Symplectic fibrations and Riemann-Roch numbers of reduced spaces

In this article we give formulas for the Riemann-Roch number of a symplectic quotient arising as the reduced space corresponding to a coadjoint orbit (for an orbit close to 0) as an evaluation of cohomology classes over the reduced space at 0. This formula exhibits the dependence of the Riemann-Roch number on the Lie algebra variable which specifies the orbit. We also express the formula as a sum over the components of the fixed point set of the maximal torus. Our proof applies to Hamiltonian G-manifolds even if they do not have a compatible Kahler structure, using the definition of quantisation in terms of the Spin-C Dirac operator.Comment: 11 pages; part of the Ph.D. thesis of the first author. Section 2 revised (Section 2.1, also Theorem 2.4 and new Proposition 2.5

Transition Support Mechanisms for Communities Facing Full or Partial Coal Power Plant Retirement in New York

New York State is undergoing a rapid and unprecedented energy transformation, particularly in the electricity sector. As new resources and technologies emerge to meet the demands of 21st century life, regulators must balance the need for cost effective and equitable participation in wholesale power markets while maintaining reliability on the grid. Furthermore, it is critical that all New Yorkers participate fully in the promise of a revitalized and equitable energy future. Such a transformation requires that the needs of all communities are factored into the polices and regulations that move New York toward the bold goals set forth under its Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) initiative. The precipitous drop in natural gas prices, the decreased costs of wind and solar energy, and the rise in the cost of coal, have contributed to the mothballing or retiring of coal-fired and nuclear energy generators across the country, including in New York. Communities that have been home to the electric generation units of the past, particularly struggling coal-fired power plants, are especially vulnerable during this transformation, because these communities often rely on the generators for tax revenues, such as through Payments in Lieu of Tax agreements. New York has the opportunity to ensure a just transition for these communities by adopting new, clean energy resources, technologies, and markets while fostering a trained and skilled workforce to support its ambitious goals. For all New Yorkers to enjoy the new energy future, leadership must address the impact of lost jobs, declining economic activity and lost tax revenue, and must support essential services in impacted communities with the same level of urgency and expansive vision needed to balance the integration of new technologies in the most cost effective manner to maintain grid reliability. At the same time, state and federal funding must be allocated to communities in transition for the remediation and redevelopment of shuttered power plant sites, and to provide the necessary support, training and tools for impacted communities to actively participate in the transition and implementation of clean energy resources. The first section of this report examines the lessons learned from other jurisdictions in when and how to address the fiscal challenges of retiring electric generation units (EGU’s). The challenges New York faces are not unlike the challenges faced by communities, legislators, and plant owners during periods of deindustrialization of the late 1960’s through 1980’s, described in Section One below, which additionally provides: 1. An evaluation of case studies that address the process of retirement, decommissioning, remediation and preparation for redevelopment for future use, along with the state and federal policies and funding sources that made revitalization possible. 2. An overview of case studies that illustrate local government fiscal and workforce support to communities during periods of plant transformation. These periods encompass three historical phases: a. Deindustrialization of the 1960’s to1980’s; b. Federally Mandated Social Programs to Support Enforcement of Federal Regulations 1990’s to 2000; and c. Coal Plant Closures and Community Transition in the Age of Carbon Emissions Reductions: Federal and State Initiatives between 2000 to 2015; and Section Two examines four New York coal-fired generators, some of which are currently mothballed, retired, or struggling financially. In addition to providing profiles of each generator, Section Two also describes the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreements that these generators have entered into with the towns, school boards, and counties in whose jurisdictions they are located. Due to the plants’ finances, several of the generators have made reduced PILOT payments in recent years, creating “budget gaps” for some of the communities. Finally, Section Three describes state and federal funding and support mechanisms that may be available to the New York communities described in Section Two. Because each community faces unique challenges and opportunities, this report does not attempt to provide specific recommendations for any of the communities. Rather, Section Three lists a number of support mechanisms that each community could consider in developing its own transition plan. New York State leadership can capitalize on the legislative legacy of prior eras and develop comprehensive approaches to reinvest in communities with obsolete industrial facilities that were once the primary source of jobs and economic activity, and revenue to local budgets

