Computing stable eigendecompositions of matrices

AbstractIf a matrix T is known only to within a tolerance ϵ (because of measurement or roundoff errors), then it may be difficult to compute an eigendecomposition of T, since its invariant subspaces are discontinuous functions of its entries. In this paper we show how to compute a stable decomposition of an uncertain matrix T which varies continuously and boundedly as T varies in a ball of radius ϵ

Scripted Politics : An analysis of the Scottish State's reliance of Charisma

This essay analyses the goings on of First Minster’s Questions in the Scottish Parliament. Through the realisation that this spectacle is largely semi-scripted I make the argument that the idea of the state relies on the charisma of events like this in order to encourage engagement, thereby reinforcing its existence. I argue that the alternative of pitting facts and figures against each other without the spectacle lacks the charisma to engage an audience in the idea of the state.&nbsp

Construction and validation of a hot torsion testing instrument

textThe need to increase vehicle performance, particularly fuel efficiency, has led to an increased interest in using lightweight metals for vehicle structural components. Lightweight aluminum alloys offer the potential to significantly reduce vehicle mass when structural components that use steel are replaced. Mass reduction is a very efficient route to increase vehicle performance. In vehicles with traditional powertrains, mass reduction can increase fuel efficiency. In vehicles with electrical powertrains, mass reduction can increase driving range. Regardless of the specific structural application, the best performance of any aluminum alloy is only obtained by achieving a microstructure that produces the best material properties. For wrought aluminum alloys, hot and cold deformation steps are critical to obtaining a desirable microstructure prior to the forming of a final component. For sheet material, the first step in controlling the final microstructure is microstructure evolution during hot rolling the cast ingot material. Hot rolling precedes cold rolling of the sheet to final thickness in most commercial sheet manufacturing operations. Microstructure during hot rolling is difficult to study because it requires a combination of high temperatures, fast strain rates and large strains to do so. Furthermore, specimens for microstructural examination must be extracted from these conditions while retaining the characteristics of the specific conditions that are to be studied. Hot torsion testing is the traditional approach to meeting these experimental requirements. In this investigation, a new hot torsion testing instrument is designed, fabricated and validated to enable future experiments that will elucidate microstructure evolution under conditions pertinent to hot rolling. This new instrument is integrated with computerized control and data acquisition systems. Validation experiments were conducted to characterize its capabilities. It is concluded that the completed instrument meets the requirements necessary to study plastic deformation and microstructure evolution in aluminum alloys under conditions relevant to hot rolling.Mechanical Engineerin

Revolutionary Republics: U.S. national narratives and the independence of Latin America, 1810-1846

Revolutionary Republics analyzes how U.S. literature depicted the independence of Latin America, focusing on the period from the beginning of the Spanish American revolutions in 1810 to the outbreak of the U.S.-Mexican War in 1846. During this brief timespan, the nation’s literature featured a radical transition in which the independent republics of Latin America shifted from being viewed as “southern brethren” of the United States, a term used by such prominent public figures as Daniel Webster and John Quincy Adams, to hostile enemies allegedly in need of assistance from their northern neighbor. This reversal exposes a contradiction between the imperialist ventures of the United States and its espoused principles of republican democracy, especially considering antebellum celebrations of the American Revolution as the beginning of a transatlantic discourse promoting universal liberty. Formulated in national narratives, literary responses to the revolutions and independent republics expose U.S. territorial and ideological expansion south and west as a form of Anglo-American empire-building. By transposing traditions of revolutionary inheritance onto the wars for independence in Spanish America, writers reinforce the ideology of U.S. exceptionalism. The study’s geographic focal points are Cuba, Mexico, Texas, and Louisiana, particularly the circum-Caribbean city of New Orleans. Several chapters examine Spanish-language works published in the United States, focusing specifically on texts issued by Hispanophone presses in New Orleans and Philadelphia. Authors discussed include Robert Montgomery Bird, Henry Marie Brackenridge, Maria Gowen Brooks, James Fenimore Cooper, Timothy Flint, Joseph Holt Ingraham, Edgar Allan Poe, William Davis Robinson, Vicente Rocafuerte, Orazio de Atellis Santangelo, Catherine Maria Sedgwick, Richard Penn Smith, Jose Alvarez de Toledo, and Lorenzo de Zavala

The Determination of the Time of Ovulation, First Cleavage, Subsequent Cleavage Divisions and Implantation in Female Mice Treated with Gonadotrophins

A thesis presented to the faculty of the School of Sciences and Mathematics at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Biology by James William Weldon in May of 1971