Solvable Leibniz algebras with triangular nilradical

A classification exists for Lie algebras whose nilradical is the triangular Lie algebra $T(n)$. We extend this result to a classification of all solvable Leibniz algebras with nilradical $T(n)$. As an example we show the complete classification of all Leibniz algebras whose nilradical is $T(4)$.Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1307.844

Mobile Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for Humanitarian Demining

The threat of landmines and other explosive remnants of war is a serious concern around the world. While landmines demand attention due to the thousands of civilian casualties they cause each year, perhaps even more shocking is the fear they instill in local populations, inhibiting movement and denying access to thousands of square kilometers of land in more than 80 countries. Humanitarian demining seeks to rid the world of landmines and return local populations to their displaced land. To meet this goal, surveys of hazardous areas, describing their location and contents, are used to produce threat maps for a given location and secure adequate funding from donor organizations for clearance operations. The focus of this study is a mobile GIS system, developed by the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD), which allows rapid, accurate, and completely digital collection of these demining surveys. Using data collected during local evaluations of the demining Survey Tool at the University of Kansas campus and on foreign field deployments in Chile (2004), Albania (2004), Ecuador (2004), and Lebanon (2006), a fit-for-use analysis was performed on each component of the Survey Tool. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the accuracy of its GPS and laser rangefinder mapping devices, and methods for improving that accuracy were investigated. The system was well received by all of its users and gauged to be twice as fast, require half the personnel, and provide higher levels of accuracy than traditional methods for collecting demining surveys. Even though the system was deemed fit for use, suggestions for improving all components of the device resulted from user feedback and observations of the system in the field. The system's GPS receiver was predicted to provide 5 m accuracy 50 % of the time and 10 m accuracy 95 % of the time. If GPS positions were averaged for 1 minute, the 95% accuracy improved to 7.5 m, and if positions were averaged for 4 minutes, the 95% accuracy improved to 5.6 m. The two types of laser rangefinders used by the system were found to have a mean accuracy of 2.7 m when shooting at a location on the horizontal bare earth and a mean accuracy of 1.1 m when shooting at a well defined vertical target. Rangefinder accuracy varied due to level of user experience with rangefinders or other sighting equipment, and thus proved the value of training with these devices. Also, significant errors in bearing measurements with the rangefinders caused by magnetic interference from one user's eye glasses indicated that this issue requires considerable attention by all users of laser rangefinder devices. General themes that were found to be extremely important to the success of the demining system, such as the value of training, the need for system flexibility to match traditional field methods, and the complexities of GIS data collection in the field, should be a focus of any mobile GIS field program

Local Health Department Provision of WIC Services Relative to Local “Need”— Examining 3 States and 5 Years

Great variation exists in the nature of LHD service delivery and it varies, in part, relative to jurisdiction population size. Larger LHD jurisdictions may achieve an economy of scale in WIC service delivery that is not matched in smaller areas. Overall, we found that WIC service provision appears relatively consistent across study states and in the presence of increasing need, with greater responsiveness to need in urban areas. As demand for some preventive services increases LHDs in rural areas may need greater support than LHDs in large jurisdictions for meeting local demand. Unlike WIC, LHD-provided services that have less consistently maintained service-delivery guidelines may have a harder time responding to increasing need. The relative consistency of a federally-funded program such as WIC may serve as a good baseline for further study of less consistently delivered programs among LHDs. LHD service statistics can serve as useful data sources in measuring volume of service delivery relative to need

Taking meaning out of context : essays on the foundations of natural language semantics

