Charged Cylindrical Black Holes in Conformal Gravity

Considering cylindrical topology we present the static solution for a charged black hole in conformal gravity. We show that unlike the general relativistic case there are two different solutions, both including a factor that when set to zero recovers the familiar static charged black string solution in Einstein's theory. This factor gives rise to a linear term in the potential that also features in the neutral case and may have significant ramifications for particle trajectories.Comment: 8 page

Microenterprise Sustainability: The After-Effect of ICT Adoption and Use

In the United States, there are over 25 million microenterprises, which encompasses 88% of all businesses. These small businesses have five or fewer employees and are resource-constrained – with one of the many areas being the lack of technical skills. Their inability to acquire and use these skills causes them to be at a disadvantage to larger corporations. An innovative approach, called “IT Therapy”, is a customizable technology-based assistance infrastructure for any microenterprise willing to adopt Information and Communication Technology (ICT). This adoption can lead to social, economic, and human development if the ICT is sustained. Therefore the research question in this study is, how can Information Technology adoption and use in microenterprises be sustained to facilitate their business growth? The main contribution of this study is an Online Sustainability Network to facilitate sustainability of microenterprises’ ICT adoption and use. This tool serves as a repository for micro-entrepreneurs to learn, interact and share technological experiences with one another

Hybrid Diesel-Electric Drivetrain for Small Agricultural Field Machines

In this project, a series electric drivetrain sized for small agricultural machinery was developed and tested. Electric drives have noted benefits in simplicity, controllability, integration with other electronics such as those that provide autonomous action, and in efficiency over a wide operating range. Their biggest drawback for agricultural use is the limited capacity of electrical energy storage. A series hybrid drivetrain provides a method to overcome these capacity constraints through the use of chemical energy storage. The series hybrid drivetrain in this research was designed using well-established components. It consisted of a diesel-electric generator, a lead acid battery pack, a motor controller, and independent electric motors for each wheel with associated gearboxes to produce speeds and torques suitable for ground drive. Although these components are commercially available, they have not been integrated into a hybrid drivetrain before. The goal of this project was to test this drivetrain to determine its baseline performance and investigate the efficiencies of the various drivetrain components when operating under different conditions. The drivetrain efficiency was tested using a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial test in which the factors were average load level (30% or 40% of full load), load profile type (variable or constant), and size of the battery pack (170 or 340 A.h). The efficiencies of the three main components of the drivetrain were monitored in this testing: the diesel-electric generator, the battery system, and the ground drive. Of the tested factors, only load level had an effect on efficiency and then only on the overall efficiency and on the efficiency of the battery system. The other system components were not appreciably impacted by any of the factors. Large battery packs were not necessary to maintain efficiency even with variable loads, which indicates that future machines could consider more advanced (but more expensive) types of batteries, as less capacity would be required. Agricultural engineers interested in using electric motor drives because of their various benefits can use a series hybrid design to overcome their energy storage limitations and realize consistent efficiencies in a variety of operating conditions

Roots of Revolution: The African National Congress and Gay Liberation in South Africa

South Africa’s post-apartheid constitutions were the first in the world to contain an explicit prohibition of discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation, and that prohibition established the foundation for marriage equality and broad judicial and legislative protection of gay rights in South Africa. The source of this gay rights clause in the South African Constitution can be found in the African National Congress’s decision to include such a clause in the ANC’s A Bill of Rights for a New South Africa, published when the apartheid government of South Africa was still in power. This article traces the story of that decision, and demonstrates that the gay rights clause was included in the ANC’s draft Bill of Rights as a direct result of the ANC’s Women’s Section’s demand that the ANC confront and address a broader problem: the oppression of women. First, the article lays out the context, explaining the origins of the ANC’s Constitutional Committee, its work in presenting alternative models for a future constitutional order, and its success in securing the ANC’s commitment to true multi-party democracy and an enforceable bill of rights. The article then shows that leaders of the ANC’s Women’s Section, dissatisfied with the ANC’s constitutional proposals as they stood, sparked a thorough-going examination of the problem of sexism and women’s oppression. This examination prompted the ANC to recognize the fundamental human right of gay men and lesbians to be who they are, and led the ANC to prohibit discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation in its draft Bill of Rights

Dred Scott v. Sandford: A Prelude to the Civil War

This article will first review the foundational cracks that slavery left in the creation of the United States\u27 Constitution. It will then examine the ensuing legislative efforts to contend with the political and societal consequences of the slavery divide. Next, it will discuss the history behind the Scott case, and the course and resolution of the case in the court system. It will then describe the notoriety of the case and the impact it had on the events leading up to the war. It will conclude with an analysis of Dred Scott\u27s position at the locus of only real conflict that caused the war: the geopolitical strife between the agrarian, slaveholding South, and the industrialized North