Breakdown of the Equal Area Law for Holographic Entanglement Entropy

We investigate a holographic version of Maxwell's equal area law analogous to that for the phase transition in the black hole temperature/black hole entropy plane of a charged AdS black hole. We consider proposed area laws for both the black hole temperature/holographic entanglement entropy plane and the black hole temperature/2-point correlation function plane. Despite recent claims to the contrary, we demonstrate numerically that neither proposal is valid. We argue that there is no physical reason to expect such a construction in these planes.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figures. v2: Added appendix and discussio

Reflecting in and on post-observation feedback in initial teacher training on certificate courses

This article examines evidence from two studies that concern the nature of post-observation feedback in certificate courses for teaching English to speakers of other languages. It uncovers the main characteristics of these meetings and asks whether there is evidence of reflection in these contexts. In considering reasons why making space for reflection is potentially difficult, the paper also examines the relationship and the role of assessment criteria and how these may impact on opportunities for reflection. The final part of the paper considers how a more reflective approach could be promoted in feedback conferences

Brushing the surface: the practice and critical reception of watercolour techniques in England 1850-1880

Twentieth-century art historical research has devoted little attention to the study of watercolour painting techniques and artists’ materials. This is especially true of the period following Turner’s death, when watercolour is said to have been in decline. Yet the period 1850 to 1880 was a period of intense innovation and experimentation, when watercolour painting finally came to be accepted on an equal footing with its rival, the medium of oil. The expansion of annual exhibitions brought dazzling, highly finished works to the attention of the new middle-class buying public, who eagerly scanned the latest press reviews for news and guidance. For the first time, I combine unpublished material from sources including nineteenthcentury colourmen’s archives, conservation records and artists’ descendants’ collections, with an analysis of contemporary watercolour manuals and art critical writing in the press, to give a picture of the dramatic changes in technique which occurred at this time. Brilliant new pigments and improved artists’ papers and brushes flooded onto the market via a growing network of artists’ colourmen. Affordable instruction manuals, aimed at the swelling ranks of amateur artists, were published, their successive editions highlighting the changing character of watercolour practice, in particular the growing use of bodycolour, microscopic detail and new tube pigments. Progressive artists such as John Frederick Lewis, Samuel Palmer, Myles Birket Foster, John William North and Edward Burne-Jones, developed revolutionary ways of incorporating the new artists’ materials into their watercolours, often to great commercial success. Exhibition reviews by critics in the growing number of journals often commented loudly on the bright colouring, minute detail, texture and opaque effects produced by their use of the latest pigments, papers and brushes. The impact made on watercolour painting by improved artists’ materials was farreaching, bringing power and status to a medium which had previously been considered an inferior artform

Photosynthetic and respiratory responses of the mangrove-associated red algae, Bostrychia radicans and Caloglossa leprieurii

Net photosynthetic and respiratory rates of two estuarine algae, Bostrychia radicans Mont. and Caloglossa leprieurii (Mont.) J. Ag. collected from the Mgeni Estuary mangrove swamp, were studied. Both species are intertidal and common on Avicennia marina (Forssk.) Vierh. pneumatophores. Maximum photosynthetic rates of B. radicans were evident between 25% and 58% desiccation. Respiratory rates were constant up to 58% desiccation and decreased thereafter. C. leprieurii showed highest photosynthetic rates under submerged conditions, whilst respiratory rates were highest under saturated conditions. Both species showed increases in photosynthetic and respiratory rates with increase in temperature. Photosynthetic rates peaked at 32°C to 37°C, whilst respiratory rates peaked at 37°C. With increases in light intensity, maximum photosynthetic rates of C. leprieurii and B. radicans occurred at 140 to 225 μE m−2 s−1 and 225 to 550 μE m−2 s−1 respectively. Both species were tolerant of a range of salinities. The ecological implications of these results are discussed

