Evaluation of user reactions to a prototype on-line information retrieval system

Human reaction to operation of document search and retrieval syste

The expressions for the 2nd-order mixed partial derivatives of Slater-Koster matrix elements at spherical coordinate singularities

In a recent publication it has been shown how to generate derivatives with respect to atom coordinates of Slater-Koster matrix elements for the tight binding (TB) modelling of a system. For the special case of a mixed second partial derivative at coordinate singularities only the results were stated in that publication. In this work, the derivation of these results is given in detail. Though it may seem rather `technical' and only applicable to a very special case, atomic configurations where the connecting vector between the two atoms involved in a two-centre matrix element is aligned along the z-axis (in the usual approach) require results for precisely this case. The expressions derived in this work have been implemented in the DINAMO code.Comment: 9 pages, no figure

SUSTAINABLE SOIL MANAGEMENT IN NEW ZEALAND: FARMER BELIEFS, ATTITUDES AND MOTIVATIONS

Land Economics/Use,

AN ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF BIRD DAMAGE IN VINEYARDS OF THE MARLBOROUGH REGION

Production Economics,

Entropy and Temperature of a Quantum Carnot Engine

It is possible to extract work from a quantum-mechanical system whose dynamics is governed by a time-dependent cyclic Hamiltonian. An energy bath is required to operate such a quantum engine in place of the heat bath used to run a conventional classical thermodynamic heat engine. The effect of the energy bath is to maintain the expectation value of the system Hamiltonian during an isoenergetic expansion. It is shown that the existence of such a bath leads to equilibrium quantum states that maximise the von Neumann entropy. Quantum analogues of certain thermodynamic relations are obtained that allow one to define the temperature of the energy bath.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur

Securities Issuer Liability for Third Party Misstatements: Refining the Entanglement Standard

Smith, president of E.com, Inc., believes his firm\u27s securities are undervalued Believing that expanded coverage in the financial press will cause E.com\u27s securities to trade at higher prices, Smith begins a public relations program designed to help investment analysts more accurately forecast his firm\u27s future performance. Jones, financial analyst, takes information from the public relations program, drafts an optimistic forecast for E.com, and then asks its executives for their review and comment. Smith and his executives make extensive factual and descriptive edits to the report but refuse to comment on financial earnings projections, citing a longstanding company policy against such. Instead, Smith gives Jones repeated assurances that E.com is well on its way to a great quarter, and that he was incredibly bullish on his firm\u27s future earnings potential. Catching the innuendo, Jones drafts a favorable report on E.com\u27s prospects, causing the financial markets to bid up the company\u27s stock price in reliance on the new information. In reality, Smith and his executives realize that E.com\u27s internal earnings projections are far below those predicted in Jones\u27s market report, but they take no measures to correct their company\u27s inflated stock price. In the meantime, Baker, individual investor, purchases a large stake in E.com, relying on the company\u27s market price as an indication of its fair value. Soon thereafter E.com discloses its low earnings in its mandatory quarterly financial report, its stock price plummets, and Baker loses his life savings. Baker brings a private securities fraud action under federal securities law alleging that E.com intentionally misled analysts-and therefore the market-to inflate its stock price. Is E.com liable to Baker (and other harmed investors) for the analyst\u27s misstatements? Under what circumstances should it be? The prevailing standard for determining issuer liability under the federal securities laws for third party misstatements asks whether the issuer sufficiently entangled itself with the analyst\u27s report to such a degree that the analyst\u27s misstatements can fairly be attributed to the issuer.! If the entanglement threshold is met, a company has a duty to correct material misstatements affecting the market when it subsequently realizes their inaccuracy, else the company be- comes liable for civil and regulatory sanctions under the federal securities fraud laws. Not surprisingly, courts applying the standard have had to grapple with what entanglement means in application.! Although the doctrine is developing with greater clarity, the standard for liability remains too muddled for corporate managers to avoid running afoul of the law with predictive certainty.\u27 This Note cuts a bright-line path through the entanglement thicket. Part II discusses the forecasting methods of investment analysts and the information they use to construct their corporate valuations. Part Ill describes the federal regulatory framework governing corporate disclosure and Rule 10b-5 liability for wrongdoing. Part IV describes the contours of the prevailing entanglement standard and its related theories. Part V refines the problem in light of the analytical framework governing corporate liability for third party misstatements. Part VI discusses the policy interests of the key stakeholders involved, including securities issuers, investors, and society at large. Finally, Part VII recommends that courts adopt a practical bright-line standard for pre-publication entanglement liability premised on explicit corporate agreement with an analyst report\u27s final contents, marshaling current doctrine, policy interests, and the realities of modern financial analysis for support. Part VIII resolves the hypothetical posed above

Dilemma: Increase in Human Food Production or Use of Grasslands for Environmental and / or Social Purposes

In the title for this paper we find three major objectives: to feed the world, sustain the environment and provide resources for social purposes, and a dilemma. Even though the word ‘dilemma’ usually implies choice between undesirable alternatives, it is obvious that the alternatives here are not undesirable. Is the dilemma then, that we can only do one at the time, or that the consequences of favouring one over the other can lead to undesirable outcomes? It is my opinion that we are talking about the latter interpretation. It is the foreclosing of options by allowing one objective to dominate that concerns us and that poses a dilemma. How large this dilemma is depends on what we see the possibilities to be of using natural resources, i.e. grasslands in our case, to achieve all three objectives simultaneously

Automatic Generation of Matrix Element Derivatives for Tight Binding Models

Tight binding (TB) models are one approach to the quantum mechanical many particle problem. An important role in TB models is played by hopping and overlap matrix elements between the orbitals on two atoms, which of course depend on the relative positions of the atoms involved. This dependence can be expressed with the help of Slater-Koster parameters, which are usually taken from tables. Recently, a way to generate these tables automatically was published. If TB approaches are applied to simulations of the dynamics of a system, also derivatives of matrix elements can appear. In this work we give general expressions for first and second derivatives of such matrix elements. Implemented in a computer program they obviate the need to type all the required derivatives of all occuring matrix elements by hand.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figure

Human performance prediction in man-machine systems. Volume 1 - A technical review

Tests and test techniques for human performance prediction in man-machine systems task