced and can thus be considered as a valid theory of contemporary marketing communications management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shrimp aquaculture expanded significantly during the 1980s and now represents a multibillion dollar industry. In 2001, shrimp farmers in the Western Hemisphere produced an estimated 125,000 metric tons of product, representing about 10% of the world's supply of farmed shrimp. Despite this level of production, shrimp farmers have suffered significant economic losses over the last decade because of environmental problems associated with traditional farming practices and viral diseases that have plagued the industry. In an effort to improve shrimp performance, farmers are adopting biosecure approaches to shrimp culture that include reduced water exchange and the use of high health seed. Although these efforts have had a positive impact on the industry, the risk of crop loss still exists. The long-term viability of shrimp aquaculture depends on appropriate technologies that are designed to mitigate negative environmental impacts and reduce the introduction and spread of pathogens. These technologies must be integrated into a holistic approach to shrimp culture that incorporates major advances used in terrestrial meat production with novel approaches to aquatic animal husbandry. With these technologies in place, the shrimp aquaculture industry could expand in an environmentally responsible manner, while simultaneously increasing production and profitability for the shrimp farmer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Editorial. Comments on the role of Europe in the process of globalization. Recognition of Europe as the originator of economic and political liberalism; Impact of Communist Russia on the establishment of Western class systems; Disadvantages of globalization in several countries.

While the Latin American and Caribbean Region has an abundance of water resources, the uneven distribution of water and the rapid growth of urban areas have created a set of water management problems which, if left unresolved, are projected to lead to a water crisis of hemispheric proportions during the next century. Shrinking foreign aid and experience gained during the past four decades are changing the traditional mechanisms of technical cooperation between developed and developing nations. Building on the momentum of the Earth Summit (1992), which stressed the need for mechanisms for water resources information exchange, the First Inter-American Dialogue on Water Management (1993) called for the establishment of an Inter-American Water Resources Network (IWRN) to distribute and exchange information on water issues, promote technology transfer, and share water management experiences in the western hemisphere. To date, 22 governments have officially designated water agencies to represent them on the IWRN as country focal points. Current network activities consist of the preparation of directories of water and water-related organizations, educational opportunities and existing networks in the western hemisphere; publication of a newsletter; and operation of an electronic forum and several World Wide Web sites on the Internet. Future activities, defined in part by the Second Inter-AmericanDialogue on Water Management held in Buenos Aires in September 1996, will emphasize the establishment of a regional and sub-regional Internet-based water information network with linkages to the global water resources community, regional dialogues on water management, increased cooperation between all parties in transboundary river basins, and endorsement of a number of recommendations for strengthening integrated water resources management.The Third Inter-American Dialogue on Water Management will be held in Central America in 1999. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proposes several alternative paths for extending the current system of Western Hemisphere sub-regional trade agreements into a more comprehensive scheme of hemispheric integration. North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) accession; Hub-and-spoke arrangements; Trade agreement merging; Requirements for NAFTA accession.

Discusses the relations between Europe and America. Commemoration of the Discovery of America in 1992; Legacy of Euro-Imperialism; Evolution of the images of America created in European literature and art.

Recently a study by one of the co-authors (Poe 1992) appeared to show that human rights impacted the allocation of economic aid to Western hemispheric nations, and to a small sample of countries from around the world, during the 1980s. In this study we make an effort to resolve some of the difficulties evident in this study, and previous work on the human rights/economic aid linkage, by increasing the number of cases available for analysis, while focusing on the African region, from 1983 to 1988. Statistical analyses conducted with the GLS-ARMA technique provide clear evidence that human rights abuse has been a moderately important determinant of U.S. bilateral economic aid allocation to Africa. Recipient need is also found to have impacted the allocation of U.S. economic aid, but such humanitarian motives are clearly weighed against more self-serving strategic, and political concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides information on the commitment of the Organization of American States (OAS) to take action when democracy was threatened in the Western Hemisphere in 1994. It mentions that the OAS foreign ministers have not just compelled the overthrow as illegal and called for a quick return to democratic rule, but have recurred to political and economic sanctions. It states that the stance of the OAS supported widespread popular resistances to the coup in Guatemala, with less successful results in Peru and Haiti.

The author discusses aspects of reaction to globalization in identity politics. Topics discussed includes distinguishing within nations and between nations by individuals and groups, division of western hemisphere between Spain and Portugal due to Pope's Treaty of Tordesillas of 1494, and presents views of Leslie Bethell, Professor and historian of Brazil, on it.

The jaguar (Panthera onca) is the largest felid in the Western hemisphere, and the only member of thePantheragenus in the New World. The jaguar inhabits most countries within Central and South America, and is considered near threatened by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. This study represents the first sequence of the entire jaguar mitogenome, which was the onlyPantheramitogenome that had not been sequenced. The jaguar mitogenome is 17,049 bases and possesses the same molecular structure as other felid mitogenomes. Bayesian inference (BI) and maximum likelihood (ML) were used to determine the phylogenetic placement of the jaguar within thePantheragenus. Both BI and ML analyses revealed the jaguar to be sister to the tiger/leopard/snow leopard clade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comments on the security of the Western Hemisphere and the United States' commitment to democratic institutions and market economies. The threat of narcotics traffickers and their trade; The role of U.S. President Bill Clinton and his administration.

The article provides information on the emergence of the Southern Cone of the Western Hemisphere as a region of stable democratization and economic dynamism.