Nontrivial Solutions of Quasilinear Equations In BV

The existence of a nontrivial critical point is proved for a functional containing an area-type term. Techniques of nonsmooth critical point theory are applied.

Analogical Reasoning Techniques in Intelligent Counterterrorism Systems

The paper develops a set of ideas and techniques supporting analogical reasoning throughout the life-cycle of terrorist acts. Implementation of these ideas and techniques can enhance the intellectual level of computer-based systems for a wide range of personnel dealing with various aspects of the problem of terrorism and its effects. The method combines techniques of structure-sensitive distributed representations in the framework of Associative-Projective Neural Networks, and knowledge obtained through the progress in analogical reasoning, in particular the Structure Mapping Theory. The impact of these analogical reasoning tools on the efforts to minimize the effects of terrorist acts on civilian population is expected by facilitating knowledge acquisition and formation of terrorism-related knowledge bases, as well as supporting the processes of analysis, decision making, and reasoning with those knowledge bases for users at various levels of expertise before, during, and after terrorist acts.

On Two Saigo’s Fractional Integral Operators in the Class of Univalent Functions

2000 Mathematics Subject Classification: Primary 26A33, 30C45; Secondary 33A35

Novel organo-modifier for thermally-stable polymer-layered silicate nanocomposites

A new novel approach for the stabilisation of polymer-clay nanocomposites has been investigated based on reacting chemically an antioxidant function, a hindered phenol moiety, with an organic modifier based on a quaternary ammonium salt. The chemically linked antioxidant-containing organic modifier (AO-OM) was then introduced into natural montmorillonite (MMt) through a cation-exchange reaction resulting in antioxidant-containing organo-modified clay (AO-OM-MMt). The new antioxidant-containing modified clay, along with other organo-modified clays having a similar organo-modifier but without the reacted antioxidant, were characterised by spectroscopic, thermogravimetric and x-ray diffraction techniques and tested for their thermo-oxidative stability. PA11-based clay nanocomposites samples containing the AO-OM-MMt and the other organo-modified clays, both without and with an added (i.e. not chemically reacted) hindered phenol antioxidant (similar to the one used in the AO-OM) were prepared by melt processing and examined for their processing and long-term thermal-oxidative stability at high temperatures. It was shown that although the new organo-modifier, AO-OM, was also susceptible to the Hoffman elimination reaction, the nanocomposites containing this newly modified clay (PA11/AO-OM-MMt) showed higher melt processing and long-term thermo-oxidative stability, along with excellent clay dispersion and exfoliation, compared to the other PA11-nanocomposites examined here (with and without the conventionally added antioxidant). It is suggested here that the excellent overall performance observed for the PA11/AO-OM-MMt nanocomposites is due to an in-situ partial release of low molecular weight antioxidant species having stabilising functionalities that are capable of acting locally at the interface between the inorganic clay platelets and the polymeric matrix which is a critical area for the onset of degradation processes.

Comparing Several Methods of Discriminant Analysis on the Case of Wine Data

2000 Mathematics Subject Classification: 62H30, 62J20, 62P12, 68T99

Vállalati magatartás és túlélési esélyek a posztszocialista átmenetgazdaságban (Corporate behaviour and chances of survival in a post-socialist transitional economy)