Exploring Concepts of Compassion Fatigue Among Baccalaureate Nursing Students

The purpose of this study was to examine the experience of compassion fatigue among undergraduate nursing students in a four-year baccalaureate nursing program in Windsor, Ontario. Major sub-concepts of compassion fatigue (compassion satisfaction, burnout, secondary traumatic stress and empathy) were examined and guided by Figley’s model of Compassion Stress and Fatigue (2001). To date, little quantitative research has been conducted on this population, specifically within a setting that includes clinical experiences across all four years of the program. This study employed an online non-experimental, cross-sectional survey composed of four pre-validated measures (Professional Quality of Life scale (ProQOL), Maslach Burnout Inventory, Empathy Questionnaire and Silencing response scale) administered in the Winter 2019 semester. In this study, 244 undergraduate students completed the survey. Examining the findings of this study suggests that these students are at risk for the development of compassion fatigue. Results revealed above average high compassion satisfaction levels within first year students only, high empathy levels across the four years, varied intensity of burnout across the program, and high percentages of above average secondary traumatic stress across the four years of the program. High burnout and secondary traumatic stress with low compassion satisfaction highlight the risk of compassion fatigue amongst this population. Self-care protective factors were also examined and revealed that students who engaged in aerobic exercise had significantly lower burnout and secondary traumatic stress levels and students who practiced mindfulness based meditation had significantly higher empathy and compassion satisfaction scores. This study provides further insight into the experience of compassion fatigue within the nursing student population as well as recommendations of possible interventions that may support and foster resiliency among nursing students’ professional careers

Impact of Argument Type and Concerns in Argumentation with a Chatbot

Conversational agents, also known as chatbots, are versatile tools that have the potential of being used in dialogical argumentation. They could possibly be deployed in tasks such as persuasion for behaviour change (e.g. persuading people to eat more fruit, to take regular exercise, etc.) However, to achieve this, there is a need to develop methods for acquiring appropriate arguments and counterargument that reflect both sides of the discussion. For instance, to persuade someone to do regular exercise, the chatbot needs to know counterarguments that the user might have for not doing exercise. To address this need, we present methods for acquiring arguments and counterarguments, and importantly, meta-level information that can be useful for deciding when arguments can be used during an argumentation dialogue. We evaluate these methods in studies with participants and show how harnessing these methods in a chatbot can make it more persuasive

Customer Databases for Small Firms: Maximizing the Power of Your Marketing

This article describes how and why a small business can take advantage of the benefits which will accrue from the creation and use of a custon1er database.  What information may be useful to capture (or buy) about your customer, and how that information can be used to improve your n1arketing efforts and subsequent "bottom line'' is presented How to create (or evaluate for purchase of) a database, and how to maintain your database lo preserve its accuracy and value is explained. Information technology is transforming the business game for small firms today. The importance of database marketing as a cost-effective tool which small firms should be utilizing cannot be understated or overlooked

Historical and contemporary perspectives on the sediments of Lake Rotorua

Lake Rotorua is probably the oldest continuously inundated lake in New Zealand, occupying a caldera formed by or closely associated with the eruption of the Mamaku ignimbrite and the collapse of the Rotorua caldera (Healy, 1975; Lowe and Green, 1991). The lake has undergone drastic changes in size and depth as a result of tectonics, volcanic activity and erosion. Since the Rotoehu eruption, (~60 kyr), the lake level has fluctuated between 120 m above present (280 m asl) and 10 m below present level. The modern lake covers an area of 79 km2 and has a mean depth of 10 m. Despite its long history of sedimentation, Lake Rotorua has an irregular bathymetry with features including faulted blocks, slumps, hydrothermal explosion craters, springs and large methane discharge pock marks