Supernovae Types Ia/II and Intracluster Medium Enrichment

We re-examine the respective roles played by supernovae (SNe) Types Ia and II in enriching the intracluster medium (ICM) of galaxy clusters, in light of the recent downward shift of the ASCA abundance ratios of alpha-elements to iron favoured by Ishimaru & Arimoto (1997, PASJ, 49, 1). Because of this shift, Ishimaru & Arimoto conclude that >50% of the ICM iron must have originated from within Type Ia SNe progenitors. A point not appreciated in their study, nor in most previous analyses, is the crucial dependence of such a conclusion upon the adopted massive star physics. Employing several alternative Type II SN yield compilations, we demonstrate how uncertainties in the treatment of convection and mass-loss can radically alter our perception of the relative importance of Type Ia and II SNe as ICM polluters. If mass-loss of the form favoured by Maeder (1992, A&A, 264, 105) or convection of the form favoured by Arnett (1996, Supernovae and Nucleosynthesis) is assumed, the effect upon the oxygen yields would lead us to conclude that Type Ia SNe play no part in polluting the ICM, in contradiction with Ishimaru & Arimoto. Apparent dichotomies still exist (e.g. the mean ICM neon-to-iron ratio implies a 100% Type II Fe origin, while the mean sulphur ratio indicates a 100% Type Ia origin) that cannot be reconciled with the currently available yield tables.Comment: 6 pages (incl 1 PostScript figure), LaTeX, also available at http://msowww.anu.edu.au/~gibson/publications.html, MNRAS, in pres

Neighbourhood Regeneration in Istanbul – from Earthquake Mitigation to Planned Displacement and Gentrification

The paper analyses the development of neighbourhood regeneration in Istanbul since the 1999 Marmara earthquake, contrasting initial concepts and policy recommendations with actual policies and outcomes. It draws on original research to develop an analytical framework which focuses on the evolving inter-relationship between academic and professional discourses, innovative neighbourhood projects and central government’s neo-liberal economic and political strategies. The analysis identifies three phases. The first was the initial response to the 1999 earthquake, in the context of recovery from the 2001 recession, the early EU harmonisation process and the advent of single party (Justice and Development Party-AKP) government. This focussed attention on the legacy of the unregulated growth of Istanbul in the second half of the 20th century – thousands of poorly constructed earthquake vulnerable apartment blocks. The metropolitan municipality commissioned studies from local universities and international experts. Combined with an EU funded pilot project, this innovative research established the key components of a Turkish model of strategic earthquake resilient redevelopment of poor neighbourhoods, with minimum gentrification.But in the context of a rapidly growing economy, faltering EU harmonization and a second term for an increasingly pro-development government the second phase was dominated by the controversial implementation of the 2005 renewal law No. 5366 in the city’s historic districts. The central government housing development agency TOKI became the leading actor, working in partnership with district municipalities. Implementation was epitomized by the Sulukule Project which destroyed the Roma community. In parallel, the Fener-Balat EU project was succeeded by a construction company-led project which promoted gentrification. There was growing collective resistance from residents to regeneration projects in gecekondu (squatter) neighbourhoods. The concept of neighbourhood regeneration as earthquake mitigation was marginalized - gentrification was seen as a greater threat. A third term AKP administration prioritised supporting the construction sector to sustain economic development in the aftermath of the global downturn, but it also had to respond to the 2011 Van earthquake. The third phase began with the 2012 urban regeneration law No. 6306 which aimed to stimulate neighbourhood regeneration outside historic districts. Forty Urban Regeneration Areas have been designated in fifteen districts, through processes controlled by central government. However these neighbourhoods are generally not those most vulnerable to earthquake destruction, but those where redevelopment is highly profitable. A case study of Bağcılar illustrates the limitations of contemporary practice but also identifies positive developments which could be built on under changed circumstances.The paper concludes that the 20th century solutions to the challenges of urbanisation have substantially defined the neighbourhood regeneration problems of the 21st century and that current ‘top-down’ neo-liberal urban policies will not protect the poor from future earthquakes. Two parallel tasks are proposed for progressive academics and professionals: ‘bottom-up’ empirical research to provide hard evidence of the socially regressive outcomes of current practice and its failure to deliver earthquake resilience; and the definition of alternative models of neighbourhood regeneration, together with a specification of the changes in national policies necessary to deliver them

An investigation of the efficient implementation of Cellular Automata on multi-core CPU and GPU hardware

Copyright © 2015 Elsevier. NOTICE: this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Journal of Parallel and Distributed Computing . Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Journal of Parallel and Distributed Computing Vol. 77 (2015), DOI: 10.1016/j.jpdc.2014.10.011Cellular automata (CA) have proven to be excellent tools for the simulation of a wide variety of phenomena in the natural world. They are ideal candidates for acceleration with modern general purpose-graphical processing units (GPU/GPGPU) hardware that consists of large numbers of small, tightly-coupled processors. In this study the potential for speeding up CA execution using multi-core CPUs and GPUs is investigated and the scalability of doing so with respect to standard CA parameters such as lattice and neighbourhood sizes, number of states and generations is determined. Additionally the impact of ‘Activity’ (the number of ‘alive’ cells) within a given CA simulation is investigated in terms of both varying the random initial distribution levels of ‘alive’ cells, and via the use of novel state transition rules; where a change in the dynamics of these rules (i.e. the number of states) allows for the investigation of the variable complexity within.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC

Simulated impact response of a 3-D printed skull, with an ellipsoidal excision, using finite element analysis

This paper investigates methods of determining the influence of an ellipsoidal excision (14.2x11.8 mm occipital region) on the structural integrity of a human skull when exposed to impact loading. Experimental and simulation-based analyses were conducted, using 3-D printed replicas and a finite element model; both were derived from a clinical CT scan of the patient (28 YO MC, with no previous health concerns). Previous simulation studies [1] have achieved managed to predict skull fracture locations effectively for nonexcised skulls

Adaptation and Feasibility Study of a Digital Health Program to Prevent Diabetes among Low-Income Patients: Results from a Partnership between a Digital Health Company and an Academic Research Team.

