Math for Liberation: Designing a Math of Voting Systems Unit for Lewiston Middle School

We discuss the design and implementation of a week-long voting systems module in a local eighth-grade math classroom. The goal of the module is to connect math to social action to help students understand math as a tool to understand and change our world. In the unit, students created informed mathematical opinions about plurality, runoff, and ranked-choice voting systems, culminating in a student-created proposal for which system should be used in student leadership team elections the following year

Thermalization of magnons in yttrium-iron garnet: nonequilibrium functional renormalization group approach

Using a nonequilibrium functional renormalization group (FRG) approach we calculate the time evolution of the momentum distribution of a magnon gas in contact with a thermal phonon bath. As a cutoff for the FRG procedure we use a hybridization parameter {\Lambda} giving rise to an artificial damping of the phonons. Within our truncation of the FRG flow equations the time evolution of the magnon distribution is obtained from a rate equation involving cutoff-dependent nonequilibrium self-energies, which in turn satisfy FRG flow equations depending on cutoff-dependent transition rates. Our approach goes beyond the Born collision approximation and takes the feedback of the magnons on the phonons into account. We use our method to calculate the thermalization of a quasi two-dimensional magnon gas in the magnetic insulator yttrium-iron garnet after a highly excited initial state has been generated by an external microwave field. We obtain good agreement with recent experiments.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figures, final versio

Database Engineering Processes with DB-MAIN

Software engineering needs more and more to be supported by CASE tools. Since databases are at the heart of information systems, they deserve a particular attention. More and more CASE tools allow method engineers to implement their own methodology and they allow users to record all their actions, with their rationales, in order to improve the quality of the design and the quality of the documentation of the design. DBMAIN is such a database oriented tool with a method description and a documentation generation facilities. But it has its particularities like its procedural non-deterministic Method Description Language, its well integrated multilevel histories and its userfriendly methodological engine

The Problem of Prickling on Fabrics of South American Camelids Fibers: Possible Approaches for Mechanical Solutions

In this minireview it is to analyze the physical attributes that determine the comfort of fabrics made of South American Camelid fibers (Lama and Alpaca), discuss the effect on their textile value and evaluate an possible approache on their possible mechanical solutions. Taking the distribution of all fibers do not respond to a normal distribution, but the different fiber types identified by the type of medulla, they do respond to a normal distribution. While emphasis has always been on mean fiber diameter, the fiber frequency exceeding 30 microns (objectionable fibres) has a key role in quality. This is essential for light fabrics, where the effect of prickle plays a critical part in consumer´s choice. Dehairing, as a mechanical way, provides an immediate solution, though excessive fiber breakage should be addressed. It is concluded that the textile fiber quality of South American Camelids is promissory if the presence of objectionable fibers is solved, resulting in a tolerable frequency for consumers (<3%). This implies a true paradigm shift with regard to the classic textile processing of Alpaca and Lama fibers (from worsted to woolen system). This would enhance the fiber softness to touch, together with other important features that would render the fiber price more competitive

A Search for Early Optical Emission at Gamma-Ray Burst Locations by the Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI)

The Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) views nearly every point on the sky once every 102 minutes and can detect point sources as faint as R~10th magnitude. Therefore, SMEI can detect or provide upper limits for the optical afterglow from gamma-ray bursts in the tens of minutes after the burst when different shocked regions may emit optically. Here we provide upper limits for 58 bursts between 2003 February and 2005 April.Comment: accepted for publication in ApJ, 17 pages, 8 figure

The cost-of-living crisis in the UK and Ireland: on inflation, indexation and one-off policy responses

This paper compares social policy responses to the cost-of-living crisis in the UK and Ireland. In seeking to protect citizens from an inflationary shock, a series of fundamental social policy questions arise. What would the aims of support packages be? To what extent should support be universal or targeted? If targeted, did existing policy architectures facilitate or frustrate the targeting of support? As the scale and persistence of the inflationary shock became evident, smaller and near-universal responses gave way to larger support packages with a greater reliance on targeting. Social security systems played an important role in policy responses, though often by passporting one-off payments rather than a strengthening of these core programmes. Passporting led both to improved distributional outcomes vis-à-vis the more universal elements but created new administrative challenges and led to rough justice in some circumstances. The reliance on one-off payments underlined the temporary nature of policy responses

Health care system planning for and response to a nuclear detonation

The hallmark of a successful response to a nuclear detonation will be the resilience of the community, region, and nation. An incident of this magnitude will rapidly become a national incident; however, the initial critical steps to reduce lives lost, save the lives that can be saved with the resources available, and understand and apply resources available to a complex and dynamic situation will be the responsibility of the local and regional responders and planners. Expectations of the public health and health care systems will be met to the extent possible by coordination, cooperation, and an effort to produce as consistent a response as possible for the victims. Responders will face extraordinarily stressful situations, and their own physical and psychological health is of great importance to optimizing the response. This article illustrates through vignettes and supporting text how the incident may unfold for the various components of the health and medical systems and provides additional context for the discipline-related actions outlined in the state and local planners’ playbook

Semiochemical (Patent WO 2001/041568 A2)

cis-Jasmone has been discovered to be useful as a semiochemical that changes the behaviour of insects and/or the physiology of plants. It has direct signalling roles with plant-feeding aphids, in attraction of aphid predators and parasitoids, and may act as an airborne signal inducing production of volatile plant semiochemicals, including the monoterpene (E)- beta -ocimene, that stimulate foraging by parasitoids. It is an extremely benign compound having, to human beings, a pleasant aroma and gives a long-lasting effect after removal of the stimulus

Theodicy and End-of-Life Care

Acknowledgments The section on Islamic perspective is contributed by information provided by Imranali Panjwani, Tutor in Theology & Religious Studies, King's College London.Peer reviewedPublisher PD