A tanulmányban paneladatokra támaszkodva vizsgáljuk a hazai feldolgozóipari vállalkozások középtávú túlélési esélyeit befolyásoló tényezőket. A kutatás során az 1993-ban mintába került cégekhez tértünk vissza 2000-ben. Az adatok szerint az ágazat, a létszám és a kapacitáskihasználtság mellett a vezetői magatartás és a vállalati stratégia is érdemben befolyásolta a vállalatok fennmaradási esélyeit. Azok a szervezetek, amelyekben a vezetők 1993-ban úgy vélekedtek, hogy a gazdaságban a normaszegő magatartás sikerre számíthat, az átlagosnál kisebb valószínűséggel maradtak életben az évtized végére. Azok a vállalatok, amelyeknek vezetői a vizsgálat elején sikeresnek tartották cégüket, illetve amelyek már 1993-ban is inkább megoldó jellegű válságmenedzselési eszközöket alkalmaztak, nagyobb arányban maradtak fenn, mint azok, amelyek halasztó jellegű eszközökkel próbáltak úrrá lenni a transzformációs visszaesés okozta krízisen. ________ The study uses panel data to examine the factor affected medium-term changes in the chances of survival among Hungarian manufacturing firms. The researchers revisited in 2000 firms surveyed in a 1993 sample. The figures show firms survival chances vary essentially not only by industry, size of labour force and utilization of capacity, but according to managerial behaviour and corporate strategy. Those whose managers be-lieved in 1993 that behaviour breaching accepted norms would succeed in the economy had a lower than average likelihood of surviving until the end of the decade. The survival rate was higher among those whose managers thought they would be successful or were already applying crisis-management techniques of a remedial nature in 1993, than among those using delaying tactics to tackle a crisis caused by the transformational recession.

A case study of adults in college who developed an experiential learning portfolio

This single-case study provides a description and explanation of selected adult students' perspectives on the impact that the development of an experiential learning portfolio had on their understanding of their professional and personal lives. The conceptual framework that undergirded the study included theoretical and empirical studies on adult learning, experiential learning, and the academic quality of nontraditional degree programs with a portfolio component. The study employed qualitative data collection techniques of individual interviews, document review, field notes, and researcher journal. A purposive sample of 8 adult students who completed portfolios as a component of their undergraduate degrees participated in the study. The 4 male and 4 female students who were interviewed represented 4 ethnic/racial groups and ranged in age from 32 to 55 years. Each student's portfolio was read prior to the interview to frame the semi-structured interview questions in light of written portfolio documents. ^ Students were interviewed twice over a 3-month period. The study lasted 8 months from data collection to final presentation of the findings. The data from interview transcriptions and student portfolios were analyzed, categorized, coded, and sorted into 4 major themes and 2 additional themes and submitted to interpretive analysis. ^ Participants' attitudes, perceptions, and opinions of their learning from the portfolio development experience were presented in the findings, which were illustrated through the use of excerpts from interview responses and individual portfolios. The participants displayed a positive reaction to the learning they acquired from the portfolio development process, regardless of their initial concerns about the challenges of creating a portfolio. Concerns were replaced by a greater recognition and understanding of their previous professional and personal accomplishments and their ability to reach future goals. Other key findings included (a) a better understanding of the role work played in their learning and development, (b) a deeper recognition of the impact of mentors and role models throughout their lives, (c) an increase in writing and organizational competencies, and (d) a sense of self-discovery and personal empowerment. ^

Eden in the age of the fifth sun: The narrative work of Homero Aridjis

Homero Aridjis (b. 1940) is a major Mexican poet, novelist, essayist and ecological activist whose prolific body of work, ranging over forty years and including more than eleven volumes of poetry and thirteen novels, has yet to be studied as a coherent literary corpus in the context of recent Latin American fiction. The purpose of this dissertation was to analyze the narrative works of this author as both illustrative of the changes that have occurred in Latin American fiction since the 1960s when it first burst onto the world scene, as well as to study the uniqueness of this particular author's view of literature as it relates to historical discourse, apocalypticism. and social commitment. ^ Research showed that in the case of the narrative style of Aridjis, major trends in the contemporary Latin American novel were present in such a profuse and model manner as to confirm this author's importance as a prime example of what is commonly known as “Post-Boom” fiction. However, beyond the mere presence of literary elements, this study showed that the author's unique approach to narrative style has altered and expanded the aesthetic and thematic possibilities of the contemporary novel. The area where this is most clearly seen is in his experimentation with the historical genre. By manipulating the referential techniques of what has lately come to be known as the “new historical novel,” Aridjis has written both a cycle of purely historical novels and a cycle of futuristic ones that attempt to transcend the temporal limits traditionally imposed by these narrative forms, fusing them into one constant questioning of the nature of love, hate and identity. In this manner, he has developed a “simultaneist” narrative approach where distinct historical and imagined periods, places, people, things, and texts coexist and interact, widening almost to delirium the interpretative possibilities of the work. ^ This unique view of time and narrative, together with the author's political activism and millenarian view of history, make the novels of Homero Aridjis an important element in understanding the continuing development and evolution of Latin American fiction at the turn of the century. ^

