Proportionality and Pretense

Book review: Proportionality: Constitutional rights and their limitations. By Aharon Barak. New York, N.Y.: Cambridge University Press. 2012. Pp. xxvi + 611. Reviewed by Grant Huscroft

Variations of Pairing Potential and Charge Distribution in Presence of a Non-magnetic Impurity

Using an attractive Hubbard model we examine spatial variations of superconducting order parameter and local charge on a two dimensional lattice. For various band filling we show the effect of destruction of the order parameter around a non-magnetic impurity. In case of a half-filled system such destruction is accompanied by appearance of characteristic charge variations around the impurity with an isotropic distribution.Comment: 2 pages, 2 figures, Physica B in pres

Constitutionalism from the Top Down

Dialogue theory regards judicial interpretation of the Charter as authoritative, and, as a result, denies that continuing disagreement with the courts is legitimate. There is little scope, in other words, for dialogue with the courts in any meaningful sense. The Charter is best understood as establishing strong-form judicial review rather than weak, and legislatures have only as much room to respond to judicial decisions as the courts are prepared to allow

A Maximum Entropy Method of Obtaining Thermodynamic Properties from Quantum Monte Carlo Simulations

We describe a novel method to obtain thermodynamic properties of quantum systems using Baysian Inference -- Maximum Entropy techniques. The method is applicable to energy values sampled at a discrete set of temperatures from Quantum Monte Carlo Simulations. The internal energy and the specific heat of the system are easily obtained as are errorbars on these quantities. The entropy and the free energy are also obtainable. No assumptions as to the specific functional form of the energy are made. The use of a priori information, such as a sum rule on the entropy, is built into the method. As a non-trivial example of the method, we obtain the specific heat of the three-dimensional Periodic Anderson Model.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figure

A Demand Side Requirements Model to Forecast C-17 Mobility Aircraft Availability

Current aircraft forecasting methods of the Air Mobility Command (AMC) Directorate of Logistics are reliant on the experience of personnel and lead to after the fact, labor-intensive analysis. These deficiencies led AMC to the development of a Mobility Aircraft Availability Forecasting (MAAF) model. The purpose of the MAAF model is threefold: predict aircraft availability in order to provide the Tanker Airlift Control Center (TACC) with a forecast of aircraft that will be available for AMC mission requirements, provide what if capabilities that analyze the effects of tasking and policy changes, and to provide foresight into problems associated with aircraft availability (Briggs, 2003b). This research uses Arena simulation to model C-17 aircraft generation at a major enroute location to determine how significant the factors of crew chief manning and spares levels affect aircraft throughput and turn-times. From the simulation, ANOVA statistical techniques are applied to determine factor significance. In addition, a hierarchical structure of aircraft generation is generated to include the variability of unscheduled maintenance actions. This provides a more precise analysis of expected turn-time duration, which leads to overall throughput of the system. Ultimately, this research provides a key input to the MAAF project that will enable AMC to predict aircraft availability and provide the TACC with a monthly forecast of the number of aircraft that will be available to fulfill AMC mission requirements

“Thank God We’re Here”: Judicial Exclusivity in Charter Interpretation and Its Consequences

The Court has claimed the role of “guardian of the constitution”, and neither Parliament nor the provincial legislatures have claimed any authority where the Charter is concerned. On the contrary, they have factored judicial exclusivity in Charter interpretation into their political deliberations. This paper considers the notion that the judiciary is the only legitimate interpreter of the Charter — how it became established, and the impact it has had on public policy and the political process in Canada. The pending reference to the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage is considered as an example of the problems judicial exclusivity can cause

“Thank God We’re Here”: Judicial Exclusivity in Charter Interpretation and Its Consequences

The Court has claimed the role of “guardian of the constitution”, and neither Parliament nor the provincial legislatures have claimed any authority where the Charter is concerned. On the contrary, they have factored judicial exclusivity in Charter interpretation into their political deliberations. This paper considers the notion that the judiciary is the only legitimate interpreter of the Charter — how it became established, and the impact it has had on public policy and the political process in Canada. The pending reference to the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage is considered as an example of the problems judicial exclusivity can cause