No more condescension, please

The government white paper ‘Higher Ambitions’ has signalled the need for a “major change in the culture of our higher education system”. Lord Mandelson has added, "Our challenge now is to bring higher and further education into a single integrated knowledge infrastructure." However, the relationship between HE and FE is founded on a number of inherent inequalities which often go unacknowledged and undiscussed and undermines working together

3D cellular automata

A cellular automaton (CA) is a set of rules which determines the state of individual cells on a grid, based on neighbourhood relations. CAs have been used by researchers to model a wide range of systems from cell growth to cosmology to universal computation. However nearly all such models have been on one or two dimensional grids. This article provides a brief history of the development of CAs and then extends the models to three dimensions using open source software; Blender and Python. New 3D rules are examined and the development of 3D cell configurations explored and visualized

Using assessment to drive retention and achievement upwards

Identifying what the student really wants from their course provides a method of controlling the learning process. We contend that the prime student driver is the achievement of their qualification by gaining marks and not learning itself. We examine the effect of tying attendance directly to the achievement of marks. It is found that attendance improves from around 60% to 98.5%. Further methods are discussed which might have a direct affect on retention and achievement based on the identification of student wants

New Calabi-Yau Manifolds with Small Hodge Numbers

It is known that many Calabi-Yau manifolds form a connected web. The question of whether all Calabi-Yau manifolds form a single web depends on the degree of singularity that is permitted for the varieties that connect the distinct families of smooth manifolds. If only conifolds are allowed then, since shrinking two-spheres and three-spheres to points cannot affect the fundamental group, manifolds with different fundamental groups will form disconnected webs. We examine these webs for the tip of the distribution of Calabi-Yau manifolds where the Hodge numbers (h^{11}, h^{21}) are both small. In the tip of the distribution the quotient manifolds play an important role. We generate via conifold transitions from these quotients a number of new manifolds. These include a manifold with \chi =-6 and manifolds with an attractive structure that may prove of interest for string phenomenology. We also examine the relation of some of these manifolds to the remarkable Gross-Popescu manifolds that have Euler number zero.Comment: 105 pages, pdflatex with about 70 pdf and jpeg figures. References corrected. Minor revisions to Fig1, and Table 9 extended to the range h^{11} + h^21 \leq 2

The Anatomy of an adaptive multimedia presentation system

The use of multimedia presentations within learning environments is described and guidelines for the design of good E-Learning systems are identified. It is argued that a linear sequential presentation of knowledge segments is effective, but that the user is provided with optional links to relevant segments during the presentation. The synchronisation of multiple media is considered and the design of a prototype E-Learning system is discussed. The segmentation of material is then discussed and how the information can be stored in a data repository consider with respect to the requirement of accessing linked segments. Finally, the nature of adaptivity is discussed leading to a discussion of the salient parts of an adaptive multimedia presentation system

Algebraic Quantum Mechanics and Pregeometry

We discuss the relation between the q-number approach to quantum mechanics suggested by Dirac and the notion of "pregeometry" introduced by Wheeler. By associating the q-numbers with the elements of an algebra and regarding the primitive idempotents as "generalized points" we suggest an approach that may make it possible to dispense with an a priori given space manifold. In this approach the algebra itself would carry the symmetries of translation, rotation, etc. Our suggestion is illustrated in a preliminary way by using a particular generalized Clifford algebra proposed originally by Weyl, which approaches the ordinary Heisenberg algebra a suitable limit. We thus obtain a certain insight into how quantum mechanics may be regarded as a purely algebraic theory, provided that we further introduce a new set of "neighbourhood operators", which remove an important kind of arbitrariness that has thus far been present in the attempt to treat quantum mechanics solely in terms of a Heisenberg algebra

COUNTERINTELLIGENCE AND FIRST LINES OF DEFENSE IN AN AGE OF HYBRID WARFARE

On November 16, 2023, Prof. Philip Davies presented Counterintelligence and First Lines of Defense in an Age of Hybrid Warfare for this year’s West Coast Security Conference. The key points discussed were the relationship between Full Spectrum Conflict/Hybrid Warfare (FSC/HW) activities and counterintelligence (CI), especially with reference to the role of Foreign Intelligence Services (FIS) in delivering sub-threshold/grey zone operations, inconsistencies in current NATO counterintelligence thinking and professional practice, and the consequent difficulty adapting that CI theory and practice to meeting the CI aspects of the FSC/HW threat.   Received: 01-05-2024 Revised: 01-30-202