Black churchgoers, environmental activism, and the preservation of nature in Miami, Florida

The goal of this project was to explore activism, attitudes, and imagery connecting Black churchgoers in Miami, Florida and the natural environment. The research approach was qualitative, began as exploratory research, and used the techniques of snowball sampling, participant observation, and semi-structured interviews. Three case studies representing various socio-economic levels, denominations, participant education levels, and environmental facets were chosen for in-depth ethnographic research. There are three major findings in the research. First, there is a link between the preservation of Black history and the preservation of the environment among Black churchgoers, who feel strong connections to a sense of place, rural life, and the past. However their work is strongly directed to bring about benefits for people and the environment in the present and the future. Second, public access to public lands is a basic and important right espoused by these Black churchgoing activists. Third, the vocabulary used by Black churchgoing activists regarding the natural environment differs from today's “mainstream” environmentalists. The concept of “beauty” is pivotal to Black appreciation of and activism toward the environment and is reminiscent of the early environmental protection movement in the United States and conservationists such as John Muir. These findings concerning how Black spirituality relates to the environment adds to the sparse literature on the subject, and provides for potential linkages between Blacks and “mainstream” environmental groups to benefit both parties. An understanding of the connections between Black spirituality and perceptions of the environment should facilitate the development of better programs to improve and protect the environment. Environmental projects may also address the social and economic needs of Black communities, churches, and congregations, as well as the ecosystem. ^

Spatial-temporal mining of archived automatic vehicle location (AVL) data for transit service planning applications

An Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) system is a computer-based vehicle tracking system that is capable of determining a vehicle's location in real time. As a major technology of the Advanced Public Transportation System (APTS), AVL systems have been widely deployed by transit agencies for purposes such as real-time operation monitoring, computer-aided dispatching, and arrival time prediction. AVL systems make a large amount of transit performance data available that are valuable for transit performance management and planning purposes. However, the difficulties of extracting useful information from the huge spatial-temporal database have hindered off-line applications of the AVL data. ^ In this study, a data mining process, including data integration, cluster analysis, and multiple regression, is proposed. The AVL-generated data are first integrated into a Geographic Information System (GIS) platform. The model-based cluster method is employed to investigate the spatial and temporal patterns of transit travel speeds, which may be easily translated into travel time. The transit speed variations along the route segments are identified. Transit service periods such as morning peak, mid-day, afternoon peak, and evening periods are determined based on analyses of transit travel speed variations for different times of day. The seasonal patterns of transit performance are investigated by using the analysis of variance (ANOVA). Travel speed models based on the clustered time-of-day intervals are developed using important factors identified as having significant effects on speed for different time-of-day periods. ^ It has been found that transit performance varied from different seasons and different time-of-day periods. The geographic location of a transit route segment also plays a role in the variation of the transit performance. The results of this research indicate that advanced data mining techniques have good potential in providing automated techniques of assisting transit agencies in service planning, scheduling, and operations control. ^

