The open string membrane paradigm with external electromagnetic fields

We study the effective geometry felt by the fluctuations of open strings living on the worldvolume of probe D-branes in the presence of background electromagnetic fields. This is captured by an effective action consisting of a Maxwell term and a topological term, with the role of the metric played by the open string metric. Studying generalized Eddington-Finkelstein coordinates for stationary but non-static manifolds, we consider an open string membrane paradigm to obtain a generic formula for the DC transport coefficients, including the effect of external electromagnetic fields present on the worldvolume of the probe branes. We show that the previously studied singular shell, present when a critical electric field strength is turned on, behaves as a horizon for the open string degrees of freedom. The results of this analysis can be used to define a membrane paradigm for a very general class of spacetimes with non-diagonal metrics.Comment: 31 pages, 3 figures, v2: Appendix added, minor correction

Relational Connection in Pastoral Ministry

We present the results of a qualitative study from interviews conducted with 13 Southern Baptist pastors. We explored the constructs of personal affiliation dynamics involved in pastoral ministry and here report three findings common among the pastors: (a) Be intentional about pastoral connectedness since it is paramount to effective ministry, (b) Be available to congregants who desire connection with pastoral staff, and (c) Give particular attention to connections with lay church leadership

Rachmaninoff's "Concealed Variation" Principle: Inspiration for Motivic Unity in his Preludes, Op. 32

Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) is considered one of the greatest pianist-composers of the Late Romantic Era. Specifically, his twenty-four piano preludes stand as hallmarks of the Russian solo repertoire, inspired by the prelude cycles of Johann Sebastian Bach and Frédéric Chopin. Rachmaninoff’s preludes are regularly performed today by students and virtuosos alike. The composer experienced early success with the release of his Prelude in C-sharp minor, Op. 3, No. 2. The international triumph of the piece followed him throughout his career and resulted in his exasperation over the work’s popularity. During his middle period of composition Rachmaninoff completed his cycle of preludes by writing and publishing Op. 32 in 1910. The swift penning of this set displays remarkable continuity in motive, melody, harmony, and rhythm within the work. Since the release of the Op. 32 preludes, many musicians have noticed the similarities between Op. 32 and his early Op. 3, No. 2 prelude. In 2006, Rachmaninoff scholar Valentin Antipov revealed aspects of monothematicism within Rachmaninoff’s cycles of piano pieces. He also conditionally proposed the twenty-four preludes as a cycle of “concealed variations” on Rachmaninoff’s own Prelude in C-sharp Minor. It is hardly possible to assemble an exhaustive listing of the compositional methods used by Rachmaninoff to obscure the Op. 3 theme. However, in this document I seek to support the claim that two distinct motives in Op. 32 are drawn from Rachmaninoff’s universally acclaimed masterpiece, the Prelude in C-sharp minor, Op. 3, No. 2

Exploring the Perceptions and Experiences of Remote Work Among Administrative Healthcare Personnel at an Academic Medical Center in the Southeastern United States: A Qualitative Investigation

This qualitative study investigates the attitudes and experiences of administrative healthcare employees toward remote work at an Academic Medical Center (AMC) in the Southeastern United States. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare organizations rapidly shifted toward remote work to ensure safety, prompting questions regarding the sustainability of this model. Through semi-structured interviews, participants expressed a preference for remote work, citing increased productivity and job satisfaction. Flexibility emerged as a key benefit, allowing employees to effectively integrate professional and personal responsibilities. However, maintaining boundaries between work and personal life posed challenges, necessitating clear policies and support structures. This project contributes to existing literature by exploring remote work within a large-scale academic medical center, offering insights into its impact on productivity, job satisfaction, and work-life integration. Findings indicate a favorable attitude toward remote work among administrative healthcare employees, suggesting its potential as a working model for administrative personnel in the healthcare space

Reinventing the Prison Yard: Creating Healthier Prisons Through Landscape Architecture and Sociology

Many Americans have seen pictures of so-called ‘luxury’ prisons in places like Norway and Finland, and for those who have grown up knowing the harsh American prison system, the Scandinavian prisons seem to be almost rewarding criminals. However, in some areas in the United States rehabilitative prison systems are gaining popularity over a purely incapacitative system, and American researchers have turned to the Scandinavian experiments with increased interest to see what we can learn and apply from them. While this has led to interesting research in sociological, criminological, and even architectural fields, the role of landscape architecture in prisons has been mostly overlooked. The field of landscape architecture is not limited to enhancing the physical beauty of exterior spaces, but also deals with planning the design, distribution, and use of exterior spaces to help people. Intentional landscape architecture informed by sociological theory has the potential to reduce future rates of recidivism by improving the mental and physical well-being of prison inmates. Little research has been done specifically on the effect that well-designed landscapes and associated programming have on people going through criminal rehabilitation. However, many papers on subjects such as how interaction with nature and designed spaces affects people, how inmates interact with their prison environment, and what sorts of influences make for healthy prisons with success in reducing recidivism. I will synthesize primary research from these different fields of academic inquiry to make a case that good landscape architecture and associated programming have a place in modern rehabilitative prison design. This will provide a jumping-off point for future penological research combining the disciplines of sociology and landscape architecture

Interconnectivity of habitats in soil:combining X-ray micro tomography and thin sectioning to reveal fungal-soil structure interactions

The extreme heterogeneity and interconnectivity of the 3-dimensional pore space within soil makes it a unique habitat for the diverse microbial population and has a pivotal role in microbial interactions. Manipulation and quantification of the 3-dimensional pore space and the spatial distribution of micro-organisms is therefore essential if we are to fully understand microbial interactions. Here we pack soil microcosms at different bulk-densities to manipulate soil structure and use x-ray micro tomography and soil thin sections to analyse the effect on the connectivity of the pore volume and on fungal exploration