Generalized submersiveness of second-order ordinary differential equations

We generalize the notion of submersive second-order differential equations by relaxing the condition that the decoupling stems from the tangent lift of a basic distribution. It is shown that this leads to adapted coordinates in which a number of first-order equations decouple from the remaining second-order ones

(Re)visioning America in the Graphic Novel: Introduction

Comics is an exciting medium which has come into its own both as serious literary and cultural expression, as well as the subject for scholarship. Much of the scholarly discourse of late has been directed at describing and analyzing the medium itself. While comics researchers versed in semiotics and narratology endeavor to construct and refine useful explanatory paradigms, it is also necessary and helpful to employ less medium-specific approaches in discussing and analyzing visual, literary, ..

Exploring visual learning in the basic writing classroom

For many students in basic writing classrooms the language of writing assignments, essay prompts and required reading is especially difficult. Therefore, some teachers are using approaches other than logical or linguistic methods to assist these students. This thesis details some of the methods teachers and researchers are using. Most significant is a case study that explores the use of visuals in a basic writing classroom. The results of the case study and a survey instrument suggest that there is a niche for alternative methods and the use of visuals in the basic writing classroom

Prime Minister as Moral Crusader: Stephen Harper's Punitive Turn in Social Policy-making

Stephen Harper has been Canada’s Prime Minister since 2006, heading three Conservative administrations; two minority governments (2006-08, and 2008-11) and one majority government (2011- to the present). Harper’s time in power has spanned periods of economic growth and surplus federal budgets, through a deep economic recession and budget deficits, to a tentative recovery of the Canadian economy and federal program of general fiscal restraint. Throughout this period of shifting economic and political circumstances, Harper, an intensely partisan and disciplined politician, has dominated his cabinet and parliamentary party as well as defined federal social policy and intergovernmental relations in particular ways. Like other Prime Ministers and governments, the Harper era exhibits a mixed pattern of social policy-making. Thus, although there are certain similarities in policies with previous federal administrations led by Liberal Prime Ministers, Harper’s social policy is distinctive as well. This article advances the argument that Harper’s characteristic approach can be understood in terms of an institutional-punitive conception of social policy. This stern approach to federal social policy-making involves the identification of dangerous persons and threatening behaviours, the elaboration of laws and creation of new offences, and the intensification of legal penalties and punishments. What emerges is the role of Prime Minister as moral crusader in a politics of fear, judgement and regulation. Stephen Harper est le premier ministre du Canada depuis 2006, et il a dirigé trois administrations conservatrices: deux gouvernements minoritaires de 2006-2008, et de 2008-2011, et un gouvernement majoritaire de 2011 à aujourd’hui. Ces administrations ont connues des périodes de croissance économique et de budgets fédéraux excédentaires, ainsi qu’une profonde récession économique, pour arriver enfin à une relance incertaine de l’économie canadienne et à un programme général fédéral de contraintes budgétaires. Harper est un politicien éminemment partisan et très discipliné, et il a dominé son cabinet ainsi que son parti parlementaire au cours de cette période de conditions économiques et politiques changeantes. Il a également redéfini la politique sociale fédérale et les relations intergouvernementales de manière spécifique. Comme d’autres premiers ministres et gouvernements auparavant, l’ère de Harper fait montre d’un mélange de motifs de politiques et de gestion sociales. Donc, bien qu’il existe de similarités en politiques sociales avec les administrations fédérales libérales qui l’ont précédée, la politique social de Harper est très distincte et cet article propose donc que l’approche caractéristique à Harper peut être définie comme une politique sociale institutionnelle-punitive. Cette approche sévère a propos des politiques sociales fédérales, incorpore un processus d’identification de personnes dangereuses et de omportements menaçants, la création de nouvelle lois et de nouveaux délits pour les contrôler, et, l’augmentation des sanctions et peines légales. Le rôle du premier ministre émerge donc comme celui d’un champion de la moralité, aidée par une politique de peur, de jugement et de règlementation. Mots-clefs: politique sociale fédérales; conservatisme moral; sciences politiques

Numerical analysis of pulse pedestal and dynamic chirp formation on picosecond modelocked laser pulses after propagation through a semiconductor optical amplifier

A numerical analysis, based on a modified Schrodinger equation, of the formation of pulse pedestals and dynamic chirp formation on picosecond pulses after propagation through a semiconductor optical amplifier is presented. The numerical predictions are confirmed by an experiment that utilises the frequency resolved optical gating technique for the amplified pulse characterisation

The design and application of a data logging system to monitor discrete electronic components

A Data Logger has been designed and developed by the author. The Data Logger is used to take measurements on electronic components. The Data Logger is outlined. It is described in terms of the hardware from which it was built. It is also described in terms of the software through which it is controlled using an Apple microcomputer. An experiment on multi-layer ceramic capacitors is detailed. A further experiment on optocouplers is outlined. Both experiments make full use of the Data Logger. In concluding, the Data Logger is found to work best with two and three terminal components. Some changes are discussed, enabling the Data Logger to be compatible with the IBM PC format

Privacy Implications of Technology Innovation Processes

The focus of this study is on furthering our understanding of the relationship between technology and privacy by examining privacy concerns during the innovation process. We begin by exploring the techno-privacy relationship and what it is about technology that so concerns us. Dealing with privacy concerns of already developed and adopted technologies is difficult, and we propose that a focus early on as to how stakeholders deal with privacy concerns during the innovation process could be an effective strategy. We start our investigation by drawing on the work of Introna and Pouloudi (1999), whose principles of representation, access, and power aid the analysis of privacy concerns in the information age. We present a qualitative research case study that followed the efforts of three particular stakeholder groups in dealing with privacy concerns raised during a technology innovation process. The analysis provides empirical evidence for Introna and Pouloudi’s principles. We develop two further interrelated concepts, organizational image and timing, which our analysis suggests are specific to understanding how stakeholders deal with privacy during the innovation process

Triple-wavelength fiber ring laser based on a hybrid gain medium actively mode-locked at 10 GHz

A fiber ring laser based on a hybrid gain medium that produces three simultaneously mode-locked wavelength channels is presented. The lithium niobate based modulator used to actively mode-lock the laser cavity at 10 GHz is birefringence compensated to reduce its polarization sensitivity. A Lyot filter defines the lasers multiwavelength spectrum which has a wavelength spacing of 1 nm. The polarization sensitive nature of the laser cavity and its affect on the performance of the laser is discussed

Weary Warriors

As seen in military documents, medical journals, novels, films, television shows, and memoirs, soldiers’ invisible wounds are not innate cracks in individual psyches that break under the stress of war. Instead, the generation of weary warriors is caught up in wider social and political networks and institutions—families, activist groups, government bureaucracies, welfare state programs—mediated through a military hierarchy, psychiatry rooted in mind-body sciences, and various cultural constructs of masculinity. This book offers a history of military psychiatry from the American Civil War to the latest Afghanistan conflict. The authors trace the effects of power and knowledge in relation to the emotional and psychological trauma that shapes soldiers’ bodies, minds, and souls, developing an extensive account of the emergence, diagnosis, and treatment of soldiers’ invisible wounds

Snap

Snap - an original one-act dark comedy where possession is nine-tenths of the law and that goes for everything and everybody. In Snap, South Park meets Commedia when three characters from the underbelly of society play the card game with photographs from their lives