Computational evaluation of wind loads on low- and highrise buildings

Buildings and other infrastructures located in the coastal regions of the US have a higher level of wind vulnerability. Reducing the increasing property losses and causalities associated with severe windstorms has been the central research focus of the wind engineering community. The present wind engineering toolbox consists of building codes and standards, laboratory experiments, and field measurements. The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) 7 standard provides wind loads only for buildings with common shapes. For complex cases it refers to physical modeling. Although this option can be economically viable for large projects, it is not cost-effective for low-rise residential houses. To circumvent these limitations, a numerical approach based on the techniques of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) has been developed. The recent advance in computing technology and significant developments in turbulence modeling is making numerical evaluation of wind effects a more affordable approach. The present study targeted those cases that are not addressed by the standards. These include wind loads on complex roofs for low-rise buildings, aerodynamics of tall buildings, and effects of complex surrounding buildings. Among all the turbulence models investigated, the large eddy simulation (LES) model performed the best in predicting wind loads. The application of a spatially evolving time-dependent wind velocity field with the relevant turbulence structures at the inlet boundaries was found to be essential. All the results were compared and validated with experimental data. The study also revealed CFD's unique flow visualization and aerodynamic data generation capabilities along with a better understanding of the complex three-dimensional aerodynamics of wind-structure interactions. With the proper modeling that realistically represents the actual turbulent atmospheric boundary layer flow, CFD can offer an economical alternative to the existing wind engineering tools. CFD's easy accessibility is expected to transform the practice of structural design for wind, resulting in more wind-resilient and sustainable systems by encouraging optimal aerodynamic and sustainable structural/building design. Thus, this method will help ensure public safety and reduce economic losses due to wind perils.

The effects of content-based ESOL instruction on the overall English proficiency of foreign -born college students

This study investigates the effects of content-based ESOL instruction on the overall English proficiency of foreign-born college students. Based on various psychological and social factors which affect second language acquisition, it is suggested that the techniques of content-based instruction, while focusing on subject matter, allow the learners to overcome the language barrier by neutralizing their subconscious defense mechanism, thus attaining greater proficiency.^ Two groups of Miami-Dade Community College ESOL students were chosen as subjects for this study: a control group composed of students from the North and Wolfson campuses, where the ESOL program is based predominantly on structural or structural-functional approach, and an experimental group of Medical Center campus students, where content-based instruction is incorporated into curriculum. Ethnicity, gender, age, and other differences in the population are discussed in the study.^ The students' English Placement Test (EPT) scores were used as covariate, and the scores on Multiple Assessment Programs and Services (MAPS) test as dependent variables. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was applied to test significant difference between the means. The results of the analysis of data indicate that there is a consistent difference in the mean performance of the Medical Center campus ESOL students demonstrated by their scores on MAPS. Although neither ethnicity, nor gender of the subjects has affected the outcome, age had a contributing effect. The implications of these findings suggest that content-based instruction facilitates greater overall English proficiency in foreign-born college students. ^

Cultural perceptions of space and place in the South Florida *environment

Public opinion polls in the United States reveal that a great majority of Americans are aware and show concern about ecological issues and the need to preserve natural areas. In South Florida, natural resources have been subjected to enormous strain as the pressure to accommodate a growing population has led to rapid development. Suburbs have been built on areas that were once natural wetlands and farmlands, and the impact today shows a landscape where natural places have all but disappeared. This dissertation examines the intersection between the perceptions that individuals living in the South Florida region have with respect to the natural environment and local ecological problems with where their relationship to nature takes place. ^ The research is based upon both quantitative and qualitative data. The principal methodology used in this research is the ethnographic method, which employed the data gathering techniques of in-depth interviewing and participant observation. The objective of the qualitative portion of the study was to determine how people perceive and relate to their immediate environment. The quantitative portion of the study employed telephone survey data from the FIU/Florida Poll 2000. Data collected through this survey provided the basis to statistically test responses to the research questions. ^ The findings show that people in South Florida have a general idea of the relationship between the human population and the environment but very little knowledge of how they individually affect each other. The experience of private places and public spaces in everyday life permits people to compartmentalize cultural values and understandings of the natural world in separate cognitive schemas. The appreciation of the natural world has almost no connection to their personal sense of obligation to preserve the environment. That obligation is only felt in their home space even though the South Florida environment overall struggles desperately with water shortages, land encroachment, and a rapidly expanding human population whose activities continuously aggravate an already delicate natural balance. ^

