Effective convergence of the 2PI-1/N expansion for nonequilibrium quantum fields

The 1/N expansion of the two-particle irreducible effective action offers a powerful approach to study quantum field dynamics far from equilibrium. We investigate the effective convergence of the 1/N expansion in the O(N) model by comparing results obtained numerically in 1+1 dimensions at leading, next-to-leading and next-to-next-to-leading order in 1/N as well as in the weak coupling limit. A comparison in classical statistical field theory, where exact numerical results are available, is made as well. We focus on early-time dynamics and quasi-particle properties far from equilibrium and observe rapid effective convergence already for moderate values of 1/N or the coupling.Comment: 4 pages, 4 eps figure

Master\u27s Recital

List of performers and performances

African solutions to African problems : South Africa's foreign policy

No abstract available.http://www.welttrends.dehb201

How should the peace and security performance of SADC be evaluated? A response to my critics

This article responds to the reviews by Gwinyayi Dzinesa and Elling Tjønneland of Community of insecurity: SADC's struggle for peace and security in southern Africa. It does this by exploring the methodological and analytical challenges in evaluating SADC's peace and security endeavours. It emphasises the need to present explicitly the criteria for assessment, to concentrate on the actual performance of the organisation rather than on its declarations and structures, and to make assessments and predictions on the basis of historical trends and sound analysis.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rasr20hb2014gv201

The disbanding of the SADC tribunal : a cautionary tale

In 2011 the heads of state of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) disbanded the SADC Tribunal after the regional court held that the Zimbabwean government’s land seizures violated the rule of law. The disbandment reflects SADC’s hierarchy of values, in terms of which the organization’s formal commitment to human rights and a regional legal order is subordinate to the political imperatives of regime solidarity and respect for sovereignty. The Tribunal saga demonstrates that the jurisdiction of regional courts derives not simply from their official mandates but from an interplay between domestic and regional law and politics.Konrad Adenauer Stiftunghttp://www.press.jhu.edu/journals/human_rights_quarterly/hb201

Solidarity triumphs over democracy - the dissolution of the SADC Tribunal

In 2011, the heads of state of the countries comprising the Southern African Development Community (SADC) decided to dissolve the SADC Tribunal, a regional court modelled on the European Court of Justice. Four years earlier, the tribunal had ruled that the Zimbabwe government’s expropriations of land owned by white farmers violated the SADC Treaty principles on the rule of law and non-discrimination. The tribunal ordered the government to refrain from interfering with the farmers’ occupation and ownership of their properties. The government ignored the court’s decisions and embarked on a campaign to smash the tribunal and nullify its rulings. The SADC Summit was thus confronted with the choice of backing either the Zimbabwe government or the tribunal. By abandoning the court in favour of Harare, it elevated the norms of solidarity and regime protection above the democratic and legal principles espoused in the treaty. The head of the tribunal, Judge Ariranga Pillay, denounced the summit’s decision as ‘worthy of potentates and kings who can do no wrong and who are not accountable for their actions’ (Christie 2011a). This article first outlines the relevant provisions of the treaty and the protocol governing the tribunal and then discusses the scrapping of the regional court.http://www.dhf.uu.se/publications/development-dialogue/nf201

Intelligence requirement of international mediation

This article explores the intelligence requirement of international mediation, a topic that is ignored in both the literature on conflict resolution and the literature on intelligence. A mediator’s strategies and tactics ought to be informed by a deep understanding of the parties’ internal calculations about the conflict and its resolution. Intelligence is needed to gain this understanding because the parties typically do not reveal their sensitive deliberations to outsiders. United Nations mediation teams should have a monitoring and analysis unit that endeavours to meet this need and reduce the ignorance that commonly afflicts international mediation.http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/fint20/curren

Synopsis of Community of Insecurity : SADC’s struggle for peace and security in southern Africa

This article presents a synopsis of Community of Insecurity : SADC’s struggle for peace and security in southern Africa, published by Ashgate in 2012. It focuses on SADC’s efforts to establish a common security regime; conflict and peacemaking in southern Africa between 1992 and 2011; and the prospects of SADC becoming a security community. It summarises the reasons for SADC’s difficulties in the sphere of regional security and politics, namely the weakness of member states, their unwillingness to surrender sovereignty to communal mechanisms, and the absence of common values among them. The main conclusion is that these problems lie primarily at the national level and cannot be solved at the regional level. SADC is a forum of states and it cannot do anything that these states will not permit it to do.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rasr20hb2014gv201

An Autoethnographic Reflection from Two Black Women Ph.D.’s and Their White Woman Advisor on the Use and Impact of Sista Circle Methodology in the Dissertation Process

Black Women doctoral students experience the journey as “outsiders within” (Collins, 1986), navigating how to excel and thrive while being on the margins (hooks, 1991). The authors of this manuscript reflect upon the impact of adopting a culturally relevant methodology and method, integrating various forms of Black Women’s art, and challenging tenets of traditional western research. An auto-ethnographic exercise illuminated the critical need for Nathan and Love to insert their Black Womanhood into their dissertation research process using Sista Circle Methodology, an active decision to decolonize research. Carlson provided a critical link to ensuring Nathan and Love graduated and provides her reflective learning about the methodology, methods, and advising Black Women using a Black Feminist lens