Background. The feasibility of digital health programs to prevent and manage diabetes in low-income patients has not been adequately explored. Methods. Researchers collaborated with a digital health company to adapt a diabetes prevention program for low-income prediabetes patients at a large safety net clinic. We conducted focus groups to assess patient perspectives, revised lessons for improved readability and cultural relevance to low-income and Hispanic patients, conducted a feasibility study of the adapted program in English and Spanish speaking cohorts, and implemented real-time adaptations to the program for commercial use and for a larger trial of in multiple safety net clinics. Results. The majority of focus group participants were receptive to the program. We modified the curriculum to a 5th-grade reading level and adapted content based on patient feedback. In the feasibility study, 54% of eligible contacted patients expressed interest in enrolling (n = 23). Although some participants' computer access and literacy made registration challenging, they were highly satisfied and engaged (80% logged in at least once/week). Conclusions. Underserved prediabetic patients displayed high engagement and satisfaction with a digital diabetes prevention program despite lower digital literacy skills. The collaboration between researchers and a digital health company enabled iterative improvements in technology implementation to address challenges in low-income populations

Indiana Public High School Parents’ Perceptions of Interscholastic Competitive Balance

As part of the educational mission of interscholastic athletics, ensuring competitive balance is a priority of state athletic associations nationwide. Specifically, teams playing within a postseason championship tournament should have a fair and equitable chance to win. Private high schools, in particular, have been the focus of competitive balance scrutiny from public high school stakeholders due to disproportionately high success in many states. Despite much anecdotal scrutiny from public stakeholders, it is not clear how much they know about interscholastic policy or private school characteristics. Therefore, this study set to explore Indiana public high school parents’ perceptions of interscholastic competitive balance through qualitative interview data. Using thematic analysis, five themes emerged from the data influential to competitive balance (location, policy, sport culture, financial resources, and education). Each of these themes was influenced by an omnipresent private school impact, which reinforced a need for additional education of policy and private school characteristics.

Genetic Programming For Cellular Automata Urban Inundation Modelling

Recent advances in Cellular Automata (CA) represent a new, computationally efficient method of simulating flooding in urban areas. A number of recent publications in this field have shown that CAs can be much more computationally efficient than methods than using standard shallow water equations (Saint Venant/Navier-Stokes equations). CAs operate using local state-transition rules that determine the progression of the flow from one cell in the grid to another cell, in many publications the Manning’s Formula is used as a simplified local state transition rule. Through the distributed interactions of the CA, computationally simplified urban flooding can be processed, although these methods are limited by the approximation represented by the Manning’s formula. Literature demonstrates that the viability of the Manning’s formula will break down with too large a time step, flow rates, too small a cell size, or too smooth roughness factor; Therefore further increases in computational efficiency could be gained with a better approximation, or rather one capable of producing the required simulation with enough accuracy at larger time steps, smaller cells sizes, smoother roughness factors. Genetic programming has the potential to be used to optimise state transition rules to maximise accuracy and minimise computation time. In this paper we present some preliminary findings on the use of genetic programming (GP) for deriving these rules automatically. The experimentation compares GP-derived rules with human created solutions based on the Mannings formula and findings indicate that the GP rules can improve on these approaches

Improving electoral integrity with information and communications technology

Irregularities plague elections in developing democracies. The international community spends hundreds of millions of dollars on election observation, with little robust evidence that it consistently improves electoral integrity. We conducted a randomized control trial to measure the effect of an intervention to detect and deter electoral irregularities employing a nation-wide sample of polling stations in Uganda using scalable information and communications technology (ICT). In treatment stations, researchers delivered letters to polling officials stating that tallies would be photographed using smartphones and compared against official results. Compared to stations with no letters, the letters increased the frequency of posted tallies by polling center managers in compliance with the law; decreased the number of sequential digits found on tallies – a fraud indicator; and decreased the vote share for the incumbent president in some specifications. Our results demonstrate that a cost-effective citizen and ICT intervention can improve electoral integrity in emerging democracie

Designing institutional systems that support neurodivergent educators

In higher education (HE) institutions, neurodivergence is currently under-represented (Mellifont, 2021). This opinion piece explores the role of institutional systems in supporting neurodivergent educators who bring unique strengths and perspectives to the classroom. The paper suggests that designing inclusive hiring processes and providing professional development opportunities, mentorship programmes and accommodations in the classroom are ways to support neurodivergent educators. The paper also highlights the benefits of remote or blended work arrangements and discusses the challenges associated with designing institutional systems that support neurodivergent educators. The paper concludes that creating a welcoming and inclusive workplace culture and prioritising essential accommodations are necessary in order to foster a more inclusive and effective learning environment for all students and educators