Participation Without Representation: The Meaning of the Right to Vote after \u3ci\u3ePresley v. Etowah County Commission\u3c/i\u3e, 112 S. Ct. 820 (1992)

Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act requires governing entities implementing any new practices with respect to voting to first permit such changes to be scrutinized for discriminatory effects. In Presley v. Etowah County Commission, the United States Supreme Court held that a county government\u27s restructuring of power among commissioners did not require scrutiny because the restructuring did not constitute a change with respect to voting. This Note examines Presley and concludes that the Court\u27s decision ignored precedent, created an unreasonable test and misapplied the test. To ensure effective enforcement of the Voting Rights Act, the Court should adopt a two-pronged inquiry that considers discriminatory motive as a factor. Given the Court\u27s reluctance to give the Act its intended broad meaning, Congress should amend the statute to include a broader definition of voting practices

Multilevel Block Coded Modulation with Unequal Error Protection

Multilevel block coded modulation (BCM) schemes with unequal error protection (UEP) are investigated. These schemes are based on unconventional set partitions that greatly reduce the error coefficients associated with multi-stage decoding of conventional BCM, at the expense of smaller intra-set distances

Multilevel Coded Modulation for Unequal Error Protection and Multistage Decoding—Part II: Asymmetric Constellations

In this paper, multilevel coded asymmetric modulation with multistage decoding and unequal error protection (UEP) is discussed. These results further emphasize the fact that unconventional signal set partitionings are more promising than traditional (Ungerboeck-type) partitionings, to achieve UEP capabilities with multilevel coding and multistage decoding. Three types of unconventional partitionings are analyzed for asymmetric 8-PSK and 16-QAM constellations over the additive white Gaussian noise channel to introduce design guidelines. Generalizations to other PSK and QAM type constellations follow the same lines. Upper bounds on the bit-error probability based on union bound arguments are first derived. In some cases, these bounds become loose due to the large overlappings of decision regions associated with asymmetric constellations and unconventional partitionings. To overcome this problem, simpler and tighter approximated bounds are derived. Based on these bounds, it is shown that additional refinements can be achieved in the construction of multilevel UEP codes, by introducing asymmetries in PSK and QAM signal constellations

Multilevel Coded Modulation for Unequal Error Protection and Multistage Decoding—Part I: Symmetric Constellations

In this paper, theoretical upper bounds and computer simulation results on the error performance of multilevel block coded modulations for unequal error protection (UEP) and multistage decoding are presented. It is shown that nonstandard signal set partitionings and multistage decoding provide excellent UEP capabilities beyond those achievable with conventional coded modulation. The coding scheme is designed in such a way that the most important information bits have a lower error rate than other information bits. The large effective error coefficients, normally associated with standard mapping by set partitioning, are reduced by considering nonstandard partitionings of the underlying signal set. The bits-to-signal mappings induced by these partitionings allow the use of soft-decision decoding of binary block codes. Moreover, parallel operation of some of the staged decoders is possible, to achieve high data rate transmission, so that there is no error propagation between these decoders. Hybrid partitionings are also considered that trade off increased intraset distances in the last partition levels with larger effective error coefficients in the middle partition levels. The error performance of specific examples of multilevel codes over 8-PSK and 64-QAM signal sets are simulated and compared with theoretical upper bounds on the error performance

Coded Modulation for Satellite Broadcasting

In this paper, three-level block coded 8-PSK modulations, suitable for satellite broadcasting of digital TV signals, are presented. A design principle to achieve unequal error protection is introduced. The coding scheme is designed in such a way that the information bits carrying the basic definition TV signal have a lower error rate than the high definition information bits. The large error coefficients, formally associated with standard mapping by set partitioning, are reduced by considering a nonstandard partition of an 8-PSK signal set. The bits-to-signal mapping induced by this partition allows the use of suboptimal low-complexity soft-decision decoding of binary block codes. Parallel operation of the first and second stage decoders is possible, for high data rate transmission. Furthermore, there is no error propagation from the first-stage decoder to the second-stage decoder

OSL Characterisation of Two Fluvial Sequences of the River Usmacinta in its Middle Catchment (SE Mexico)

The report summarizes luminescence profiling, initially using a SUERC PPSL system in Mexico, and laboratory analysis at SUERC, used to characterise the stratigraphy and interpret sedimentary processes in terrace deposits of the Usumacinta River, SE Mexico. This was then followed, by quantitative quartz OSL SAR dating of five sediment samples, aimed at defining the chronologicalframework of two sedimentary sequences, USU13-1 and USU13-2. In the wider region, the middle catchment of the Usumacinta River, contains numerous archaeological sites dating to the Maya Classic Period, including Bonampak, Yaxchilan and Piedras Negras. The broader aim of the investigation is to assess whether the two fluvial sequences contain a proxy record of environmental change through the archaeological period of interest. Initial luminescence profiling revealed that the stratigraphy in each profile was complex, reflecting multiple cycles of deposition, with signal maxima, followed by tails to lower intensities, possibly indicating deposition during extreme flood events, interleaved with periods of slower sedimentation, and potentially better luminescence resetting. Laboratory profiling reproduced the apparent maxima/trends in the field profiling dataset, confirming that both sections record complex depositional histories. Furthermore, the variations in stored dose estimates, and luminescence sensitivities with depth, confirm that the sections do not record simple age-depth progressions. Quantitative quartz OSL SAR dating was undertaken on five sediment samples. Given the information obtained from the field- and laboratory-profiles it is not surprising that the equivalent dose distributions for each sample showed considerable scatter, particularly so for the second section, USU13-2. Nevertheless, throughstatistical analysis, individual quartz OSL SAR ages were obtained for each sample. Individual dates fall into the Mayan Post-Classical Period to early modern Period, with statistical combinations pointing to a late 15th century accumulation of USU13-1, and the 18th century accumulation of the sediment within USU13-2. Interestingly, the three samples from section USU13-2, all show some aliquots which tail to higher equivalent doses; furthermore, in each sample, the mean value determined for this component is similar, suggesting that the sediment sampled in USU13-2, may be sourced from a 15th century or older accumulation upstream