The Sub-Index of Critical Points of Distance Functions

We define a new notion---the sub-index of a critical point of a distance function. We show how sub-index affects the homotopy type of sublevel sets of distance functions.Comment: We corrected a mistake in the proof of Theorem 3.

Is Expert Evidence Really Different?

The problem with expert evidence is not the inappropriateness of the Daubert approach. The narrow focus on Daubert is misplaced. The real problem is with the more deeply entrenched view that expert evidence should be excluded under circumstances in which analogous non-expert evidence would be admitted. Daubert embodies the distinction between expert and non-expert evidence, but it is that very distinction, and not just Daubert, that is the problem. Daubert has indeed transformed modern evidence law, but perhaps it has awakened us to the need for a more profound transformation, one in which the very foundations of treating expert testimony differently are undercut. This is a larger claim than that Daubert itself is a problem, and it is this larger claim we seek to advance here

Distributed intelligent control and management (DICAM) applications and support for semi-automated development

We have recently begun a 4-year effort to develop a new technology foundation and associated methodology for the rapid development of high-performance intelligent controllers. Our objective in this work is to enable system developers to create effective real-time systems for control of multiple, coordinated entities in much less time than is currently required. Our technical strategy for achieving this objective is like that in other domain-specific software efforts: analyze the domain and task underlying effective performance, construct parametric or model-based generic components and overall solutions to the task, and provide excellent means for specifying, selecting, tailoring or automatically generating the solution elements particularly appropriate for the problem at hand. In this paper, we first present our specific domain focus, briefly describe the methodology and environment we are developing to provide a more regular approach to software development, and then later describe the issues this raises for the research community and this specific workshop

Human Factors & Going Green: Study Abroad on Sustainability and Transportation

The Northern European countries have been leaders in sustainability efforts, and support of alternative modes of transportation, focusing on implementation, design and strategies that make these efforts easier to adopt by the broader community. Human Factors (HF) is a discipline that studies human behavior and capabilities with the purpose of applying to the design of products, equipment and systems to maximize safety, effectiveness, and user satisfaction. Three senior faculty in the ERAU human factors department are sponsoring a summer study abroad merging sustainability and human factors. The focus of this study abroad program is on understanding Human Factors as it relates to sustainability as well as first-hand experience with alternative modes of transportation, including trains, trams, bikes, scooters, electric vehicles and others. Three classes – HF and Sustainability, HF and Transportation, and User Experience (UX) will be integrative, each dovetailing into the others. Supplementing the classroom experience will be professional tours of organizations that are known for design and implementation of sustainability (government officials in each country who design and implement sustainability efforts, Volvo etc.) as well as visits to cultural locations that have provided the foundation for the development of these efforts in each country. Locations that will be visited include Amsterdam, Netherlands; Hamburg, Germany; Copenhagen, Denmark; Gothensburg, Sweden; and Oslo, Norway

Landscape Pattern Response to Changes in the Pattern Generation Rules: Land-use Legacies in Forestry

The Pacific Northwest of the United States is currently embroiled in an acrimonious debate over the management of federal forest lands. Constructive resolution of this debate will require better information on a broad range of forest management issues. This study focuses on one such issue: the development of landscape pattern in response to alternative forest cutting plans and the degree to which established landscape patterns can be changed. Dispersed cutting has been conducted on federal lands in the western United States for \u3e40 yr, but alternative cutting plans are now being considered. To assess the effects of different disturbance processes on the development of landscape pattern, we compare dispersed- and aggregated-cutting plans using a simple, rule-based simulation model that incorporates realistic regulatory and logistic constraints. Our results indicate that, once established, the landscape pattern created by dispersed disturbances is difficult to erase without a substantial reduction in the disturbance rate or a reduction in the minimum stand age eligible for disturbance. Change in landscape pattern can lag substan­tially behind change in the rules governing pattern generation

Dependence of Galaxy Shape on Environment in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

Using a sample of galaxies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 4, we study the trends relating surface brightness profile type and apparent axis ratio to the local galaxy environment. We use the SDSS parameter `fracDeV' to quantify the profile type. We find that galaxies with M_r > -18 are mostly described by exponential profiles in all environments. Galaxies with -21 < M_r < -18 mainly have exponential profiles in low density environments and de Vaucouleurs profiles in high density environments. The most luminous galaxies, with M_r < -21, are mostly described by de Vaucouleurs profiles in all environments. For galaxies with M_r < -19, the fraction of de Vaucouleurs galaxies is a monotonically increasing function of local density, while the fraction of exponential galaxies is monotonically decreasing. For a fixed surface brightness profile type, apparent axis ratio is frequently correlated with environment. As the local density of galaxies increases, we find that for -20 < M_r < -18, galaxies of all profile types become slightly rounder, on average; for -22 < M_r < -20, galaxies with exponential profiles tend to become flatter, while galaxies with de Vaucouleurs profiles become rounder; for M_r < -22, galaxies with exponential profiles become flatter, while the de Vaucouleurs galaxies become rounder in their inner regions, yet exhibit no change in their outer regions. We comment on how the observed trends relate to the merger history of galaxies.Comment: 23 pages, 7 figures, accepted by Ap

Implications of Piagetian Theory for Correlating Art and Reading

Piaget tells us that we know something to the extent that we act on it. Because art facilitates the right kinds of action for knowing, or learning, correlating art and reading may well be the vehicle to growth in and enjoyment of communication skills. Therefore, art not only contributes to reading development but also contributes to both the cognitive and the affective development needed for success in all academic areas

A Phenomenology of the Integration of Faith and Learning

This phenomenological investigation examined how eight student-nominated faculty who teach at an evangelical Christian liberal arts university describe their understanding and practice of the Integration of Faith and Learning (IFL). Collected data via informal, conversational, taped interviews led to the emergence of two primary themes: the Inseparability of Faith from Practice and the Outworking of Faith in Practice. The findings of the study highlight the need to create a more conducive context in which students can learn IFL and call for a re-examination of the already murky discourse surrounding definitional aspects of IFL. The study proposes to move the discourse forward by offering a new, yet to be discussed construct that emanated from the participants of this study, ontological foundation. A conceptual model describing its relationship with IFL is proposed