On the Disambiguation of Weighted Automata

We present a disambiguation algorithm for weighted automata. The algorithm admits two main stages: a pre-disambiguation stage followed by a transition removal stage. We give a detailed description of the algorithm and the proof of its correctness. The algorithm is not applicable to all weighted automata but we prove sufficient conditions for its applicability in the case of the tropical semiring by introducing the *weak twins property*. In particular, the algorithm can be used with all acyclic weighted automata, relevant to applications. While disambiguation can sometimes be achieved using determinization, our disambiguation algorithm in some cases can return a result that is exponentially smaller than any equivalent deterministic automaton. We also present some empirical evidence of the space benefits of disambiguation over determinization in speech recognition and machine translation applications

Zeta Function on Surfaces of Revolution

In this paper we applied the contour integral method for the zeta function associated with a differential operator to the Laplacian on a surface of revolution. Using the WKB expansion, we calculated the residues and values of the zeta function at several important points. The results agree with those obtained from the heat kernel expansion. We also obtained a closed form formula for the determinant of the Laplacian on such a surface.Comment: 17 pages, LaTe

Prevalence, incidence and etiology of hyponatremia in elderly patients with fragility fractures

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

MEIC v. DEQ

Hecla Mining Company and its subsidiaries want to develop two industrial silver and copper mines­­––the Montanore and Rock Creek projects––beneath northwest Montana’s Cabinet Mountains Wilderness. Environmental organizations, in just one of a series of legal challenges to protect high-quality designated resource waters and unique bull trout and grizzly bear habitat, brought an action seeking a declaration that Montana Department of Environmental Quality’s issuance of a permit for the Montanore Project was unlawful. The Montana Supreme Court, in a four-member majority, affirmed the district court’s vacatur and remanded the case to the state agency for further proceedings. The decision is celebrated by environmental groups as a victory to ensure that mines are permitted under Montana’s contemporary water quality standards and nondegradation policy. However, the Court likely created an unclear test to determine a mine’s operational life

Cracks in the Bathroom Stall: A Discourse Analysis on Transgender Bathroom Usage at Garden Spot High School

In recent years, high schools across the country have seen the concern around transgender students using gendered facilities, such as bathrooms and locker rooms, come to the forefront. Often, dissenters raise worries of privacy and of “catering to a minority,” no matter what decision is reached. At Garden Spot High School in New Holland, Pennsylvania, the site of this research, one such concern has led to a district-wide decision to eliminate gendered facilities and move to single-use facilities, in the name of preserving student privacy. Through the examination of historical precedent and discourse analysis, this paper examines how transgender surveillance serves as a source of anxiety for transgender students and for the cisgender members of society around them as these debates are taken up. By positioning trans students as suspicious and in need of hyper-regulation, undue surveillance disrupts any chance of privacy for all students

Student Participation in School Sponsored Extra-curricular Activities at the Elementary School Level and the Impact of Student Engagement

Getting students involved in their day to day educational processes is often challenging and, in some schools, systems appear almost unrealistic. Students in school do not often see the value of or make the connection with the importance of education. Students see movie stars such as Jennifer Lawrence drop out of school at fourteen, singers, rappers and others in the entertainment industry who are successful and make millions without an education. The potential of a YouTube posting, turning someone into a star looms in their imaginations and they think it could happen to them. Students today are even more enticed by technology and the possibilities. In communities throughout the United States, school does not offer a sense of belonging, of personal expression or of freedom to experiment with acceptance. Competing with so much external stimuli, schools face an uphill battle with improving student engagement. In some communities throughout the United States, students feel that the schools do not provide for them a sense of belonging, the opportunity for personal expression or the freedom to experiment with self-proclaimed ideas or preparation for future goals. Getting students engaged early in their educational careers could possibly make all the difference as they navigate middle and high school. Appleton, 2009, noted that student engagement involves both observable and internal engagement. Observable engagement involves things one sees in the academic setting in the classroom such as participating in the class, identified as academic functioning, and behavioral engagement such as attendance and behavior. Internal engagement encompasses both the cognitive and the affective. The cognitive engagement includes the relevance of school work and personal goals; the affective engagement identifies the students’ sense of belonging and school connectedness. Positive student engagement could change the trajectory of a student’s outlook on school, on education and on life