LLOYD GEORGE AND THE ELECTORAL DECLINE OF THE BRITISH LIBERAL PARTY IN THE 1920s

ABSTRACT This article reassesses the electoral decline of British Liberalism in the 1920s, especially the catastrophic defeat of 1924. A leading explanation for this disaster is that the Liberals were ‘fighting to lose’ by leaving nearly 250 constituencies uncontested. David Lloyd George is widely seen as deliberately seeking to destroy his party by refusing to finance candidates through his infamous ‘fund’, so he could lead what remained after electoral evisceration. His actions are widely credited with stymieing prospects of a Liberal recovery in the next election, 1929, which confirmed the party's permanent replacement by Labour. Through a wide-ranging statistical reanalysis, supported by a study of grassroots constituency campaigns, this article argues that the lack of candidates was a negligible contributor either to Liberal annihilation in 1924, or to Liberal failure to recover in 1929. The sharply deteriorating health of the party was already felt keenly at the grassroots before, not after, the seemingly freak result of 1924 was known. We thus argue that, contrary to the judgement of historians and contemporaries, the 1924 result represented the truer reflection of the party's fundamental interwar strength, with 1923 the exception. The inaction of Lloyd George in 1924 thus can be interpreted as pragmatic rather than Machiavellian.

Results of Spectral Analysis of the Effective Flushing Liquid

The article is devoted to the results of spectral analysis of effective flushing liquid with the use of lightweight polymeric reagent (LPR). On the basis of spectral research it is shown that the mechanism of ion exchange of particles of flushing liquid (replacement reaction) at replacement of mineral in the crystal lattice by cat ions of disperse medium is a permanent replacement of organic and inorganic cat ions of flushing liquid with rock particles and whole groups of dispersive medium. The results of the processes of addition of fluids and rock elements to the flushing liquid particles, as well as simultaneously occurring ion-exchange and none change processes determining the mechanisms of inhibition (reduction of hydrophilicity), stabilization and colloidal protection in flushing liquids are obtained.

Tissue biomimicry using cross-linked electrospun nonwoven fibre composites

Mimicking the structural properties of natural tissue was aimed to be achieved by combining complementary mechanical properties of materials showing high tensile strength with those of high elasticity. By using two polymers with different properties, the advantages of both can be combined to access innovative materials for biomedical applications. Dual co-electrospinning was established to generate biocompatible nonwoven fibre composites with fused properties from polyamide (PA6) and polyurethane based silicone elastomers (PU-co-Si), respectively. By electrospinning both compounds simultaneously, significant advantages, such as combining different fibre thicknesses and mechanical properties, are accessible. Furthermore, the effect on the fibres via an optional post-processing step in the shape of different thermal treatments was investigated. Initial results concerning surface morphology, biocompatibility and tensile properties of the obtained electrospun nonwovens are very auspicious. Thus, the suitability of two complementary polymer classes for tissue biomimicry through a synthetic approach was shown, offering the opportunity of novel implant materials for permanent replacement of biological tissue.

Influence of chitosan edible coating on postharvest qualities of Capsicum annum L. during storage in evaporative cooling system

Chitosan is a biopolymer edible coating which can act as physical barrierwhen coated on fruits and efficiently alter their internal atmosphere and delay the ripening process. This study evaluates the usage of chitosan (CH) as edible coating to extend the shelf life of green bell pepper. Physiochemical and microbial analysis of the green bell pepper was conducted during evaporative coolant structure storage (ECS). The effect of chitosan coating on green bell pepper significantly delayed a loss in firmness, weight loss, and vitamin C content and inhibited the growth of heterotrophic bacteria, mesophilic bacteria, yeast and mould during the five weeks of storage. On the whole, this study established that edible coating from chitosan could form a natural and permanent replacement to the chemically preservatives used for postharvest management of green bell pepper.

