Four pieces of music with critical commentary

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.The commentaries contained in this volume supplement the four pieces of chamber music I composed in my research toward the Master of Philosophy degree. Those pieces, in chronological order of completion, are It Plays You for saxophone quartet, I Am the Rose of Sharon for six voices and string trio, The Opposite of the World for eleven instruments, and Trying to get the feeling back that I had in 1972 for solo viola. The commentaries aim to establish the cultural suppositions on whose basis these pieces were conceived, the technical and aesthetic considerations that informed their composition, and the strategies by which they advance the author's critical project

On the Accuracy of Equivalent Antenna Representations

The accuracy of two equivalent antenna representations, near-field sources and far-field sources, are evaluated for an antenna installed on a simplified platform in a series of case studies using different configurations of equivalent antenna representations. The accuracy is evaluated in terms of installed far-fields and surface currents on the platform. The results show large variations between configurations. The root-mean-square installed far-field error is 4.4% for the most accurate equivalent representation. When using far-field sources, the design parameters have a large influence of the achieved accuracy. There is also a varying accuracy depending on the type of numerical method used. Based on the results, some recommendations on the choice of sub-domain for the equivalent antenna representation are given. In industrial antenna applications, the accuracy in determining e.g. installed far-fields and antenna isolation on large platforms are critical. Equivalent representations can reduce the fine-detail complexity of antennas and thus give an efficient numerical descriptions to be used in large-scale simulations. The results in this paper can be used as a guideline by antenna designers or system engineers when using equivalent sources

Development of Professional Identity in Social Work Education

The development of social work professional identity is characterized by internalization of the knowledge, skills, values, and mission of social work, and begins with and is shaped by the content, and interactions, as well as student experiences within the context of the social work education curricula. This Banded Dissertation comprising three products centers on the development of professional identity within undergraduate social work education. The first product is a qualitative study in which the author examined student perceptions of professional identity, student definitions and perceptions of how social work education shapes students’ professional identity. Findings showed that intentional development of professional identity is essential for social work education; as such, field education has a significant role in professional identity development. The second product is a conceptual paper focusing on professional identity development in the context of field education. Utilizing symbolic interactionism as a theoretical framework, the paper examined factors affecting student professional identity development within the context of social work field education and discusses implications for field instructors and field education curricula. The third product is a presentation of product 2 at the Council on Social Work Education’s 63rd Annual Program Meeting in October of 2017. This presentation outlined current research on professional identity development through the lens of symbolic interactionism, focusing on field education. The three products of this Banded Dissertation emphasize professional identity development as an essential function of social work education. This work has implications for social work educators seeking to develop curricula to assist students in their development of a strong professional identity

Amino acid classes and the protein folding problem

We present and implement a distance-based clustering of amino acids within the framework of a statistically derived interaction matrix and show that the resulting groups faithfully reproduce, for well-designed sequences, thermodynamic stability in and kinetic accessibility to the native state. A simple interpretation of the groups is obtained by eigenanalysis of the interaction matrix.Comment: REVTeX, 11 pages, 4 figures, To appear in J. Chem. Phy

The role of historical-critical methodology in African Old Testament studies

Based on the observation that the historical-critical methodology used in mainstream biblical studies reflects 18th to 20th century western epistemology and hermeneutics, the article addresses the role of this methodology in African Old Testament studies as it has developed since 1960. African Old Testament studies – in relation to historical-critical methodology – is then approached in three steps: first its context, with a focus on institutional and methodological perspectives; then its content, with a focus on its preference for comparative perspectives; and finally a critical perspective, with a focus on the potential of historical-critical methodology – at least when consciously used – to express critical concerns vis-à-vis the challenge that faces Old Testament interpretative communities not only in contemporary Africa, but at all times and places, namely to be more than just a mirror of current religious, cultural and politi­cal power structures.publishedVersio

