Exact Gravitational Shock Wave Solution of Higher Order Theories

We find an {\it exact} pp--gravitational wave solution of the fourth order gravity field equations. Outside the (delta--like) source this {\it not} a vacuum solution of General Relativity. It represents the contribution of the massive, $m=(-\beta)^{-1/2}$, spin--two field associated to the Ricci squared term in the gravitational Lagrangian. The fourth order terms tend to make milder the singularity of the curvature at the point where the particle is located. We generalize this analysis to $D$--dimensions, extended sources, and higher than fourth order theories. We also briefly discuss the scattering of fields by this kind of plane gravitational waves.Comment: 12 pages, REVTEX, Fully revised version. Amplitude of the wave computed. Discussion section added. Figure added. To appear in Phys. Rev.

Call Me Caitlyn: Making and making over the 'authentic' transgender body in Anglo-American popular culture

A conception of transgender identity as an ‘authentic’ gendered core ‘trapped’ within a mismatched corporeality, and made tangible through corporeal transformations, has attained unprecedented legibility in contemporary Anglo-American media. Whilst pop-cultural articulations of this discourse have received some scholarly attention, the question of why this 'wrong body' paradigm has solidified as the normative explanation for gender transition within the popular media remains underexplored. This paper argues that this discourse has attained cultural pre-eminence through its convergence with a broader media and commercial zeitgeist, in which corporeal alteration and maintenance are perceived as means of accessing one’s ‘authentic’ self. I analyse the media representations of two transgender celebrities: Caitlyn Jenner and Nadia Almada, alongside the reality TV show TRANSform Me, exploring how these women’s gender transitions have been discursively aligned with a cultural imperative for all women, cisgender or trans, to display their authentic femininity through bodily work. This demonstrates how established tropes of authenticity-via-bodily transformation, have enabled transgender to become culturally legible through the wrong body trope. Problematically, I argue, this process has worked to demarcate ideals of ‘acceptable’ transgender subjectivity: self-sufficient, normatively feminine, and eager to embrace the possibilities for happiness and social integration provided by the commercial domain

Occupational balance: What tips the scales for new students?

The open question, ‘What prevents you from reaching occupational balance?’, was posed within a questionnaire aimed at exploring the meanings of occupation, health and wellbeing with a cohort of first-year occupational therapy students during their initial few weeks at university. Their written responses to the question about occupational balance were analysed and are discussed in this paper. Not surprisingly, occupational balance appeared to be achieved by only a few and more by chance than design. People, time and money factors were identified as the main impediments to achieving occupational balance, with psychological and emotional pressures being at the forefront. Interestingly, despite these barriers, the overall educational benefit of considering the occupational balance question in this way raised the students’ awareness of its relationship to health and wellbeing. This increased awareness might have longer-term health benefits, both personally and professionally, which would be worthy of further research

Quantum Cosmology for a Quadratic Theory of Gravity

For pure fourth order (${\cal{L}} \propto R^2$) quantum cosmology the Wheeler-DeWitt equation is solved exactly for the closed homogeneous and isotropic model. It is shown that by imposing as boundary condition that $\Psi = 0$ at the origin of the universe the wave functions behave as suggested by Vilenkin.Comment: 13 pages, latex,no figure

Hai Di Lao Hot Pot: From Employee Stimulation to Service Innovation

The management of Chinese restaurant chains has for some time followed the western model while accommodating Chinese customers. The new Hai Di Lao Hot Pot Restaurant chain has established its own management style, pioneering chain catering management to help the Chinese restaurant industry establish a professional image, explore a local management model, and maintain high standards of food safety. The objectives of this case study are to introduce the Hai Di Lao managerial strategy, investigate the secrets of its success from a human resources management perspective, to explore its innovative service, and to assess why it has inspired both marketers and the catering industry. The results show that human resources management can change employees’ behavior and emotional states by addressing a wide variety of needs. In addition, attention to service quality can improve customer satisfaction and retention

Normal frames and the validity of the equivalence principle

We investigate the validity of the equivalence principle along paths in gravitational theories based on derivations of the tensor algebra over a differentiable manifold. We prove the existence of local bases, called normal, in which the components of the derivations vanish along arbitrary paths. All such bases are explicitly described. The holonomicity of the normal bases is considered. The results obtained are applied to the important case of linear connections and their relationship with the equivalence principle is described. In particular, any gravitational theory based on tensor derivations which obeys the equivalence principle along all paths, must be based on a linear connection.Comment: 14 pages, LaTeX 2e, the package amsfonts is neede

Higher Curvature Gravity and the Holographic fluid dual to flat spacetime

Recent works have demonstrated that one can construct a (d+2) dimensional solution of the vacuum Einstein equations that is dual to a (d+1) dimensional fluid satisfying the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations. In one important example, the fluid lives on a fixed timelike surface in the flat Rindler spacetime associated with an accelerated observer. In this paper, we show that the shear viscosity to entropy density ratio of the fluid takes the universal value 1/4\pi in a wide class of higher curvature generalizations to Einstein gravity. Unlike the fluid dual to asymptotically anti-de Sitter spacetimes, here the choice of gravitational dynamics only affects the second order transport coefficients. We explicitly calculate these in five-dimensional Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity and discuss the implications of our results.Comment: 13 pages; v2: modified abstract, added references; v3: added clarifying comments, modified discussio

Normal frames and the validity of the equivalence principle. III. The case along smooth maps with separable points of self-intersection

The equivalence principle is treated on a mathematically rigorous base on sufficiently general subsets of a differentiable manifold. This is carried out using the basis of derivations of the tensor algebra over that manifold. Necessary and/or sufficient conditions of existence, uniqueness, and holonomicity of these bases in which the components of the derivations of the tensor algebra over it vanish on these subsets, are studied. The linear connections are considered in this context. It is shown that the equivalence principle is identically valid at any point, and along any path, in every gravitational theory based on linear connections. On higher dimensional submanifolds it may be valid only in certain exceptional cases.Comment: 15 standard LaTeX 2e (11pt, A4) pages. The package amsfonts is require

Perfect weddings abroad

Approximately 16% of UK couples are currently married abroad. However, academic or practitioner focused research that explores the complex nature of a couple’s buying preferences or the development of innovative marketing strategies by businesses operating within the weddings abroad niche sector, is almost non-existent. This exploratory paper examines the role and relevance of marketing within the weddings abroad sector. The complex nature of customer needs in this high emotional and involvement experience, are identified and explored. A case study of Perfect Weddings Abroad Ltd highlights distinctive features and characteristics. Social networking and the use of home-workers, with a focus on reassurance and handholding are important tools used to develop relationships with customers. These tools and techniques help increase the tangibility of a weddings abroad package. Clusters of complementary services that are synergistic and provide sources of competitive advantage are identified and an agenda for future research is developed

Atmospheric Evolution

Earth's atmosphere has evolved as volatile species cycle between the atmosphere, ocean, biomass and the solid Earth. The geochemical, biological and astrophysical processes that control atmospheric evolution are reviewed from an "Earth Systems" perspective, with a view not only to understanding the history of Earth, but also to generalizing to other solar system planets and exoplanets.Comment: 34 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables. Accepted as a chapter in "Encyclopaedia of Geochemistry", Editor Bill White, Springer-Nature, 201