INTERIM MANAGEMENT KEY POINTS FOR SUCCESS

Interim management is defined as the temporary provision of management resources and skills, which can be seen as the short-term assignment of a proven executive manager to manage a period of transition, crisis, or change within an organization. In other words, interim management is the engagement by an organisation of a senior independent executive for a limited contractual period in a line management, staff or project role. The first phase in the interim management position is considered to be the “expectation, infrastructure, and exploring phase.” Expectations are high and team members are supportive and hopeful that interim manager will help them through change. If they've gone a long time without a leader, they may be hesitant and skeptical to get too close or share too much. It's truly the stage of golden opportunity where colleagues offer help and assistance to make the transition successful, even if it's temporary. Although the search for a permanent replacement continues, interim manager will begin to problem solve, organize, and stabilize the environment.Humility becomes the interim leader's best asset, especially if the role is outside his/her typical experience or comfort zone. The longer the interim position continues, the sharper the reality becomes. Expanding responsibilities from overseeing one unit or department to multiple units or departments at the same time can become overwhelming and short-term daily operational issues may seem to be handled without long-term thought, commitment, and passion. The last phase is one of accommodation to the situation, developing solutions, and problem solving at an operational versus an institutional level.Interim leadership roles filled from within an organization require leaders who take on additional responsibilities to effectively manage priorities, staffing, and, most of all, their time. There will be multiple competing priorities and deadlines in light of the additional responsibilities. If at all possible, interim manager should delegate some of those simple tasks to direct reports and accept the help of his/her colleagues. It will make them feel like they're contributing to the greater good and may spark a strength or project that may have gone undetected.

Another Look at the Relationship between Cohabitation and Marriage – The Use of Crude and Net Probabilities

In this paper we propose an approach based on the theoretical relationship between crude and net probabilities of marriage in a competing-risk framework. Analyses based on family dynamics among Swedish men born 1936-1964 show that the probabilities of marriage increase if cohabitation was eliminated (and that probabilities of cohabitation increase if marriage was eliminated). Further, the gains in net probabilities increase at the prime ages of family formation (20-28) but are less significant at other ages. Such results support (at least for the data at hand) the argument that informal cohabitation serves as a prelude to marriage rather than a permanent replacement to it.

Permanent Replacements and the End of Labor's “Only True Weapon”

This article analyzes the origins and impact of one of the most powerful antiunion weapons used by American employers during the past four decades: the right to use and threaten to use permanent replacement workers during economic strikes. It examines the policy debate over replacements in the 1930s and 1940s, the increasing use of permanent replacements in the 1970s and 1980s, the growth of a powerful and sophisticated “strike management industry,” and the unsuccessful efforts of organized labor and its political allies to amend the National Labor Relations Act to outlaw permanent replacements. The article concludes with a brief discussion of the relationship between the “striker replacement doctrine” and declining strike levels in the postwar decades.

Endoscopic radical antrectomy: a permanent replacement for the Caldwell–Luc operation

Introduction:Chronic inflammation of sinus mucosa is a multifactorial condition which sometimes results in irreversible pathological mucosal changes.Aims:To evaluate the efficacy of endoscopic radical antrectomy in treating chronic, hyperplastic, eosinophilic sinusitis, and to compare this procedure with classical endoscopic middle meatal antrostomy.Materials and methods:A randomised, controlled trial with parallel design was conducted between July 2000 and December 2004, including 119 patients who fulfilled the clinical, radiological and histopathological criteria for chronic, hyperplastic, eosinophilic sinusitis. Patients were randomly allocated to two treatment groups: classical endoscopic middle meatal antrostomy and endoscopic radical antrectomy. The main outcome measures were recorded in each subgroup at the time of the patient's last clinic visit. In each subgroup, these included subjective improvement and evaluation of the endoscopic appearance of the maxillary sinus.Results:Thirty-two per cent of patients in the endoscopic middle meatal antrostomy group were considered surgical failures, compared with 14.5 per cent of the endoscopic radical antrectomy group. This was statistically significant (p = 0.023). Unhealthy maxillary sinuses were significantly more prevalent in the endoscopic middle meatal antrostomy group (p = 0.029).Conclusions:In those patients fulfilling the criteria suggestive of chronic, irreversible sinonasal pathology, primary endoscopic radical antrectomy was significantly better than endoscopic middle meatal antrostomy, based on subjective and objective findings.