Measuring the Consequences of Rules: Holly M. Smith

Recently two distinct forms of rule-utilitarianism have been introduced that differ on how to measure the consequences of rules. Brad Hooker advocates fixed-rate rule-utilitarianism, while Michael Ridge advocates variable-rate rule-utilitarianism. I argue that both of these are inferior to a new proposal, optimum-rate rule-utilitarianism. According to optimum-rate rule-utilitarianism, an ideal code is the code whose optimum acceptance level is no lower than that of any alternative code. I then argue that all three forms of rule-utilitarianism fall prey to two fatal problems that leave us without any viable form of rule-utilitarianism

Solar array electrical performance assessment for Space Station Freedom

Electrical power for Space Station Freedom will be generated by large Photovoltaic arrays with a beginning of life power requirement of 30.8 kW per array. The solar arrays will operate in a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) over a design life of fifteen years. This paper provides an analysis of the predicted solar array electrical performance over the design life and presents a summary of supporting analysis and test data for the assigned model parameters and performance loss factors. Each model parameter and loss factor is assessed based upon program requirements, component analysis, and test data to date. A description of the LMSC performance model, future test plans, and predicted performance ranges are also given

TEACHER PERSPECTIVES ON THE INFLUENCE OF PARTICIPATION IN DALCROZE TRAINING IN THE K–12 MUSIC CLASSROOM: A MIXED METHODS STUDY

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine the teacher perspectives on the influence of participation in Dalcroze training in the K–12 music classroom. A primary goal was to investigate how Dalcroze training influenced music teachers’ classroom instructional practices. An explanatory sequential mixed methods design was use for this study. Participants (N = 91) completed a cross-sectional survey, the Dalcroze Training Experience Questionnaire (DTEQ). Interview participants (N = 6) were selected using stratified sampling based on their years of Dalcroze experience and not demographic characteristics. Each participated in one semi-structured interview. Quantitative data was analyzed using a two-way factorial analysis of variance (ANOVA). Quantitative results indicate that there was a statistically significant two-factor interaction effect between the amount of Dalcroze training and teaching experience and the amounts of time spent with movement in the classroom F(12, 71) = 2.32, df = 12, p = .004). Qualitative data were analyzed using an empirical, transcendental phenomenological approach; the phenomenon for this study is the experience of participating in Dalcroze training. Using Moustaka’s (1994) four-step phenomenological data analysis, the researcher: (1) underwent epoche, (2) engaged in the process of phenomenological reduction, (3) completed an imaginative variation, and (4) engaged in intuitive integration. An essential, invariant structure, or central underlying meaning of the experience was discovered to highlight the common experiences of the participants. Four themes emerged: understanding Dalcroze; the benefits of Dalcroze, Dalcroze training, and the impact on the music classroom. Participation in Dalcroze training influences participants and their music classrooms in various capacities. The culminating essence of Dalcroze training includes experiential learning opportunities, enhanced teaching skills, enhanced musicianship, and differential learning opportunities. Additionally, participants of Dalcroze training reflected influential changes to their own teaching practices and their own musicianship. Subsequently, participants perceived an increase in student participation and the understanding of musical concepts being taught. This study promotes positive social change by investigating an experiential way of learning that could improve teacher effectiveness in the K–12 music classroom and, ultimately, lead to improved student learning

Parental Alienation Syndrome: Fact or Fiction? The Problem with Its Use in Child Custody Cases

Parental alienation syndrome is an alleged disorder that was first coined by Dr. Richard Gardner in 1985. Dr. Gardner defined this alleged syndrome as one that arises primarily in the context of child-custody disputes and involves a child’s unjustified denigration against a parent. Although more than thirty years have passed since parental alienation syndrome was first introduced by Dr. Gardner, it is yet to be recognized or accepted in the medical community. Moreover, there are also legitimate questions concerning the alleged syndrome’s admissibility and reliability as evidence in family law proceedings, and the negative effects parental alienation syndrome poses on child custody cases are undeniable. This Note argues that parental alienation syndrome should not be recognized in Massachusetts child custody disputes because it is not a medically recognized syndrome, nor does it pass either of the evidentiary reliability standards used in the Commonwealth. This Note proposes that parties involved in child custody disputes should be educated on the junk science of parental alienation syndrome and informed of the laws available to assist them when issues arise concerning parental behavior that may negatively impact a child

‘Exquisite moments’:moments of epiphany in Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway (1925)

