Polarization-dependence of palladium deposition on ferroelectric lithium niobate (0001) surfaces

We investigate the effect of ferroelectric polarization direction on the geometric properties of Pd deposited on the positive and negative surfaces of LiNbO$_3$ (0001). We predict preferred geometries and diffusion properties of small Pd clusters using density functional theory, and use these calculations as the basis for kinetic Monte Carlo simulations of Pd deposition on a larger scale. Our results show that on the positive surface, Pd atoms favor a clustered configuration, while on the negative surface, Pd atoms are adsorbed in a more dispersed pattern due to suppression of diffusion and agglomeration. This suggests that the effect of LiNbO$_3$ polarization direction on the catalytic activity of Pd [J. Phys. Chem. \textbf{88}, 1148 (1984)] is due, at least in part, to differences in adsorption geometry. Further investigations using these methods can aid the search for catalysts whose activities switch reversibly with the polarization of their ferroelectric substrates

‘Multi-directional management’: Exploring the challenges of performance in the World Class Programme environment

Driven by the ever-increasing intensity of Olympic competition and the ‘no compromise – no stone unturned’ requirements frequently addressed by HM Government and its main agency, UK Sport, a change in culture across Olympic team landscapes is a common occurrence. With a focus on process, this paper presents reflections from eight current or recently serving UK Olympic sport Performance Directors on their experiences of creating and disseminating their vision for their sport, a vital initial activity of the change initiative. To facilitate a broad overview of this construct, reflections are structured around the vision’s characteristics and foundations, how it is delivered to key stakeholder groups, how it is influenced by these groups, the qualities required to ensure its longevity and its limitations. Emerging from these perceptions, the creation and maintenance of a shared team vision was portrayed as a highly dynamic task requiring the active management of a number of key internal and external stakeholders. Furthermore, the application of ‘dark’ traits and context-specific expertise were considered critical attributes for the activity’s success. Finally, recent calls for research to elucidate the wider culture optimisation process are reinforced

A New Approach for Collaborative Knowledge Management: A Unified Conceptual Model for Collaborative Knowledg Management

With the advancement of new communication and virtualization technologies, various tools and models have been proposed for enabling effective management of the e-collaboration processes related to the creation, sharing, and presentation of collective knowledge. In the theoretical perspective, two significant aspects of collaborative knowledge management have been considered: (a) the internal processes of collaborative knowledge creation and sharing, which occur not only within the individual knowledge workers but also among them (collaboration); (b) the effective design of human-computer interfaces facilitating the internal processes, by providing functionalities for the knowledge workers to comprehend, conceptualize, and cooperate in knowledge creation and sharing through e-collaboration processes, including the effective presentation of the generated knowledge on the website. At the present time, although there exist several studies in the related areas, there is no unique conceptual model that can be applied toward assessing both the interface layer and the internal processes of collaborative knowledge creation and sharing in distributed ICT-based work contexts. This gap has been a great motivation for us to propose a conceptual model, namely the Unified Collaborative Knowledge Management (UCKM) model, which can be used to design and evaluate the overall knowledge management process, including the underlying sub-processes, the presentation of knowledge, and the human-computer interfaces

Piezomorphic materials

The development of stress-induced morphing materials which are described as piezomorphic materials is reported. The development of a piezomorphic material is achieved by introducing spatial dependency into the compliance matrix describing the elastic response of a material capable of undergoing large strain deformation. In other words, it is necessary to produce an elastically gradient material. This is achieved through modification of the microstructure of the compliant material to display gradient topology. Examples of polymeric (polyurethane) foam and microporous polymer (expanded polytetrafluoroethylene) piezomorphic materials are presented here. These materials open up new morphing applications where dramatic shape changes can be triggered by mechanical stress

Study of the Organizational Critical Success Factors Affecting the Quality of IT Service