The state of the nations:current and future developments in technology enhanced learning

Right across Europe technology is playing a vital part in enhancing learning for an increasingly diverse population of learners. Learning is increasingly flexible, social and mobile and supported by high quality multi-media resources. Institutional VLEs are seeing a shift towards open source products and these core systems are supplemented by a range of social and collaborative learning tools based on web 2.0 technologies. Learners undertaking field studies and those in the workplace are coming to expect that these off-campus experiences will also be technology-rich whether supported by institutional or user-owned devices. As well as keeping European businesses competitive, learning is seen as a means of increasing social mobility and supporting an agenda of social justice. For a number of years the EUNIS E-Learning Task Force (ELTF) has conducted snapshot surveys of e-learning across member institutions, collected case studies of good practice in e-learning see (Hayes, et al., 2009) in references, supported a group looking at the future of e-learning, and showcased the best of innovation in its e-learning Award. Now for the first time the ELTF membership has come together to undertake an analysis of developments in the member states and to assess what this might mean for the future. The group applied the techniques of World Café conversation and Scenario Thinking to develop its thoughts. The analysis is unashamedly qualitative and draws on expertise from leading universities across eight of the EUNIS member states. What emerges is interesting in terms of the common trends in developments in all of the nations and similarities in hopes and concerns about the future development of learning.

Akrasia and the Aesthetic: Human Agency and the Site of Literature, 1760-1820

This study focuses on a series of foundational stylistic and formal innovations in eighteenth-century and Romantic literature, and argues that they can be cumulatively attributed to the distinct challenges authors faced in representing human action and the will. The study focuses in particular on cases of “acting against better judgment” or “failing to do what one knows one ought to do” – concepts originally theorized as “akrasia” and “weakness of the will” in ancient Greek and Scholastic thought. During the Enlightenment, philosophy increasingly conceives of human minds and bodies like systems and machines, and consequently fails to address such cases except as intractable or incoherent. Yet eighteenth-century and Romantic narratives and poetry consistently engage the paradoxes and ambiguities of action and volition in representations of akrasia. As a result, literature develops representational strategies that distinguish the epistemic capacities of literature as privileged over those of philosophy.

The study begins by centering on narratives of distempered selves from the 1760s. Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Confessions and Laurence Sterne’s A Sentimental Journey narrate cases of knowingly and weakly acting against better judgment, and in so doing, reveal the limitations of the “philosophy of the passions” that famously informed sentimental literature at the time. These texts find that the interpretive difficulties of action demand a non-systematic and hermeneutic approach to interpreting a self through the genre of narrative. Rousseau’s narrative in particular informs William Godwin’s realist novels of distempered subjects. Departing from his mechanistic philosophy of mind and action, Godwin develops the technique of free indirect discourse in his third novel Fleetwood (1805) as a means of evoking the ironies and self-deceptions in how we talk about willing.

Romantic poetry employs the literary trope of weakness of will primarily through the problem of regretted inaction – a problem which I argue motivates the major poetic innovations of William Wordsworth and John Keats. While Samuel Taylor Coleridge sought to characterize his weakness of will in philosophical writing, Wordsworth turns to poetry with The Prelude (1805), revealing poetry itself to be a self-deceiving and disappointing form of procrastination. More explicitly than Wordsworth, John Keats identifies indolence as the prime symbol and basis of what he calls “negative capability.” In his letters and poems such as “On Seeing the Elgin Marbles” (1817) and “Ode on Indolence” (1819), Keats reveals how the irreducibly contradictory qualities of human agency speak to the particular privilege of “disinterested aesthetics” – a genre fitted for the modern era for its ability to disclose contradictions without seeking to resolve or explain them in terms of component parts.