In Mrs Dalloway (1925), Virginia Woolf weaves together the fibres of her characters’ lives into an ever-moving, interconnected narrative fabric. Within this interwoven patchwork, characters enter into a communal realm of being their streams of individual existence entangle with the internal realms of others, alongside the external world surrounding them. Woolf’s winding omniscient narration and free indirect discourse seamlessly enacts this entangling of the fibres of characters’ existence, tracing their unravelling across the space of a single day. The progression of this singular day and its linear passage of time, marked by the rhythmic pulses of London’s Big Ben that swell throughout all the characters’ narratives, finds itself strangely interrupted by sudden moments of epiphany which carry with them their own peculiar, fluctuating temporalities. Reading Mrs Dalloway through the lens of Woolf’s mystic philosophy in her essay ‘A Sketch of the Past’ illuminates this strange relationship between the past and present, and her vision of the layered, wave-like texture of temporal streams. In Mrs Dalloway, epiphanic moments open up dream-like pools of being within the novel’s onward temporal flow, submerging Woolf’s characters into internal spaces where time moves differently. Within these moments, the past erupts into the present with mystic intensity, and membranes between memory and reality, sensation and imagination, and internal and shared spaces become permeable. Immersion into these spaces of wonder and revelation, what Woolf refers to as ‘exquisite moments’, is often mobilised by a cultivated relationship with the mundane. The everyday objects and sensations that pattern the characters’ narratives become powerful gateways for epiphanic visions; the realms of the ordinary and the sublime overlap, the minutiae of existence illuminated in radiant detail. Tender attention to this detail of existence offers us a rich way of experiencing and embodying the world around us, a means through which we can access the ’divine vitality’ of ordinary life

A feasibility study into the efficacy of a three session Cognitive Bias Modification for Interpretation (CBM-I) training, with Implementation Intentions (II), for adolescents experiencing high levels of social anxiety: A single-case series.

Previous research has found that Cognitive Bias Modification for Interpretation (CBM-I) is effective for modifying interpretation biases and reducing anxiety in adults (e.g., Mathews & Mackintosh, 2000). Beard (2011) recommended investigating the effectiveness of CBM-I in adolescents, particularly those experiencing social anxiety, and enhancing effects of CBM-I. Webb, Ononaiye, Sheeran, Reidy and Lavda (2010) found that implementation intentions (II) could promote rapid disengagement from threatening stimuli and decrease poor self-evaluation for people with high levels of social anxiety. Therefore the current study aimed to investigate the effects of CBM-I with II using a three session CBM-I training programme with adolescents experiencing clinical levels of social anxiety. Curtis (2013) found that adolescents with SAD showed greater reductions in anxiety and negative interpretation bias following a CBM-I programme if they enjoyed the programme. Therefore the study looked at whether adolescents who reported greater enjoyment displayed greater reductions in negative interpretation bias and social anxiety symptoms than those that reported low levels of enjoyment. Overall, CBM-I with IIs did not significantly reduce negative interpretation biases and levels of social anxiety. Still, minimal reductions in negative interpretation bias and social anxiety symptoms were found for some adolescents and the enjoyment level experienced was related to outcomes. The clinical and theoretical implications were discussed (e.g., aetiology of SAD and implications for treatment), alongside limitations of the study (e.g., recruitment and sample considerations) and potential directions for further research were suggested (e.g., increasing the number of CBM-I sessions) to develop our understanding of the variables involved in modifying interpretation bias and social anxiety in adolescents

Design, construction, and preliminary testing of a square cross-sectional mixing chamber

Throughout the US, large quantities of chlorine are produced and transported by rail. In the past, train accidents led to deadly accidental releases and the need for mass evacuation. However, moving people unnecessarily may cause pandemonium or danger to health for sensitive members of the public. In these past cases, the models used for evacuation distances did not accurately predict the impact of the chlorine release, but these models did not take into account the reactivity of chlorine. Because chlorine is a highly reactive gas, it is absorbed into the surrounding environment which reduced the amount of chlorine in the air thereby reducing the impact of an accidental release. In this context, the Controlled Environment Reactivity Test (CERT) program was created to determine the extent of the absorption of chlorine with the environment. The Chemical Hazard Research Center (CHRC) at the University of Arkansas is active member of the program. Its facility is used to conduct low wind speed dispersion modeling for various hazardous gases. For the CERT Program, the aim is to create a test chamber designed to provide chemical reactivity (deposition) data for direct use in atmospheric dispersion models. This particular project aimed at designing and constructing a test chamber to provide gas mixtures in preparation for the CERT Tests. Preliminary tests were conducted to validate the set-up. The chamber is made of plywood and clear polycarbonate, powered by a small 2 hp fan used to push the air through the chamber to the room. Based on previous work, High Efficiency Vortex (HEV) mixer design has been adapted to mix test gas with inlet air. The HEV mixer is placed directly after the fan and uses two sets of inline baffles to produce turbulent mixing. The testing included the delivery of the gas (fog) to the chamber, the determination of the optimal setup for all experiments, and the preliminary videos. An optimal height for the inlet nozzle of five inches was determined and the similarity between the fog speed and the air speed on the lowest fog and fan setting has been proven. Finally, the preliminary videos of the chamber flow clearly show a large scale vortical structure which is convected along the length of the test section. This undesirable structure is caused by the fan. A flow straightener could be used to reduce or eliminate this phenomenon