State-space realization of nonlinear control systems: unification and extension via pseudo-linear algebra

summary:In this paper the tools of pseudo-linear algebra are applied to the realization problem, allowing to unify the study of the continuous- and discrete-time nonlinear control systems under a single algebraic framework. The realization of nonlinear input-output equation, defined in terms of the pseudo-linear operator, in the classical state-space form is addressed by the polynomial approach in which the system is described by two polynomials from the non-commutative ring of skew polynomials. This allows to simplify the existing step-by-step algorithm-based solution. The paper presents explicit formulas to compute the differentials of the state coordinates directly from the polynomial description of the nonlinear system. The method is straight-forward and better suited for implementation in different computer algebra packages such as \textit{Mathematica} or \textit{Maple}

Nabla derivatives associated with nonlinear control systems on homogeneous time scales

The backward shift and nabla derivative operators, defined by the control system on homogeneous time scale, in vector spaces of one-forms and vector fields are introduced and some of their properties are proven. In particular the formulas for components of the backward shift and nabla derivative of an arbitrary vector field are presented

Associations between Sense of Community and Perceived Recovery from the Deepwater Horizon Explosion

Natural disasters may bring devastating effects on the environment and humans. On April 20th, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded, killing 11 people and spilling more than 4 million barrels of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The spill caused extensive damage to marine and wildlife habitats, the fishing and tourism industries, and the Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida coastlines. Although people who lived in the area were deeply affected by the oil spill, most funded research have focused on the environmental issues, such as the effects of the spill on the marine ecology. However, within weeks after the explosion, the National Center for Disaster Preparedness initiated the Gulf Coast Population Impact Project (GCPI) to track the effects of the spill on the people who lived in the affected area. This thesis is a part of that project. The data for the thesis take a survey format in which respondents were asked about the health effects from the spill. A limitation is that these self-reported diagnoses were not confirmed by medical professionals. However, the dataset includes some information that medical records cannot provide, including data about the respondents’ location and sense of community. In this paper, potential association between people’s sense of community and their effects on perceived recovery at the individual, household, and community levels are investigated. This research is significant because it may help to identify factors that promote resiliency through community building towards natural disasters in the future

Holomorphic extension of CR functions, envelopes of holomorphy and removable singularities

This is an extensive (published) survey on CR geometry, whose major themes are: formal analytic reflection principle; generic properties of Systems of (CR) vector fields; pairs of foliations and conjugate reflection identities; Sussmann's orbit theorem; local and global aspects of holomorphic extension of CR functions; Tumanov's solution of Bishop's equation in Hoelder classes with optimal loss of smoothness; wedge-extendability on C^2,a generic submanifolds of C^n consisting of a single CR orbit; propagation of CR extendability and edge-of-the-wedge theorem; Painlev\'{e} problem; metrically thin singularities of CR functions; geometrically removable singularities for solutions of the induced d-barre. Selected theorems are fully proved, while surveyed results are put in the right place in the architecture.Comment: 283 pages ; 33 illustrations ; 16 open problems http://www.hindawi.com/journals/imrs