Information systems have been a well researched topic based on their development, implementation, effectiveness, success and more recently Business-IT alignment. Of late, since the new model of IS function which includes a significant “service” component, there have been number of studies on “how to measure IT/IS service quality using the SERVQUAL instrument”. Our literature review, however, has revealed that there are few studies which provide a holistic view of which organizational factors affect the attributes of SERVQUAL and in what manner. In this paper, we first identify the individual organizational factors affecting the quality of IT service, and then develop a conceptual model to classify those factors and their relationships. The goal of our project is to study how those factors affect the quality of IT services and, with that understanding, to find ways to improve the quality of IT services. The proposed framework will facilitate organizations to judge the present state of their IT ecosystem and guide them to improve their IT service quality

Exploring Planets with Directed Aerial Robot Explorers

Global Aerospace Corporation (GAC) is developing a revolutionary system architecture for exploration of planetary atmospheres and surfaces from atmospheric altitudes. The work is supported by the NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC). The innovative system architecture relies upon the use of Directed Aerial Robot Explorers (DAREs), which essentially are long-duration-flight autonomous balloons with trajectory control capabilities that can deploy swarms of miniature probes over multiple target areas. Balloon guidance capabilities will offer unprecedented opportunities in high-resolution, targeted observations of both atmospheric and surface phenomena. Multifunctional microprobes will be deployed from the balloons once over the target areas, and perform a multitude of functions, such as atmospheric profiling or surface exploration, relaying data back to the balloons or an orbiter. This architecture will enable low-cost, low-energy, long-term global exploration of planetary atmospheres and surfaces. This paper focuses on a conceptual analysis of the DARE architecture capabilities and science applications for Venus, Titan and Jupiter. Preliminary simulations with simplified atmospheric models show that a relatively small trajectory control wing can enable global coverage of the atmospheres of Venus and Titan by a single balloon over a 100-day mission. This presents unique opportunities for global in situ sampling of the atmospheric composition and dynamics, atmospheric profiling over multiple sites with small dropsondes and targeted deployment of surface microprobes. At Jupiter, path guidance capabilities of the DARE platforms permits targeting localized regions of interest, such as "hot spots" or the Great Red Spot. A single DARE platform at Jupiter can sample major types of the atmospheric flows (zones and belts) over a 100-day mission. Observations by deployable probes would reveal if the differences exist in radiative, dynamic and compositional environments at these sites

How Should We Study District Judge Decision-Making?

Part I of this Essay describes in detail the institutional setting in which district judges function and how their role differs substantially from that of appellate judges. Part II critiques the existing empirical literature’s predominant method for studying district courts—analysis of district court opinions, usually published opinions—and discuss the limitations and biases inherent in this approach. Part III then proposes a new approach to studying decision-making by district judges

The complex interactions between rotavirus and the gut microbiota

Human rotavirus (HRV) is the leading worldwide cause of acute diarrhea-related death in children under the age of five. RV infects the small intestine, an important site of colonization by the microbiota, and studies over the past decade have begun to reveal a complex set of interactions between RV and the gut microbiota. RV infection can temporarily alter the composition of the gut microbiota and probiotic administration alleviates some symptoms of infectio

The Supreme Court Forecasting Project: Legal and Political Science Approaches to Predicting Supreme Court Decision-Making

This Essay reports the results of an interdisciplinary project comparing political science and legal approaches to forecasting Supreme Court decisions. For every argued case during the 2002 Term, we obtained predictions of the outcome prior to oral argument using two methods—one a statistical model that relies on general case characteristics, and the other a set of independent predictions by legal specialists. The basic result is that the statistical model did better than the legal experts in forecasting the outcomes of the Term’s cases: The model predicted 75% of the Court’s affirm/reverse results correctly, while the experts collectively got 59.1% right. These results are notable, given that the statistical model disregards information about the specific law or facts of the cases. The model’s relative success was due in large part to its ability to predict more accurately the important votes of the moderate Justices (Kennedy and O’Connor) at the center of the current Court. The legal experts, by contrast, did best at predicting the votes of the more ideologically extreme Justices, but had difficulty predicting the centrist Justices. The relative success of the two methods also varied by issue area, with the statistical model doing particularly well in forecasting “economic activity” cases, while the experts did comparatively better in the “judicial power” cases. In addition to reporting the results in detail, the Essay explains the differing methods of prediction used and explores the implications of the findings for assessing and understanding Supreme Court decision-making.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/116230/1/columbia04.pd