Changing state disruption of lip-reading by irrelevant sound in perceptual and memory tasks

Three experiments investigated irrelevant sound interference of lip-read lists. In Experiment 1, an acoustically changing sequence of nine irrelevant utterances was more disruptive to spoken immediate identification of lists of nine lip-read digits than nine repetitions of the same utterances (the changing-state effect; Jones, Madden, & Miles, 1992). Experiment 2 replicated this finding when lip-read items were sampled with replacement from the nine digits to form the lip-read lists. In Experiment 3, when the irrelevant sound was confined to the retention interval of a delayed recall task, a changing-state pattern of disruption also occurred. Results confirm a changing-state effect in memory for lip-read items but also point to the possibility that, for lip-reading, changing-state effects may occur at an earlier, perceptual stage.

Potential energy functions for ground state surfaces of HCO and HNO

Analytical potential functions are reported for the ground state surfaces of HCO and HNO, the functions being derived from spectroscopic and ab initio data. Harmonized force fields have been deduced for the stable configurations of both molecules and vibration frequencies predicted for the metastable species COH and NOH.

Solid-state interconversions of coordination networks and hydrogen-bonded salts

Thermal or chemical treatment of crystalline 4,4-bipyridinium salts of [MCl4]2- (M=Co, Zn, Fe, or Pt) leads to HCl loss and formation of coordination network solids [{MCl2(4,4-bipy)}n]. For M=Co, Zn, and Fe, these solids can also be prepared by mechanochemical means. Their exposure to HCl vapor or the mechanochemical reaction of metal dichlorides with [4,4-H2bipy]Cl2 gives [4,4-H2bipy]2+ salts of [CoCl4]2-, [ZnCl4]2-, and, for the first time, [FeCl4]2-.

Farm productivity and efficiency in rural Bangladesh: the role of education revisited

This article reassesses the debate over the role of education in farm production in Bangladesh using a large dataset on rice producing households from 141 villages. Average and stochastic production frontier functions are estimated to ascertain the effect of education on productivity and efficiency. A full set of proxies for farm education stock variables are incorporated to investigate the ‘internal’ as well as ‘external’ returns to education. The external effect is investigated in the context of rural neighbourhoods. Our analysis reveals that in addition to raising rice productivity and boosting potential output, household education significantly reduces production inefficiencies. However, we are unable to find any evidence of the externality benefit of schooling – neighbour's education does not matter in farm production. We discuss the implication of these findings for rural education programmes in Bangladesh.

School effectiveness: new managerialism, quality and the Japanisation of education

School effectiveness is a microtechnology of change. It is a relay device, which transfers macro policy into everyday processes and priorities in schools. It is part of the growing apparatus of performance evaluation. Change is brought about by a focus on the school as a site-based system to be managed. There has been corporate restructuring in response to the changing political economy of education. There are now new work regimes and radical changes in organizational cultures. Education, like other public services, is now characterized by a range of structural realignments, new relationships between purchasers and providers and new coalitions between management and politics. In this article, we will argue that the school effectiveness movement is an example of new managerialism in education. It is part of an ideological and technological process to industrialize educational productivity. That is to say, the emphasis on standards and standardization is evocative of production regimes drawn from industry. There is a belief that education, like other public services can be managed to ensure optimal outputs and zero defects in the educational product.

The state estimation of flow demands in gas networks from sparse pressure telemetry

This paper presents novel observer-based techniques for the estimation of flow demands in gas networks, from sparse pressure telemetry. A completely observable model is explored, constructed by incorporating difference equations that assume the flow demands are steady. Since the flow demands usually vary slowly with time, this is a reasonable approximation. Two techniques for constructing robust observers are employed: robust eigenstructure assignment and singular value assignment. These techniques help to reduce the effects of the system approximation. Modelling error may be further reduced by making use of known profiles for the flow demands. The theory is extended to deal successfully with the problem of measurement bias. The pressure measurements available are subject to constant biases which degrade the flow demand estimates, and such biases need to be estimated. This is achieved by constructing a further model variation that incorporates the biases into an augmented state vector, but now includes information about the flow demand profiles in a new form.