Context constrained computation

In normal typed λ-calculi, variables may be used multiple times, in multiple contexts, for multiple reasons, as long as the types agree. The disciplines of linear types and coeffects refine this by tracking how variables are used. For instance, we might track how many times a variable is used, or whether it is used covariantly, contravariantly, or invariantly. Such a discipline yields a general framework of “context constrained computing”, where constraints on variables in the context tell us something interesting about the computation being performed. We will present work in progress on capturing the “intensional” properties of programs via a family of Kripke indexed relational semantics that refines a simple set-theoretic semantics of programs. The value of our approach lies in its generality and the range of examples covered

Life and Death: A Study of the Wills and Testaments of Men and Women in London and Bury St. Edmunds in the late Fourteenth and early Fifteenth Centuries.

The aim of this thesis is to investigate the lives of men and women living in London and Bury St. Edmunds in the late fourteenth - early fifteenth centuries. Sources studied include the administrative and legal records of the City of London and of the Abbot and Convent of St. Edmund’s abbey; legislation and court records of royal government and the wills and testaments of Londoners and Bury St. Edmunds’ inhabitants. Considerable research on a wide range of topics on London, but far less work on Bury St. Edmunds, has already been undertaken; however, this thesis is the first systematic comparative study of these two towns. The introduction discusses the historiography and purpose of the thesis; the methodology used, and the shortcomings of using medieval wills and the probate process. Chapter One discusses the testamentary jurisdiction in both towns; who was involved in the will making process, and the role that clerics played as both executors and scribes and how the church courts operated. Chapter Two focuses on testators’ preparations for the afterlife, their choices concerning burial location, funeral arrangements and the provisions made for prayers for their souls. Chapter Three examines in detail their pious and charitable bequests and investigates what ‘good works’ testators chose to support apart from ‘forgotten tithes’. The family and household relationships, including servants and apprentices, are examined in Chapter Four, exploring the differences in bequests made depending on the testators’ marital status, together with evidence for close friendships and social networks. Chapter Five discusses the ownership and types of books referred to in wills and the inter-relationship between the donors and the recipients. Testators’ literacy and the provision for education are also investigated

Lonesome Isle : Fox-Trot Song

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-vp/4275/thumbnail.jp

Smokejumper Magazine, July 2009

This issue of the National Smokejumper Association (NSA) Smokejumper Magazine contains the following articles: Birth of Russian Smokejumping Part I (Historic), Introducing Afghanistan (Mike Hill), Weissenback (Dave Wood), Wilderness Trimotor Crash (Historic-Bob Graham). Smokejumper Magazine continues Static Line, which was the original title of the NSA quarterly magazine.https://dc.ewu.edu/smokejumper_mag/1068/thumbnail.jp

The Evolution of Dividend Policy in the Corporation and in Academic Theory.

The harder we look at the dividend picture, the more it seems like a puzzle with pieces that just don\u27t fit together (Black, 1976). The purpose of this study is to examine the dividend phenomenon. The first essay of the dissertation investigates the origins, modifications and adaptations of corporate dividend payments to shareholders. Contemporary theoretical modeling to date has neglected to acknowledge the potential influence of dividend payment tradition in the formulation of dividend policy. The second essay examines the evolution of the theoretical attempts to explain dividend policy and empirical tests of these theories. The dividend paradigms are divided into models formulated in states with full information, models developed in states of informational asymmetries and models using behavioral rationales as the basis for their development. The second essay concludes with an analysis to determine if method of analysis, frequency of sampling observation or sample period influence the often contradictory results of the analyses. The dissertation\u27s third essay explores the executive compensation, dividend policy and capital structure determination process. This essay extends existing research on the policies in two ways. Firm level data is used here; many of the earlier works use industry data. The study also seeks to determine if the policy choice interactions implied by earlier work can be demonstrated using a system of equations

A study of standards and the mitigation of risk in information systems

Organisations from the multinational Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development through to national initiatives such as the UK's Cabinet Office, have recognised that risk - the realisation of undesirable outcomes - needs a firm framework of policy and action for mitigation. Many standards have been set that implicitly or explicitly expect to manage risk in information systems, so creating a framework of such standards would steer outcomes to desirable results.This study applies a mixed methodology of desk enquiries, surveys, and action research to investigate how the command and control of information systems may be regulated by the fusion and fission of tacit knowledge in standards comprising the experience and inductive reasoning of experts. Information system user organisations from the membership of The National Computing Centre provided the working environment in which the research was conducted in real time. The research shows how a taxonomy of risks can be selected, and how a validated catalogue of standards which describe the mitigation of those risks can be assembled taking the quality of fit and expertise required to apply the standards into account. The work bridges a gap in the field by deriving a measure of organisational risk appetite with respect to information systems and the risk attitude of individuals, and linking them to a course of action - through the application of standards - to regulate the performance of information systems within a defined tolerance. The construct of a methodology to learn about a framework of ideas has become an integral part of the methodology itself with the standards forming the framework and providing direction of its application.The projects that comprise the research components have not proven the causal link between standards and the removal of risk, leaving this ripe for a narrowly scoped, future investigation. The thesis discusses the awareness of risk and the propensity for its management, developing this into the definition of a framework of standards to mitigate known risks in information systems with a new classification scheme that cross-references the efficacy of a standard with the expertise expected from those who apply it. The thesis extends this to the idea that the framework can be scaled to the views of stakeholders, used to detect human vulnerabilities in information systems, and developed to absorb the lessons learnt from emergent risk. The research has clarified the investigation of the security culture in the thrall of an information system and brought the application of technical and management standards closer to overcoming the social and psychological barriers that practitioners and researchers must overcome.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Getting to e-Government : the role of methods

This work considers the value of applying design methods and other techniques in the implementation of electronic public services. This relates specifically to the use of Information Society Technology (IST) and related topics, for example systems analysis, change management and process reengineering specifically within the British local government sector. This is commonly referred to by the shorthand expression 'e-Government'.The paper examines the motivation behind methods - their design and application, a summary of their development over the past few decades, and an assessment of e-Government centric techniques. This involves a discussion of some of those techniques through a case study and fieldwork concerned with methods applied by a specific group of public agencies, the Metropolitan Borough Councils. E-government forms a complex and inter-organisational innovation, and the work develops an evaluation of its growth since the mid to late 1990's. There is an exploration of the experiences of a variety of methods and their application in light of new and divergent ways of working in the public sector. More recent techniques supportive of its diffusion are introduced, and the thesis takes into account institutional, technological and organisational factors within the public sector specifically and how the concept and practicality of methods are being applied. The future direction and nature of methods within this field are key considerations and form the core of the conclusions of the work.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceFujitsu ServicesGBUnited Kingdo