Online Theological Education: Perspectives from First-Generation Asian Americans

This essay explores the use of online asynchronous discussions from the perspective of first-generation Asian American seminarians. The pedagogical paradigm implicit in these online forums assumes values that compete and even contradict the values these students bring from their native educational experiences. Combined with the language difficulties, asynchronous discussions can present a serious challenge to the educational goals of both the institution and the student. Despite these barriers, first-generation Asian American students often see the incorporation of the asynchronous discussions as a welcome enhancement to their theological education

Contemporary Cultural Representations of Japan’s Education-Credential Society and the Affect of Disgust

In this article, I examine and critically assess representations of Japan’s neoliberal-era “education-credential society” (gakureki shakai) in popular culture. First, I explore the manga Dragon Zakura (Doragon zakura, 2003-2007), in which a non educator is entrusted to revive a financially ailing private high school by creating a specialized class preparing students to qualify for the University of Tokyo. This story reflects the reality of Japanese society in the 2000s, characterized by a decreasing student-age population—pushing private schools into financial crisis and leading to decline in student performance—and employment instability under neoliberalism. Second, I examine the novel based on true events Because She’s Brainless (Kanojo wa atama ga warui kara, 2018), exploring its depiction of how university students’ “deviation score” (hensachi) continues to impact their lives even after becoming university students, and its legitimization of meritocracy. Through these analyses, I show how the signifier known as the “University of Tokyo” is being consumed in Japan as a buffer against, and palliative for, the exhaustion of living in a society constantly demanding the proof of one’s abilities through unlimited competition. Finally, I explore some recent critically acclaimed novels portraying the lives of women inhabiting a world where neither education credentials nor deviation scores have any significance. In criticizing the heritability of education credentials, these works evince not only a division in representations of Japan’s education-credential society but also deep inequality irresolvable through the expansion of educational opportunities alone. This suggests the need to approach the issue of education-credential inequality by confronting the human vulnerability that persists beyond the reach of increased educational opportunities

Solving a Generalized Heron Problem by means of Convex Analysis

The classical Heron problem states: \emph{on a given straight line in the plane, find a point $C$ such that the sum of the distances from $C$ to the given points $A$ and $B$ is minimal}. This problem can be solved using standard geometry or differential calculus. In the light of modern convex analysis, we are able to investigate more general versions of this problem. In this paper we propose and solve the following problem: on a given nonempty closed convex subset of $\R^s$, find a point such that the sum of the distances from that point to $n$ given nonempty closed convex subsets of $\R^s$ is minimal

Accroissement des exportations agricoles et sécurité alimentaire au Viet-nam

peer reviewedLa rénovation des politiques et des méthodes d'action à l'égard de l'agriculture a permis au Viêt-nam de conforter sa position de troisième exportateur mondial de riz. Néanmoins la situation semble moins favorable qu'il n'y paraît. Le marché international du riz est caractérisé par des prix bas et par une forte concurrence entre pays exportateurs. En outre, le marché est réduit et instable. Il s'ensuit que le Viêt-nam, proche de l'autosuffisance, peut tantôt être importateur tantôt exportateur de riz selon les performances enregistrées par les riziculteurs. Cet article analyse les perspectives qui sont actuellement offertes au Viêt-nam en matière de sécurité alimentaire en relation avec l'adoption d'une politique agricole qui encourage l'accroissement des exportations de riz

Intermittency in two-dimensional Ekman-Navier-Stokes turbulence

We study the statistics of the vorticity field in two-dimensional Navier-Stokes turbulence with a linear Ekman friction. We show that the small-scale vorticity fluctuations are intermittent, as conjectured by Nam et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. vol.84 (2000) 5134]. The small-scale statistics of vorticity fluctuations coincides with the one of a passive scalar with finite lifetime transported by the velocity field itself.Comment: 4 pages, 7 figure

A novel methodology for in vivo endoscopic phenotyping of colorectal cancer based on real-time analysis of the mucosal lipidome: a prospective observational study of the iKnife