VOCALS : Beskrivelse av demonstratoren

-Rapporten beskriver en demonstrator som er utviklet som et enkelt eksempel på et multimodalt brukergrensesnitt, hvor fokus i stor grad ligger på bruk av tale for interaksjon. Demonstratoren lar brukeren kombinere penn og tale som input-modaliteter.  Demonstratoren er utviklet basert på en distribuert klient/tjener-arkitektur. Klienten kjører på en mobil terminal under Pocket PC 2003, mens tjeneren kjører på en PC med Linux. Applikasjonen som er valgt for formålet er et enkelt system for turistinformasjon i Trondheim. Rapporten beskriver de to sentrale funksjonalitetene som behøves for å realisere applikasjonen, henholdsvis en løsning for håndtering av kart på en mobil terminal og en talegjenkjenner egnet for distribuert prosessering. Programvaren og metodene som er brukt beskrives, sammen med en detaljert veiledning for oppsett og bruk av demonstratoren

Pastoral Care: A Qualitative Exploration of Adolescent Girls’ Understanding of Health and Wellness Topics

Adolescent girls construct a developing sense of identity amongst a vast array of contextual influences, including family, school, peer relationships, and set within a broader societal context (Choate, 2007). Negotiating the many nuances, demands and dynamics of all these factors present young girls with developmental stressors. Secondary schools worldwide have an established tradition of providing pastoral care in an attempt to foster individual well being and guide students’ through the challenges of adolescence and beyond, with varying degrees of success (Calvert, 2009). The current study is a qualitative exploration of the experiences of a group of 36 adolescent girls as they participated in an after-school health and wellness programme at their boarding school in Perth. Data from observations, written questionnaires, focus groups, and interviews with five of the students was subjected to interpretative phenomenological analysis. Regardless of the topic at hand, the girls’ narratives revealed strong themes of social support and self-concept. Social support was illustrated through reference to the importance of friendships, both old and new, and of maintaining family ties despite the distance of attending a city school. Self-concept was largely informed by these relationships, and also how the girls’ felt about school, sport and other outside influences on their identity. The data and interpretations from this project offer insight into the inner life of an adolescent girl in Perth. The research also adds to the knowledge base supporting health and wellness programmes, their design, content and delivery

Pregnancy and psalms: Aspects of the healing ministry of a Nigerian prophet

The essay analyses the healing ministry of a prophet operating within one of the African Instituted Churches in Nigeria, and it focuses on his instrumental use of texts from the biblical Book of Psalms – read “into” olive oil and water – in connection with per¬sonal crises in relation to pregnancy. With some theory from glocal studies and postcolonial biblical hermeneutics, the prophet’s use of Psalms texts is related to the development of a contextually sensitive biblical studies.publishedVersio

Build Your Own Adventure ACT Prep Manual: Beating the Odds of High-Stakes Standardized Assessments

Today\u27s focus on high-stakes standardized tests has had a massive impact on education throughout America, and standardized test preparation is one of the ugly, open secrets of education. Ever since 2001 when President Bush signed into law No Child Left Behind (NCLB), a bipartisan reauthorization of Johnson\u27s landmark Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, students have been bombarded with standardized tests from the earliest grades. Politicians believe these measures are the only way to remedy the perceived weaknesses in the education system because stringent accountability mandates… [provide] vital levers of change, inclusiveness, and transparency of results (Education Week, 2011, para. 15). Yet as time progresses, the quantity and importance of the exams increase to such proportions that, by the time students are in high school, their performance dictates whether they will graduate or attend college. While proponents of such exams say that they only test the skills that students ought to be learning anyway, the reality tends to be that teachers start to focus only on the specific questions the test will cover, and thereby lose the ability to provide full, comprehensive education. Teaching to the test is the much-maligned experience of most high schools. In order to combat the pressure students feel to perform and teachers feel to shortchange the learning experience, a Build Your Own Adventure manual designed around research-based principles demonstrated to improve student learning gains will allow students to focus on the key areas needed to improve test performance, demystify the test itself, and thus help students obtain score improvement. In so doing, students will not only perform better on standardized assessments, but ultimately be able to attend more elite colleges