Saving the Planet by Cutting Corporate Taxes: A Comparative Case Study Analysis

This Article examines corporate tax trends in the context of the press¬ing global issue of climate change. Multinational corporations play a huge role in the global economy. We argue that the role of for-profit corporations should not be limited to making short-term profits for their shareholders. If corporations benefit from corporate tax reduc¬tions, some of that benefit should be shared with society. This Article explores the connection between climate change and corporate activity through a new lens: corporate tax policy. It expands the current inquiry about the impact of taxes on corporations by connecting that discussion to the impact of multinational corporate activity on the global environment. To date, while research has been done on the interaction between corporate tax avoidance and corporate social responsibility, no research has examined the connection between the global trend of corporate tax rate cuts and the increasingly important influence of corporate environmental social responsibility. This Article begins to fill that gap by making a qualitative inquiry into the interac¬tion between effective corporate tax rates, corporate tax cuts, and cor¬porate social responsibility

Investigating NEST schemes around the world: supporting NEST/LET collaborative practices

The project Investigating NEST schemes around the world: supporting NEST/LET collaborative practices, funded by the British Council ELT Research Partnership Awards Scheme, was undertaken during 2014. Its main aims were to:  ■ Discover which countries currently use NESTs (Native English Speaker Teachers) in state education.  ■ Investigate how NEST schemes operate in different countries and the training and support received by participants. ■ Observe what happens in NEST classes and what are the typical roles played by LETs (Local English Teachers) and NESTs. ■ Highlight what can be learnt from the experiences of LETs and NESTs to improve classroom teaching.  ■ Identify what support can be offered to LETs and NESTs to improve training and support.  The project was conducted using document analysis, interviews with NESTs and LETs and classroom observations. Document analysis was used to gather detailed information about NEST schemes and prepare a final audit document. Semi-structured interviews were carried out in six different countries (Brunei, Cameroon, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan) with 15 NESTs and 8 LETs for a total of 23 interviews. Observational data were collected from a total of 15 classrooms in four countries (Japan, Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan) involving ten NESTs and 15 LETs

Biological nitrogen fixation (acetylene reduction) associated with blue-green algal communities in the Mgeni estuary mangrove swamp.

Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1987.Nitrogen fixation of blue-green algae associated with Avicennia marina (Forssk.) Vierh. pneumatophores and wet and dry surface sediments were investigated in the Mgeni Estuary mangrove swamp by means of the acetylene reduction technique. Optimum partial pressures of acetylene ranged from 0,15 to 0,2 atm. for the different habitats. A lag phase of 3 h was observed in all habitats, followed by a period of linear ethylene production of 42 h for the pneumatophores and 72 h for the wet and dry mat areas. An assay period of 24 h was employed in all habitats. Laboratory studies revealed percentage moisture and temperature to be the prime factors influencing ARA (acetylene reduction activity) in all habitats and rates were highest under submerged conditions and at 22˚C. Short-term variations in ARA and salinity in the wet and dry mat areas, measured at 6 day intervals, were also related to percentage moisture. High concentrations of inorganic nitrogen (between 1 and 5 mg 1-1) significantly depressed ARA in all habitats. Increases in ARA occurred with increase in light intensity up to 40 μE m -2 s-1, with negligible dark rates being recorded in the wet and dry mat areas. Significant dark rates of ARA and stimulation of ARA by sucrose in association with the pneumatophores indicated that bacteria may also be contributing to ARA in this habitat. No organic carbon stimulation was noted in the other sites. Salinity had little effect on ARA over the range generally experienced in each habitat. Field studies revealed a marked seasonal variation in ARA, with summer maxima of 78, 678 and 341 nmol C2H4 cm-2 24 h-1 associated with the pneumatophore, wet and dry mat areas respectively. This coincided with maximum nitrogen-fixing blue-green algal numbers, temperature, light intensity and day length. No seasonal variations in organic carbon, inorganic nitrogen, salinity, percentage moisture or bacterial numbers were apparent. Rates of bacterial ARA associated with decomposing litter of A. marina were highest under exposed conditions and reached a maximum of 25 935 nmol C2H4 g dry wt -1 24 h -1 after 3 weeks. Maximum rates of ARA under submerged conditions of 5394 nmol C2H4 g dry wt -1 24 h -1were reached after 4 weeks of decomposition. An increase in percentage nitrogen occurred during decomposition and was greatest under submerged conditions. Rates of decomposition were highest under exposed conditions. It was estimated that nitrogen fixation by blue-green algal communities supplies 23,8% of the annual nitrogen requirements of the mangrove swamp