Crawford County FEAST

FEAST Crawford County was facilitated by K-State Center for Engagement and Community Development on September 29, 2015. This presentation covers the terminology, priorities, and action plans that resulted from the event

Martha Murphy and Kay Torrence to Mr. Meredith (19 October 1962)

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/mercorr_pro/2179/thumbnail.jp

On the interaction between Autonomous Mobility-on-Demand systems and the power network: models and coordination algorithms

We study the interaction between a fleet of electric, self-driving vehicles servicing on-demand transportation requests (referred to as Autonomous Mobility-on-Demand, or AMoD, system) and the electric power network. We propose a model that captures the coupling between the two systems stemming from the vehicles' charging requirements and captures time-varying customer demand and power generation costs, road congestion, battery depreciation, and power transmission and distribution constraints. We then leverage the model to jointly optimize the operation of both systems. We devise an algorithmic procedure to losslessly reduce the problem size by bundling customer requests, allowing it to be efficiently solved by off-the-shelf linear programming solvers. Next, we show that the socially optimal solution to the joint problem can be enforced as a general equilibrium, and we provide a dual decomposition algorithm that allows self-interested agents to compute the market clearing prices without sharing private information. We assess the performance of the mode by studying a hypothetical AMoD system in Dallas-Fort Worth and its impact on the Texas power network. Lack of coordination between the AMoD system and the power network can cause a 4.4% increase in the price of electricity in Dallas-Fort Worth; conversely, coordination between the AMoD system and the power network could reduce electricity expenditure compared to the case where no cars are present (despite the increased demand for electricity) and yield savings of up $147M/year. Finally, we provide a receding-horizon implementation and assess its performance with agent-based simulations. Collectively, the results of this paper provide a first-of-a-kind characterization of the interaction between electric-powered AMoD systems and the power network, and shed additional light on the economic and societal value of AMoD.Comment: Extended version of the paper presented at Robotics: Science and Systems XIV, in prep. for journal submission. In V3, we add a proof that the socially-optimal solution can be enforced as a general equilibrium, a privacy-preserving distributed optimization algorithm, a description of the receding-horizon implementation and additional numerical results, and proofs of all theorem

An Experimental Course in Movement Preparation for Beginning Performers

This is a course outline for the first semester of movement training for beginning performers in theatre, part of a two-year course of study based on the Becque-Todd method of movement development. Emphasis is on a psychophysiological approach to developing new motor habits. The introduction presents the history, background, basic premises on which the course is based, and the techniques and tools used. Each subsequent chapter represents a unit of work on a specific problem, each taking one or more class periods

Panel #3: Circulating Images: The Production, Distribution & Reception of Visual Culture During the Statehood Era

A panel featuring four presentations: Visualizing Historic Maine: 19th Century Maine Life in Stereophotography (presented in actual 3D), Bernard Fishman Tovookan\u27s Narrative: Depicting Freedom in Maine During the Statehood Era, Martha J. McNamara Popular Print and Visual Culture in Statehood Period Maine, Kevin D. Murphy Rufus Porter in Maine: Art, Spatial Thinking, and the Curious Mind, Justin Wolf

Thought Experiments and the Scientific Imagination

Thought experiments (TEs) are important tools in science, used to both undermine and support theories, and communicate and explain complex phenomena. Their interest within philosophy of science has been dominated by a narrow question: How do TEs increase knowledge? My aim is to push beyond this to consider their broader value in scientific practice. I do this through an investigation into the scientific imagination. Part one explores questions regarding TEs as “experiments in the imagination” via a debate concerning the epistemic status of computer simulations in science. I outline how, against Hacking, TEs also have “a life of their own” and I argue against accounts that privilege experiments over simulations (and by extension TEs) in light of their capacity to surprise in a productive way. Part two develops a pluralist account of the nature of the imagination in science. At its core, my view is that when we attend to a number of examples of TEs and consider the context in which they are used, we see that TEs engage a variety of our imaginative capacities. Existing monistic views fail to recognise the richness of the imagination and its potential in science. Part three looks to the “beauty” of TEs which is currently overlooked in the aesthetics of science literature. I put forward a new account that demonstrates the epistemic value of aesthetic features in science by showing how an appropriate fit between form and content enhances the usability of a TE, and its effectiveness as a prompt for our imagination. This also enables a more nuanced take on the proposed similarities between TEs and literary fictions. In the concluding chapter, I outline ways in which the core features of my account can be extended beyond TEs to illuminate the significance of the imagination and aesthetic values in other areas of science

Denaturation transition of stretched DNA

We generalize the Poland-Scheraga model to consider DNA denaturation in the presence of an external stretching force. We demonstrate the existence of a force-induced DNA denaturation transition and obtain the temperature-force phase diagram. The transition is determined by the loop exponent $c$ for which we find the new value $c=4\nu-1/2$ such that the transition is second order with $c=1.85<2$ in $d=3$. We show that a finite stretching force $F$ destabilizes DNA, corresponding to a lower melting temperature $T(F)$, in agreement with single-molecule DNA stretching experiments.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Community Voices and the Impact of Global Awareness

In this session, distinguished members of the larger Dayton community spoke about how they have promoted global engagement in the area and made suggestions on what additional steps need to take place to turn Dayton into a genuinely global city/community.https://ecommons.udayton.edu/global_voices_2/1007/thumbnail.jp