Dissectingd-Cubes into Smallerd-Cubes

AbstractIn this paper, we explore the following question: Given integersdandk, is it possible to subdivide ad-dimensional cube intoksmallerd-dimensional cubes? In particular, we investigate bounds on the integerc(d) which is the smallest integer for which it is possible to subdivide thed-cube into any numberk⩾c(d) smallerd-cubes. We derive specific bounds ford⩽5, and furthermore, we investigate, for givenk, the asymptotic behavior ofc(d) for thosedsuch that gcd(2d−1,kd−1)=1. Specifically, we show that if gcd (2d−1,3d−1) thenc(d)<6dand that if gcd(2d−1,kd−1) thenc(d)=O((2k)d). Finally, we derive the general asymptotic boundc(d)=O((2d)d−1) which improves the currently known bound ofc(d)=O((2d)d)

Improving patient-provider communication: insights from interpreters

Background. It is important for physicians to recognize and address potential cross-cultural communication barriers with their patients. Several studies have demonstrated the importance of trained medical interpreters for ensuring effective patient-provider communication. Medical interpreters also represent an untapped source of insight into common communication problems. Such insights can contribute to strengthening physicians' cross cultural communication skills. Objective. The purpose of this study was to explore professional medical interpreters' experiences and perspectives regarding patient-provider communication difficulties. Methods. Key informant interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of nine professional interpreters working at the Geneva University Hospitals general medicine outpatient clinic. Results. Interpreters described three domains where physicians and patients were likely to differ, and where mutual lack of awareness of those differences could lead to misunderstandings. These were: (1) ideas about the patient's health problem; (2) expectations of the clinical encounter; and (3) verbal and non-verbal communication styles. Interpreters recommended that cultural competence training for physicians focus on raising awareness about potential sources of misunderstanding and about the difficulties inherent in medical translation; providing basic background knowledge of patients' countries of origin; and adapting to patients' communication styles. While physicians' own perceptions of communication difficulties are important for developing learner-centered training activities, interpreters' bilingual and bicultural position allows for the identification of communication barriers that may be difficult for physicians to recogniz

What Pd Can't Teach; What It Can

Pure Data's long appeal is partly owed to its visual layout and intuitive mode of use. This might lead one to consider it a useful pedagogical tool, even if it now meets stiff competition from glitzier and more user-friendly applications. In the author's experience, however, Pd's ambiguous location on the spectrum of virtualization makes it bad for teaching but gives it a far more important function for composers. In occupying an uncanny valley between the digital-as-digital and the digital-as-analog, it resists the general tendency of digital technology to obscure awareness of itself, that is, of the digital computer as the current high watermark of a longer history of rationalization. It thus pushes composers of computer music back towards the questions that are at the heart of their work. This dynamic is illustrated by the author's experience of developing and tinkering with a novel technique of sound synthesis

Sustainable Mountain Tourism: An Analysis of Bosnia- Herzegovina’s Wine Tourism and its Future

Bosnia-Herzegovina (B-H) remains one of the most underdeveloped countries on the European Continent yet it holds great potential as a tourist destination for outdoor adventurers, history enthusiasts, and now, wine connoisseurs. The southern part of this merged nation has always been an area of wine production, but the industry has been slow to develop into a net exporter of its wines. The author and many of the industry’s supporters believe that it would be more lucrative to follow in the footsteps of its western neighbor, Croatia, and develop the wine industry through wine tourism. Utilizing historical data, interviews, analysis of governmental statistics, review of the literature and finally a SWOT analysis, this paper suggests changes and expenditures required for Bosnia-Herzegovina to become a successful wine tourism destination. It is hoped that the suggestions made herein will direct further discussions if not actions in that direction

Developing children\u27s language through content area activities

What is it children should be able to do with language

Environmental, Chemical, and Genetic Reduction of Ethylene Sensitivity in Crop Plants

Ethylene is an endogenously synthesized plant hormone that dissipates quickly in field conditions and seldom exceeds five nmol mol-1. Ethylene can accumulate to 1000 times this level in closed environments. The best-known effects of ethylene are its impacts on fruit ripening and senescence, yet ethylene influences growth and development throughout the plant life cycle. At low, continuous concentrations (20 to 50 nmol mol-1), ethylene reduces yield of many plants. Clean-air treatment during critical stages of floral development, silver thiosulfate (STS), and 1-methylcyclopropene (1- MCP) may delay flower senescence and reduce the detrimental effects of ethylene on peas and tomatoes grown in continuous ethylene. There is evidence of species differences in ethylene sensitivity, but limited information on cultivar differences. To address these issues, ethylene sensitivity of two dwarf tomato cultivars, Micro-Tom and Micro-Tina, and one dwarf pea cultivar, Earligreen, was examined. Ethylene by temperature interactions were examined in tomatoes at 0, 20, and 40 nmol mol-1 ethylene and 22 and 28°C. Three-day-long clean-air treatments were applied to tomatoes from germination through fruit set to identify the most ethylene-sensitive stage of floral development. The actions and toxicities of STS and 1-MCP were compared. Ethylene sensitivities of the two closely related dwarf tomato cultivars were examined. At 22°C, the 20 and 40 nmol mol-1 red fruit yields were 51 and 11 % of control. At 28°C, yields were 37 and 4% of control. Vegetative growth at 20 and 40 nmol mol-1 was 96 and 91 % of control, at both temperatures. Three-day-long clean-air treatments from days 22 to 33 (axillary flower opening) improved fruit set and final yield. Floral bud abortion in elevated ethylene occurred primarily at or before microsporogenesis. Floral bud initiation and vegetative development were not significantly affected. Tomato plants grown in continuous 70 nmol mol-1 ethylene conditions retained only 3% of the total number of floral buds initiated. STS-treated plants retained 50 to 54% of their floral buds. Leaf area of plants subjected to 100 nmol mol-1 ethylene was 26% of control, and plants subjected to 200 nmol mol-1 ethylene were 21 % of control. When plants were treated daily for 10 hours with 35 nmol mol-1 l-MCP, leaf area improved to 81 and 64% of control. Manipulating temperature had neither a statistically nor a biologically significant effect on ethylene sensitivity. Ethylene reduced yield primarily by arresting floral bud development and causing early floral bud senescence. Both STS and 1-MCP looked promising for improving yield in high ethylene environments, but concentrations and durations of application need to be further refined. Yield of Micro-Tom was significantly less sensitive to ethylene than Micro-Tina. These results indicate that solving ethylene sensitivity issues in controlled environments may be accommodated by cultivar choice as well as timely control of environmental ethylene, chemical inhibitors, and genetic manipulation

What Pd Can't Teach; What It Can

Pure Data's long appeal is partly owed to its visual layout and intuitive mode of use. This might lead one to consider it a useful pedagogical tool, even if it now meets stiff competition from glitzier and more user-friendly applications. In the author's experience, however, Pd's ambiguous location on the spectrum of virtualization makes it bad for teaching but gives it a far more important function for composers. In occupying an uncanny valley between the digital-as-digital and the digital-as-analog, it resists the general tendency of digital technology to obscure awareness of itself, that is, of the digital computer as the current high watermark of a longer history of rationalization. It thus pushes composers of computer music back towards the questions that are at the heart of their work. This dynamic is illustrated by the author's experience of developing and tinkering with a novel technique of sound synthesis