The Computable Universe Hypothesis

When can a model of a physical system be regarded as computable? We provide the definition of a computable physical model to answer this question. The connection between our definition and Kreisel's notion of a mechanistic theory is discussed, and several examples of computable physical models are given, including models which feature discrete motion, a model which features non-discrete continuous motion, and probabilistic models such as radioactive decay. We show how computable physical models on effective topological spaces can be formulated using the theory of type-two effectivity (TTE). Various common operations on computable physical models are described, such as the operation of coarse-graining and the formation of statistical ensembles. The definition of a computable physical model also allows for a precise formalization of the computable universe hypothesis--the claim that all the laws of physics are computable.Comment: 33 pages, 0 figures; minor change

A Multilateral Approach to Bridging the Global Skills Gap

[Excerpt] In 2012, McKinsey & Company forecasted a troubling outlook on the labor market through the year 2020. The report highlighted three talent shortages across the globe: nearly 40 million too few college educated workers in the global labor market; a 45 million shortfall of workers with secondary and vocational education in developing countries; and up to 95 million workers that lack the skills needed for employment in advanced economies. This global crisis is known as the skills gap. It impacts nearly every industry, job and employer. Simply put, critical talent supply will fail to meet employment demand in the coming decade. Such an imbalance can be crippling to economic progress, put strain on governments, and leave millions unemploye

Associate Professor Turnover at America’s Public and Private Institutions of Higher Education

This paper uses data from the American Association of University Professors annual salary survey to compute continuation rates for associate professors at American colleges and universities during the 1996-97 to 2001-2002 period. Findings demonstrate that average continuation rates are higher for private academic institutions than for public academic institutions in bachelors-level, masters-level and doctoral-level institutions. Multivariate analyses indicate that the average level of faculty compensation at an institution is an important predictor of the continuation rate. All other things held equal, institutions with higher average faculty compensation have higher continuation rates. However, the magnitude of this relationship is not sufficiently large enough to warrant change in compensation policies at academic institutions, particularly between public and private institutions. The benefits associated with raising average faculty compensation to increase the tenured faculty’s continuation rates at public universities are unlikely to match or exceed the costs of doing so