The right to mother tongue education a multi-disciplinary, normative perspective

The post-apartheid South African Constitution guarantees the children of this country “the right to receive education in the official language or languages of their choice in public education institutions where that education is reasonably practicable” (The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Act 108 of 1996, Section 29 (2)) (Juta’s Statutes 2003). Yet ten years into the new dispensation nothing significant has been done to alter a situation in which the majority of children are obliged to access their basic education largely through the medium of a second or even a third language — English. In contravention of both the intentions and the specific provisions of numerous legislative measures and policy statements, Government has made no serious or effective attempt to promote the use of any language other than English in South African schools nor to encourage language practices most conducive to the cognitive development and academic success of millions of non-English speaking pupils. To make matters worse, most of the children who enter the school system with very little knowledge of English and are expected to make an abrupt transition to that language as a medium of instruction after a totally inadequate three years are from impoverished households and communities still suffering the gravest effects of the discrimination and oppression of apartheid. They are often underprepared and seriously disadvantaged by their background circumstances when they enter the culturally strange and intimidating western-style education system. To heap on top of these disadvantages the burden of language practices in the classroom that hinder rather than facilitate their access to education is indefensible. When Macdonald asks, “ Are our children still swimming up the waterfall?” (Macdonald 2002: 111) she is not exaggerating. In these circumstances and if ineffective language teaching and inadequate use of the mother tongue as a medium of instruction can be shown to bar effective access to basic education of an acceptable standard, there are far more serious and far-reaching implications in terms of human rights than just the right to choice of language medium. Linguistic research into medium of instruction has tended to be isolated from evaluative legal approaches to minority language rights, children’s rights, education rights or other fundamental human rights. Insufficient attention has been given to the interrelationship between the various rights and the importance of local conditions and circumstances in any assessment of their relative weight and enforceability. Human rights cannot be seen out of context, and theory from various disciplines, such as politics, economics and linguistics may be invaluable in forming a fresh perspective on the right to mother tongue education and, indeed, to basic education in general. The principle of non-discrimination in education is generally recognised, to be sure, as is the importance of ensuring access to and quality of education (Strydom 1992/93:139), but the dependence of these factors on the most appropriate medium of instruction within the education system does not merit much attention in the literature. The right to basic education tends to be seen as separate from any possible right to choice of medium of instruction and the latter often merely as a question of convenience or preference, at best a qualified right (Oosthuizen and Rossouw 2001: 666), dependent on feasibility, numbers and available finance (Motata and Lemmer 2002: 111). In fact, the case for regarding the right to mother tongue education as a strong positive right in many contexts and countries does not appear yet to have been made. This study is theoretical in nature and constitutes an attempt to fill this gap by examining the findings and views of experts from various disciplines within the framework of current thinking on human rights issues. The development of a coherent framework within which to view the right to mother tongue education and government obligations in connection therewith might be of some value to policy makers in their efforts to plan improvements within the education system. The synthesis and possibly, to a limited extent, the development of theory from the relevant disciplines will be undertaken by means of a survey of the relevant literature, an analysis of not only local but also international legislation and policy documents and the weighing and balancing of conflicting evidence and contrasting viewpoints. Sources and contributions in each area will be discussed under the headings outlined in Chapter 3. First, however, I should like to provide an overview of the educational, political and economic context in which mother tongue education must be considered

Regulated Health Professions Act and dental hygiene : a study of the changing social organization of health care delivery in Ontario / Lynda McKeown Mickelson

Has the new health legislation, the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1994. changed the social organization of health care delivery in Ontario? My research has shown that this new legislation, which governs twenty-four health professions, is a site of power relations. The seemingly mundane and ordinary practice of oral health care delivery is examined to find evidence of change in the social organization of health care. The relationship between two providers of services surrounding the mouth and oral health care, dental hygiene and dentistry exemplify the power relations and the inherent resistance emerging as the legislation is enacted. The evidence at this time indicates that the existing professional monopolies may not be disrupted easily, even with new legislation. The themes that emerged from the struggle to reframe the relations between dentistry and dental hygiene under the new R.H.P.A. are: discourse/language, professional dominance, technologies of bureaucracy, gender, and power/knowledge

Goals, needs and program implications for adult second language English learners in Fairbanks, Alaska

Thesis (M.A.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2010"Adults learning English as a second language face a variety of challenges. This study examines some of those challenges for this population in Fairbanks, AK. Participants were interviewed to better understand their goals for language learning and for other personal aspirations. Four types of goals are identified as well as sub-themes within each goal. From these goals, specific types of needs are determined. Needs focus mainly on written and spoken language proficiency and different competencies required to achieve goals. Finally, suggestions for implementation of programmatic policies and curricula are discussed. However, this analysis is controversial and complicated. Participants were confronted with ideologies, which are present everywhere from daily tasks to the curricula that are geared toward second language learners. In addition, participants' conflicted ideas of identity and their own beliefs about life and language are significant considerations throughout the study"--Leaf ii

The Virtue of Process: Finding the Legitimacy of Judicial Fact-Finding in Personal Injury Litigation

This thesis is an inquiry into the legitimacy of judicial fact-finding in civil litigation. Judges make authoritative factual findings in conditions of uncertainty and the decision-making process cannot, and does not, guarantee the accuracy of those outcomes. Given the inevitable risk of error, on what basis is the authority of judicial fact-finding legitimate? This project provides a framework of procedural legitimacy that bridges two unavoidable aspects of adjudication: factual indeterminacy and the need for justifiably authoritative dispute resolution. This work draws of the legal theories of Lon Fuller and Jurgen Habermas to substantiate the notion of procedural legitimacy in the context of judicial fact-finding. The framework of procedural legitimacy is then applied to three doctrinal discourses relevant to personal injury litigation: use of scientific evidence, proof of causation, and use of probabilistic reasoning in assessing damages awards