David Lewis articulated minimal constraints on a formal theory of natural language semantics that have been widely adopted by subsequent theorists: compositionality and sentence truth in a given context. In the process, Lewis distinguished between the compositional semantic value of an expression and its propositional content relative to a context. This dissertation consists of a series of essays in which I address several questions that arise from this distinction, including how we should understand semantic values, how we should understand propositional content, and how we should understand the relation between them. Related to this, I explore and address a number of interesting and unresolved methodological issues that arise in relation to context-sensitivity, and provide an account of the role of speaker intentions in a formal theory of natural language semantics. Additionally, I provide a detailed analysis of the role of context in a theory of natural language semantics and its connection to various aspects of language use and communication. I also motivate coherence with syntactic structure (in the tradition of generative grammar) as an additional constraint on a formal theory of natural language semantics and assess its import for how we theorize about tense and modality and issues related to the syntax-semantics interface, including covert structure and logical form. In broad strokes, this dissertation addresses issues concerning the aims, scope and criteria of a theory of natural language semantics. I approach these issues from the perspective of generative grammar, a theoretical framework that aims to characterize our understanding of natural language independent of its use. These essays help to clarify what should be expected of a formal theory of natural language semantics and its contribution to theories of speech acts and communication

Dental Utilization for Communities Served by Dental Therapists in Alaska's Yukon Kuskokwim Delta: Findings from an Observational Quantitative Study

Dental Therapists have provided preventive and restorative dental care in Yukon Kuskokwim (YK) Delta communities since 2005. In this retrospective program evaluation, there were two goals: (1) to examine whether dental utilization rates in Alaska Native communities were associated with the number of Dental Therapist treatment days; and (2) to quantify differences in dental utilization rates between communities with no Dental Therapist treatment days versus communities with the highest number of Dental Therapist treatment days during the study period

Electronic portfolios and learner identity: an ePortfolio case study in music and writing

Although the employability of graduates is of concern across further and higher education it is particularly problematic in the arts disciplines, from which few students transition to a traditional, full-time position. Arts graduates shape their work to meet personal and professional needs, and the successful negotiation of this type of career requires a strong sense of identity and an awareness of diverse opportunities. The challenge for educators is how we might develop these capacities whilst being mindful of students’ dreams, which are often focused on artistic excellence and recognition. This paper reports findings from a collaborative study undertaken at four Australian universities. With a focus on developing an electronic portfolio (eP), the study involved students in classical and contemporary music, music education, music technology, creative writing and professional writing. The combination of music and writing provided points of comparison to identify issues specific to music, and those that might apply more generally. This paper reports findings related to learner identity, drawing evidence from survey and interview data. The study, which was driven by the learning process rather than the technological tool, revealed that students’ use of eP transitions from archive to self-portrait. Moreover, the eP emerged as a vehicle through which identity is negotiated and constructed. Indeed, the process of developing of an eP prompted students to adopt future-oriented thinking as they began to redefine their learning in relation to their future lives and careers. These findings were common to all students, regardless of discipline or technological platform.This work was supported by the Australian Government Office for Learning and Teaching [ID11-2041]. The views in this paper do not necessarily reflect the views of the Australian Government Office for Learning and Teachin

Illinois State University University Band Symphonic Band

Center for the Performing Arts Wednesday Evening April 23, 2003 8:00p.m

Raccoon (\u3cem\u3eProcyon lotor\u3c/em\u3e) Diets Shed Light on Baylisascaris procyonis Roundworm Prevalence

The raccoon, Procyon lotor, is the definitive host for raccoon roundworm (Baylisascaris procyonis), which causes a dangerous neurological disease known as larva migrans encephalopathy in intermediate hosts. As omnivores, raccoons rely on a variety of food items. Parasitized animals may exhibit altered eating habits and diets, and may undergo genetic variations as a result of parasite abundance. In this study, we analyzed the diets of necropsied raccoons from nine townships of Clark and Greene Counties, Ohio, by examining their stomach contents. We measured the mass of plant material found in raccoon stomachs and recorded the prevalence of B. procyonis. Mean mass of plant material varied among the nine townships surveyed (0.88g – 6.40g), indicating a correlation between raccoon diet and regional landscape. The townships with the least amount of agriculture had the greatest difference between all raccoons and B. procyonis infected raccoons (r²= 0.40). These results suggest that the complexity of raccoon diet exceeds that which can be explained by agricultural landscape alone. These findings help us better understand the relationship between B. procyonis and raccoon diet, therefore helping us to understand the ecological impacts of parasites on animal behavior