Stability of Texture and Shape of Circular Domains of Langmuir Monolayers

Finite domains of a Langmuir monolayer in a phase with tilted molecules can be modeled by a simple elastic free energy of an XY order parameter with isotropic and anisotropic line tension terms. The domains can and often do contain nontrivial textures, which in turn influence the shape of the domains. Herein we investigate the properties of a simplified isotropic model with a single elastic constant. For circular domains a first-order phase transition is found between two distinct textures: an exterior defect (or ``virtual boojum'') texture, and an interior defect texture. Starting with a circular domain and either of these two textures as a ground state, we find shape instabilities develop that depend on the elastic constants and line tensions in the simplified model. In both cases a necessary but not sufficient condition for the onset of shape instabilities is the possibility for a local negative effective line tension to develop from the anisotropic line tension term.Comment: 14 double column RevTex pages, 8 eps figure

The 2022 midterms: why this may be another record setting election for women in the House of Representatives

Ahead of the midterm elections, Samantha Pettey analyzes open seats and the competitive races of this cycle to determine the potential gender makeup of the 118th House of Representatives and predicts that 129 women could win seats. She also takes a close look at how abortion is (or isn’t) playing a role in toss-up races where women are on the ballot

What happened?: In 2020, women continued to make strides in representation in Congress and State Legislatures

The 2020 elections saw more women elected to the US House of Representatives than ever, with the new delegation comprising just over 27 percent women. Samantha Pettey writes that much of this increase – for both the Democratic and Republican parties – was down to women winning in open and non-incumbent seat races

Why we should expect gains for Democratic women in the House on November 6th

Various news outlets and researchers are saying the 2018 midterm elections will be ‘(Another) Year of the Woman’ and Midterm Election coverage continues to focus on women as a key group to watch. Samantha Pettey delves into why researchers expect such big gains by women in 2018 – which may see their representation increase to 25 percent of the US House – and why these increases are likely to be concentrated among Democrats

Primary primers: why 2020 is likely to see a record number of women elected to the US house

We are in the final stages of another election season. Although Presidential campaign makes up much of the headlines, there are still 435 House seats up for (re)election. While the US may see its first elected female in Executive Office, and the confirmation of an additional woman on the Supreme Court, Samantha Pettey write that us that this election may see more women than ever enter the House of Representatives

Power and Knowledge in Agreements to Arbitrate Statutory Employment Rights

Published in cooperation with the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolutio

Individual and Collective Diaspora Remittances in the Philippines and Korea: An Interpretation of Narrative Identity, Communicative Action, and Recognition

Research Topic This study examines the practices of sending remittances from the United States to receivers in the Philippines, and collective and individual remittances supporting reunification of Korea with the intention of providing financial support for sustainable living and community projects. The research analyzes the narratives with reference to identity and culture of diaspora Filipinos and Koreans in the United States who are remitters and donors in the United States supporting humanitarian causes in North Korea. Research Theory and Protocol Through critical hermeneutic theory formulated by Paul Ricoeur (2005,1992,1991,1983) and Jürgen Habermas (1981,1987,1984) and the interpretive inquiry protocol developed by Ellen Herda (1999, 2000), the theoretical categories of narrative identity, communicative action, and recognition were applied to this study. Research Categories Research conversations from Filipino overseas migrant workers who remit and individual recipients of remittances in the Philippines provide the narrative for participants from the Philippines. Korean Americans now living in the United States, and members of nonprofit nongovernmental organizations supporting efforts to assist North Koreans, provide the narratives on financial support and peacemaking endeavors between the North Korea and selected institutions in the United States. Findings The study revealed two findings: remittance receivers in the Philippines are often young. They are given the responsibility to discern the best use of remittances for the family, and are often socially isolated and ill-prepared to make wise adult decisions. The second finding involves financial contributions supporting North Korea. South Koreans remit to kin in North Korea through private channels. Korean Americans choose largely to support humanitarian projects in North Korea through support through Korean American institutions. This research also identified non-governmental organizations (NGOs) supporting humanitarian projects in North Korea financed by private contributions

Exploratory Aspects of Sensor Based Planning

In sensor based planning exploration is unavoidable. To understand this aspect of sensor based planning, the authors consider the problem of motion planning for a point with tactile sensors . In dimensions greater than two, this problem has been shown to be unsolvable given a certain mathematical framework. But, if the formulation of the problem is changed by taking the C-space to be discrete, then path planning with tactile sensors is possible. In this setting we give a resolution complete algorithm for planning the motion of a point in any dimension. Measuring the complexity of the problem by the number of discrete moves that the robot makes, we give an upper bound for the complexity of our algorithm that is linear in the surface area of the boundary of the C-space obstacles