Studies of water storage and other contributions to changes in the rotation of the Earth

The effects were determined of the global redistribution of water mass on various geodetic observables, especially polar motion, and complementary observables such as geodetic satellite positions. The effect of water mass redistribution has been and continues to be less well known and more difficult to observe than effects of air mass distribution, yet the water contribution is potentially significant over a large range of periods. The current understanding is reviewed of the contribution of polar drift, decadal polar motion, Chandler and annual wobbles, and higher frequency polar motion, as determined through the efforts of the funded work within the NASA Crustal Dynamics Project, and in the context of the general literature on the subject. Water mass redistribution is either demonstrably important to the excitation of each of these, or is probably important given a lack of other likely excitation sources

On the Holomorphic Structure of a Low Energy Supersymmetric Wilson Effective Action

The Wilson (exact) renormalization group equations are used to determine the evolution of a general low energy N=1 supersymmetric action containing a U(1) gauge vector multiplet and a neutral chiral multiplet. The effective theory evolves towards satisfying a fixed relation where the K\"ahler potential and effective gauge coupling are obtained from a N=2 supersymmetric holomorphic prepotential.Comment: 10 pages, LaTe

Stability of Fine Tuned Hierarchies in Strongly Coupled Chiral Models

A fine tuned hierarchy between a strongly coupled high energy compositeness scale and a much lower chiral symmetry breaking scale is a requisite ingredient in many models of dynamical electroweak symmetry breaking. Using a nonperturbative continuous Wilson renormalization group equation approach, we explore the stability of such a hierarchy against quantum fluctuations.Comment: 14,PURD-TH-94-1

From technological innovation in individual classrooms to large-scale transformation of teaching practices - Mind the gap!

The ICTMT conference proceedings chart the development of technology use in mathematics education from the 1990s to the current day. Throughout this period, the prevailing topics for plenaries, papers and workshops have been focused on the development of innovative classroom practices involving ‘new’ technologies. Alongside this, there has been a slow but emergent theme that has brought aspects of teachers’ professional development to the fore - as attempts to scale the widespread use of technology by students have proved both challenging and expensive. In this plenary, I will draw on some personal contributions to ICTMT conferences from the past in order to highlight how my own work now focuses on the design and evaluation of technology-focused professional development for teachers of mathematics. This work is set against the backdrop of the Cornerstone Maths project in England, which is aiming to scale student access to dynamic mathematical technology in lower secondary mathematics in hundreds of schools

Connecting mathematics in a connected classroom: Teachers emergent practices within a collaborative learning environment

During 2008-9 seven secondary mathematics teachers from England, Scotland, Netherlands and Sweden began to use a wireless classroom network to link their students’ handheld ICT devices. This paper focuses on the teachers’ reported uses of the Screen Capture feature, which were coded to reveal patterns in the emerging classroom practices. Analysis of the data revealed: increased opportunities for purposeful classroom discourse; improved formative assessment practices; and highlighted the need for teachers to choose rich examples on which to build the mathematical tasks

The faith community response to the Bush administrations faith-based initiatives

Since George W. Bush won the presidency in 2000 one of his top domestic priorities has been to elevate the role of religion in America. He is attempting to correct a perceived wrong that the federal government has hindered religious group\u27s ability to compete on a level playing field with secular groups in acquiring funds for social service programs. Bush believes that faith-based groups hold the answer for healing society\u27s ills. As a result his administration has set up The White House Office Of Faith-based and Community Initiatives to accomplish the goal of a more faith friendly public square; Theological, political and practical matters influencing the administrations Faith-based initiatives are examined in this thesis. Responses to the initiative from six American churches are analyzed based on two factors: theological teachings and practical institutional matters (staffing, facilities etc.). This ultimately reveals how each church views the reasons for poverty. Ethical issues are considered and the conclusion that the Faith-based Initiative, though well intended, is not a good idea for America