Multivariate Approaches to Classification in Extragalactic Astronomy

Clustering objects into synthetic groups is a natural activity of any science. Astrophysics is not an exception and is now facing a deluge of data. For galaxies, the one-century old Hubble classification and the Hubble tuning fork are still largely in use, together with numerous mono-or bivariate classifications most often made by eye. However, a classification must be driven by the data, and sophisticated multivariate statistical tools are used more and more often. In this paper we review these different approaches in order to situate them in the general context of unsupervised and supervised learning. We insist on the astrophysical outcomes of these studies to show that multivariate analyses provide an obvious path toward a renewal of our classification of galaxies and are invaluable tools to investigate the physics and evolution of galaxies.Comment: Open Access paper. http://www.frontiersin.org/milky\_way\_and\_galaxies/10.3389/fspas.2015.00003/abstract\>. \<10.3389/fspas.2015.00003 \&g

Rapid methods of landslide hazard mapping : Fiji case study

A landslide hazard probability map can help planners (1) prepare for, and/or mitigate against, the effects of landsliding on communities and infrastructure, and (2) avoid or minimise the risks associated with new developments. The aims of the project were to establish, by means of studies in a few test areas, a generic method by which remote sensing and data analysis using a geographic information system (GIS) could provide a provisional landslide hazard zonation map. The provision of basic hazard information is an underpinning theme of the UN’s International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR). It is an essential requirement for disaster preparedness and mitigation planning. This report forms part of BGS project 92/7 (R5554) ‘Rapid assessment of landslip hazards’ Carried out under the ODA/BGS Technology Development and Research Programme as part of the British Government’s provision of aid to developing countries. It provides a detailed technical account of work undertaken in a test area in Viti Levu in collaboration with Fiji Mineral Resources Department. The study represents a demonstration of a methodology that is applicable to many developing countries. The underlying principle is that relationships between past landsliding events, interpreted from remote sensing, and factors such as the geology, relief, soils etc provide the basis for modelling where future landslides are most likely to occur. This is achieved using a GIS by ‘weighting’ each class of each variable (e.g. each lithology ‘class’ of the variable ‘geology’) according to the proportion of landslides occurring within it compared to the regional average. Combinations of variables, produced by summing the weights in individual classes, provide ‘models’ of landslide probability. The approach is empirical but has the advantage of potentially being able to provide regional scale hazard maps over large areas quickly and cheaply; this is unlikely to be achieved using conventional ground-based geotechnical methods. In Fiji, landslides are usually triggered by intense rain storms commonly associated with tropical cyclones. However, the regional distribution of landslides has not been mapped nor is it known how far geology and landscape influence the location and severity of landsliding events. The report discusses the remote sensing and GIS methodology, and describes the results of the pilot study over an area of 713 km2 in south east Viti Levu. The landslide model uses geology, elevation, slope angle, slope aspect, soil type, and forest cover as inputs. The resulting provisional landslide hazard zonation map, divided into high, medium and low zones of landslide hazard probability, suggests that whilst rainfall is the immediate cause, others controls do exert a significant influence. It is recommended that consideration be given in Fiji to implementing the techniques as part of a national strategic plan for landslide hazard zonation mapping

Tracer concentration profiles measured in central London as part of the REPARTEE campaign

There have been relatively few tracer experiments carried out that have looked at vertical plume spread in urban areas. In this paper we present results from two tracer (cyclic perfluorocarbon) experiments carried out in 2006 and 2007 in central London centred on the BT Tower as part of the REPARTEE (Regent’s Park and Tower Environmental Experiment) campaign. The height of the tower gives a unique opportunity to study vertical dispersion profiles and transport times in central London. Vertical gradients are contrasted with the relevant Pasquill stability classes. Estimation of lateral advection and vertical mixing times are made and compared with previous measurements. Data are then compared with a simple operational dispersion model and contrasted with data taken in central London as part of the DAPPLE campaign. This correlates dosage with non-dimensionalised distance from source. Such analyses illustrate the feasibility of the use of these empirical correlations over these prescribed distances in central London

Towards formal models and languages for verifiable Multi-Robot Systems

Incorrect operations of a Multi-Robot System (MRS) may not only lead to unsatisfactory results, but can also cause economic losses and threats to safety. These threats may not always be apparent, since they may arise as unforeseen consequences of the interactions between elements of the system. This call for tools and techniques that can help in providing guarantees about MRSs behaviour. We think that, whenever possible, these guarantees should be backed up by formal proofs to complement traditional approaches based on testing and simulation. We believe that tailored linguistic support to specify MRSs is a major step towards this goal. In particular, reducing the gap between typical features of an MRS and the level of abstraction of the linguistic primitives would simplify both the specification of these systems and the verification of their properties. In this work, we review different agent-oriented languages and their features; we then consider a selection of case studies of interest and implement them useing the surveyed languages. We also evaluate and compare effectiveness of the proposed solution, considering, in particular, easiness of expressing non-trivial behaviour.Comment: Changed formattin

