Volunteering at Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada

Catholic Charities provides services for the homeless and needy, family programs, and adoption services.https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/educ_sys_202/1053/thumbnail.jp

Functional dependencies for XML : axiomatisation and normal form in the presence of frequencies and identifiers : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Sciences in Information Sciences at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

XML has gained popularity as a markup language for publishing and exchanging data on the web. Nowadays, there are also ongoing interests in using XML for representing and actually storing data. In particular, much effort has been directed towards turning XML into a real data model by improving the semantics that can be expressed about XML documents. Various works have addressed how to define different classes of integrity constraints and the development of a normalisation theory for XML. One area which received little to no attention from the research community up to five years ago is the study of functional dependencies in the context of XML [37]. Since then, there has been increasingly more research investigating functional dependencies in XML. Nevertheless, a comprehensive dependency theory and normalisation theory for XML have yet to emerge. Functional dependencies are an integral part of database theory in the relational data model (RDM). In particular, functional dependencies have been vital in the investigation of how to design "good" relational database schemas which avoid or minimise problems relating to data redundancy and data inconsistency. Since the same problems can be shown to exist in poorly designed XML schemas 1 , there is a need to investigate how these problems can be eliminated in the context of XML. We believe that the study of an analogy to relational functional dependencies in the context of XML is equally significant towards designing "good" XML schemas. [FROM INTRODUCTION

Understanding N-nitrosodimethylamine Formation in Water: Chloramine Chemistry, Kinetics, and A Proposed Reaction Pathway

The formation of N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) in drinking water systems is a concern because of its potential carcinogenicity and occurrence at toxicologically relevant levels. The postulated mechanism for NDMA formation involves a substitution between dichloramine and amine-based precursors to form an unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH), which is then oxidized by ground-state molecular oxygen to form NDMA. However, this latter reaction is spin forbidden, thus likely occurs at a slow rate. It is hypothesized that the reaction between monochloramine and hydroxylamine (a nitrification product) may form an intermediate, which is involved in the NDMA formation pathway. This intermediate may also be generated from dichloramine decay, in the absence of hydroxylamine. In this study, a series of batch kinetic experiments were conducted to investigate the decomposition of chloramine species at pH 8.0 to 10.0 and the concomitant formation of NDMA. Chloramine species were quantified using UV/Vis spectroscopy (Direct UV) and colorimetric methods (Hach) and compared to simulations from the unified chloramine model. NDMA was quantified using GC-MS following liquid-liquid extraction. The model captured the decay of monochloramine and dichloramine adequately, with the exception of monochloramine at pH 10.0, possibly due to an interference from a previously reported unidentified chloramine decomposition compound (UC1). NDMA formation was pH dependent with the maximum yields at pH 9.0 and the fastest kinetics at pH 10.0. A second unidentified compound (UC2), with a mass spectrum identified as UDMH, was detected only at pH 9.0 and 10.0 in batch reactors with DMA and dichloramine. Importantly, NDMA formation appeared to be insensitive to the presence or absence of UC2, suggesting UC2 was not involved in NDMA formation. Hydroxylamine accelerates the decomposition of monochloramine. The reaction between DMA and hydroxylamine formed a third unidentified compound (UC3), preliminarily identified as acetoxime, which was not observed in the presence of monochloramine. Upon addition of hydroxylamine, NDMA yields decreased by more than half in batch reactors with DMA and monochloramine. On balance, the findings suggest the existence of a NDMA formation pathway that may not involve UDMH, and points to the need for studies with scavengers and donors of short-lived species from chloramine decay

Transition to an open economy : an analysis of Vietnam's export performance 1986 - 2000 : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Studies in Economics at Massey University

Page 108 not in originalExternal reform is a large component of Vietnam's overall transition to a market-based economy which officially started in 1986. This study analytically and empirically examines Vietnam's export performance from 1986 to 2000. The spectacular growth in both exports and imports and significant changes in Vietnam's export composition and market structure since 1986 are delineated. Exports, as a demand source, are found to contribute an increasing part of the overall output growth. Vietnam's changing Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA) indicates a move toward manufactured exports. Increased diversification is apparent within Vietnam's export destinations, but less diversification is evident in its export composition. A Constant-Market-Share (CMS) analysis of the sources of non-oil export growth over the period 1985-1999 shows that Vietnam's exports concentrated on commodities with import demands growing more slowly than the average of all commodities. From 1985 to 1995, Vietnam's exports benefited from increasing penetration into relatively fast growing Asian markets, but the Asian crisis of 1999 effectively derailed Vietnam's export expansion. Inability to adapt export composition and market structure to changes in world conditions affected Vietnam's increasing share in world exports. Vietnam's increased competitiveness, as reflected in the micro-share effects, is found to be the key to observed export growth, representing 118 percent of the total gain in market share from 1985 to 1999. The study further tested observed composition of manufactured exports to three selected groups of Vietnam's trading partners - the world, the OECD and the Asian developing countries - in the light of the Ricardian and the Heckscher-Ohlin theories. Empirical results provide no evidence that manufactured exports to any of these three groups of trading partners is positively correlated with labour productivity. The Heckscher-Ohlin contention that Vietnam should export relatively labour-intensive goods is supported by the pattern of Vietnam's manufactured exports to the OECD and the world, but not confirmed by its pattern of manufactured exports to the Asian developing countries