Background: This pilot study assessed the diagnostic accuracy of rapid evaporative ionization mass spectrometry (REIMS) in colorectal cancer (CRC) and colonic adenomas. Methods: Patients undergoing elective surgical resection for CRC were recruited at St. Mary’s Hospital London and The Royal Marsden Hospital, UK. Ex vivo analysis was performed using a standard electrosurgery handpiece with aspiration of the electrosurgical aerosol to a Xevo G2-S iKnife QTof mass spectrometer (Waters Corporation). Histological examination was performed for validation purposes. Multivariate analysis was performed using principal component analysis and linear discriminant analysis in Matlab 2015a (Mathworks, Natick, MA). A modified REIMS endoscopic snare was developed (Medwork) and used prospectively in five patients to assess its feasibility during hot snare polypectomy. Results: Twenty-eight patients were recruited (12 males, median age 71, range 35–89). REIMS was able to reliably distinguish between cancer and normal adjacent mucosa (NAM) (AUC 0.96) and between NAM and adenoma (AUC 0.99). It had an overall accuracy of 94.4 % for the detection of cancer versus adenoma and an adenoma sensitivity of 78.6 % and specificity of 97.3 % (AUC 0.99) versus cancer. Long-chain phosphatidylserines (e.g., PS 22:0) and bacterial phosphatidylglycerols were over-expressed on cancer samples, while NAM was defined by raised plasmalogens and triacylglycerols expression and adenomas demonstrated an over-expression of ceramides. REIMS was able to classify samples according to tumor differentiation, tumor budding, lymphovascular invasion, extramural vascular invasion and lymph node micrometastases (AUC’s 0.88, 0.87, 0.83, 0.81 and 0.81, respectively). During endoscopic deployment, colonoscopic REIMS was able to detect target lipid species such as ceramides during hot snare polypectomy. Conclusion: REIMS demonstrates high diagnostic accuracy for tumor type and for established histological features of poor prognostic outcome in CRC based on a multivariate analysis of the mucosal lipidome. REIMS could augment endoscopic and imaging technologies for precision phenotyping of colorectal cancer

Generating disaggregated poverty maps

Geographic targeting is often recommended as a way to improve the impact of social spending and infrastructure investments on rural poverty. Previous research shows that such targeting is not very accurate unless the geographic units are small. Household surveys, however, rarely allow the estimation of poverty rates for more than 5-10 regions in a country. This study develops a method for generating disaggregated poverty maps and applies the method to Viet Nam. First, the relationship between rural poverty and 25 household indicators is estimated using household survey data. Then, census data on those same indicators are used to estimate the poverty rates for each of the 543 rural districts in Viet Nam. The results indicate that poverty is concentrated in the north and in districts furthest from the coast and cities.Poverty ,Infrastructure (Economics) Viet Nam. ,Social service Viet Nam. ,Vietnam ,

The role of snow cover in the Northern Hemisphere winter to summer transition

This paper examines the role of North Hemisphere snow cover in the linkage between the winter North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and the summer Northern Annular Mode (NAM). This transition is partially supported by the persistence of the NAO-induced snow cover anomalies and the asymmetric thermal distribution induced by summer snow cover. We define an index of subpolar temperature difference which links winter NAO with the subsequent summer NAM. The index is also significant in the linkage between summer and winter climates and can be used as an useful predictor of the upcoming winter NAO

Valvasor in prihodnost

Valvasorja lahko na ve\u10d ravneh pove\u17eemo s pojmom \ubbprihodnost\uab. Izhodi\u161\u10de je nekaj znanih podatkov iz njegovega \u17eivljenjepisa, nekaj listin, s katerimi razpolagamo, in seveda to, kar nam o sebi razkriva on sam, predvsem skozi svoje glavno delo Slavo vojvodine Kranjske. Na podlagi omenjenega sku\u161am dojeti njegovo gledanje na svojo osebno prihodnost in na tisto ljubljene de\u17eele Kranjske. Iz vsega se poraja slika \u10dloveka, ki intenzivno prou\u10duje preteklost in se \u17eivahno udele\u17euje sedanjosti, hkrati pa ima pri vseh svojih odlo\u10ditvah - bodisi s podro\u10dja zasebnega \u17eivljenja bodisi v zvezi s svojim raziskovanjem - pogled uperjen v prihodnost. Prispevek se zaklju\u10di z nekaj citati iz njegovega opusa, ki nam lahko nudijo razmislek o na\u161i lastni prihodnosti

Rice markets, agricultural growth, and policy options in Viet Nam

Viet Nam has undergone a profound transformation in recent years and, as a result of a series of macroeconomic and institutional reforms since 1986, it has made substantial progress toward becoming a market economy. As this transition continues, Viet Nam faces the challenge of formulating and implementing a growth strategy which is both economically and politically feasible. Critical to this growth strategy is the role of agriculture and, within agriculture, the development of an efficient rice marketing system. The emergence of Viet Nam as a major rice exporter has raised a number of important policy questions. First, will the country be able to continue its impressive growth? Second, how far has Viet Nam moved along the path toward a market economy? Third, what is the role of the government in the development of a rice market economy? Finally, what is the best way to promote food security? The paper addresses these issues and report the results of a study conducted by IFPRI for the Asian Development Bank in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Government of Viet Nam. The study is based on extensive data collection from marketing agents (farmers, traders, millers, state owned enterprises, and exporters) conducted during 1995 and 1996.Rice production Vietnam. ,Exports. ,Marketing Economic aspects. ,Food security. ,