Defining teaching for a global educational world: the development of professional standards

In August 2013 the General Teaching Council for Scotland launched a revised suite of standards for the teaching profession (GTCS 2012a,b,c). These sets of standards cover initial teacher education, full registration, advanced teaching and leadership and management. There is a danger that professional standards focus on narrowly defined behavioural competences and so reinforce a technicist approach to the practice of teachers and leaders in school (Murphy, 2005). The policy emphasis in Scotland (Donaldson 2011), however, is on the use professional standards as developmental tools to enhance practice (Ingvarson, 2005). A key element in the revision process of the professional standards has been to position the role and practice of the teaching profession in a global setting thereby fostering a future orientation in the development of teaching that reflects increasing social and cultural diversity. The foundation of this suite of standards has been the agreement of a common set of values for the teaching profession: “Professional Values are at the core of Professional Standards. The educational experiences of all our learners are shaped by the values and dispositions of all those who educate them. Values are complex and the ideals by which we shape our practice as professionals” (GTCS 2012a p. 10). The set of professional values cover the ethical dimensions of professional practice such as integrity, professional commitment, trust and respect. Importantly the professional values also cover wider issues related to social justice and sustainability. However, there is a question of how we move from these being a set of espoused values to a set of ‘values-in-action’. This paper examines the potential of this set of professional standards to bring to the fore issues of social justice as a means of developing culturally responsive teaching

Exploring the Linkage of Spatial Indicators from Remote Sensing Data with Survey Data: The Case of the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) and 3D City Models

This paper demonstrates the spatial evaluation of survey data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) study using geo-coordinates and spatially relevant indicators from remote sensing data. By geocoding the addresses of survey households with block-level geographic precision (while preventing their identification by name and guaranteeingtheir complete anonymity), data on SOEP respondents can now be analyzed in a specific spatial context. In the past, regional analyses of SOEP based on official regional indicators (e.g., the unemployment rate) always had only very imprecise spatial information to work with. This limitation has now been overcome with the geocoded respondents' information. Within a protected unit of the fieldwork organization responsible for SOEP (TNS Infratest, Munich), the addresses of survey households can now be used to generate a variable describing the location of the household with block-level precision. At DIW Berlin, this additional variable is fed into a special computer infrastructure with multiple security layers that makes the socio-economic analysis possible. This paper demonstrates the use of this geographicallocation and remote sensing data to check respondents' subjective assessments of the location of their residence, anddiscusses the analytical potential of linking remote sensing data and survey data.Remote sensing data, social sciences, behavioral sciences, multi-disciplinarity, SOEP

Do Employment Quotas Explain the Occupational Choices of Disadvantaged Minorities in India?

This article investigates the effects of a large-scale public sector employment quota policy for disadvantaged minorities (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) in India on their occupational choices, as defined by skill level, during the 1980s and 1990s. We find that, first, the employment quota policy significantly affects the occupational structure of both disadvantaged minority populations. In response to the employment quotas, individuals belonging to the Scheduled Caste group are more likely to choose high-skill occupations and less likely to choose low- and middle-skill occupations, while individuals belonging to the Scheduled Tribe group are less likely to choose high-skill occupations and more likely to choose low- and middle-skill occupations. Second, the impact of the employment quotas is significantly related with an individual's years of schooling. Overall, the results indicate that the employment quota policy changes the occupational choices of individuals within the targeted populations and contributes to their improved socio-economic standing.skill, affirmative action, employment quota, occupational choice, caste, India

FEDERATED HBIM MODELS FOR CULTURAL HERITAGE: SURVEY MODEL AND CONCEPTUAL MODEL

The archaeological site is a mine of data and information that helps to deepen the knowledge of its origin, history, and structure. This virtuous approach becomes even more effective when these data, properly processed and structured, form the basis for a project of conservation and enhancement of the cultural asset. The Roman mosaics dug in Castiglione delle Stiviere in 1995 represent an interesting case in which all the archaeological information, made available by the Superintendence, was used through an HBIM (Historical Building Information Modeling) approach for the conservation project. The Stratigraphic Units (US) of the findings have identified the strategy for the geometric and informative modeling of the BIM (Building Information Modeling) model and have also been exploited in the design phase for the project of the new roof structure and especially for the cost analysis. The structuring of the data by stratigraphic units was also used in the drafting of the preventive and planned conservation, necessary to enhance and prolong the state of good health of the property. This work has been developed in the internship activity within a training course on HBIM, in collaboration with the Diocese of Mantua, owner of the property

References to past designs

Designing by adaptation is almost invariably a dominantambiguity feature of designing, and references to past designs are ubiquitous in design discourse. Object references serve as indices into designers' stocks of design concepts, in which memories for concrete embodiments and exemplars are tightly bound to solution principles. Thinking and talking by reference to past designs serves as a way to reduce the overwhelming complexity of complex design tasks by enabling designers to use parsimonious mental representations to which details can be added as needed. However object references can be ambiguous, and import more of the past design than is intended or may be desirable