A Comparative Analysis of the Keynote Speeches of the Democratic and Republican National Nominating Conventions of 1968

No abstract provided by author

A Comparative Analysis of the Keynote Speeches of the Democratic and Republican National Nominating Conventions of 1968

No abstract provided by author

Adaptive strategies for graph state growth in the presence of monitored errors

Graph states (or cluster states) are the entanglement resource that enables one-way quantum computing. They can be grown by projective measurements on the component qubits. Such measurements typically carry a significant failure probability. Moreover, they may generate imperfect entanglement. Here we describe strategies to adapt growth operations in order to cancel incurred errors. Nascent states that initially deviate from the ideal graph states evolve toward the desired high fidelity resource without impractical overheads. Our analysis extends the diagrammatic language of graph states to include characteristics such as tilted vertices, weighted edges, and partial fusion, which arise from experimental imperfections. The strategies we present are relevant to parity projection schemes such as optical `path erasure' with distributed matter qubits.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. Typos corrected, nicer figures, neater notation and better rea

Development of data processing, interpretation and analysis system for the remote sensing of trace atmospheric gas species

The major emphasis is on the advancement of remote sensing technology. In particular, the gas filter correlation radiometer (GFCR) technique was applied to the measurement of trace gas species, such as carbon monoxide (CO), from airborne and Earth orbiting platforms. Through a series of low altitude aircraft flights, high altitude aircraft flights, and orbiting space platform flights, data were collected and analyzed, culminating in the first global map of carbon monoxide concentration in the middle troposphere and stratosphere. The four major areas of this remote sensing program, known as the Measurement of Air Pollution from Satellites (MAPS) experiment, are: (1) data acquisition, (2) data processing, analysis, and interpretation algorithms, (3) data display techniques, and (4) information processing

Quantification Of Rigidity And Synthesis Of Cyclobutane Bisimide Building Blocks

The quantification of a molecule’s conformational rigidity was achieved via development of a new measure called the Rigidity Factor, Rgf. This value is a unit interval wherein molecules with corresponding Rgf values closer to 1 are rigid and values closer to 0 are more flexible. The value is determined as a ratio between the molecule’s Van der Waals volume, VW, and it’s Van der Waals potential volume, VWpot. The VWpot was defined as the minimum total volume occupied by a rotamer ensemble of the molecule which has been aligned according to the RMSD for all heavy atoms to achieve a minimum volume. The rotamer ensembles were constructed using CREST (a tool in the xtb suite of programs) or Gromacs. The volumes were calculated using a custom Python script written for this project which uses a Monte Carlo volume approximation method. The script was written to take advantage of parallel computing architecture when present.The Rgf was calculated for several series of similarly structured molecules. These series include straight-chain alkanes, cycloalkanes, diols, diacids, and polymer repeat groups. The values for each series fit the expected trend of longer backbones having a greater flexibility and thus lower Rgf. It was observed that rotamer ensembles which represented a molecule with the capability of intramolecular hydrogen bonding, these rotamers dominate the ensemble. This gives a higher Rgf than expected and is more similar to a cyclic isomer of similar length. In one case, the repeat unit for polybutylene succinate, PBS, the H-bond donors were replaced with methyl groups. This destroyed intramolecular H-bond potential and the Rgf of the molecule more closely resembled the expected value. Conformational entropy, Sconf, for each compound was calculated using CREST. These values were plotted against Rgf for each compound and found to have a general correlation, i.e. structures with lower Rgf have higher Sconf. Several compounds were identified which had a higher-than-expected Sconf despite having a very high Rgf. It was theorized that degenerate rotamers born from the rotation of methyl groups provide this entropy. Since these structures are spatially and volumetrically equivalent, this rotation is not reflected in Rgf calculations. A series of new cyclobutane-containing, difunctional monomers (CBDx) was developed for the intention of being used in polymeric materials. Two polymers were synthesized using two different CBDxs and were shown to be colorless and very lightweight. The monomers were built on a maleic anhydride skeletal core and each contain a central cyclobutane moiety created in the key [2+2]photocycloaddition step between two maleic anhydride or imide olefins. This key step was achieved using low power, fluorescent UV-A light sources. By using these sources, the syntheses were much more efficient and safer than traditional photochemical reactions which often necessitate the use of specialized glassware to mitigate the dangers of the broad-spectrum UV bulbs employed. A poly(cyclobutanebutanebisimide), or PCBBI-1, was synthesized using a cyclobutane-containing diester (CBDE-6) and 1,7-heptandiol. The polymer was confirmed via NMR and HRMS of the soluble oligomeric components. The bulk material had a foamy texture with a very low density. The polymer was colorless. A second polymer, PCBBI-2, was synthesized using a cyclobutane-containing diol (CBDO-2) and adipic acid. The extremely poor solubility of the material precluded NMR or HRMS analysis. Polymerization was assumed based on physical characteristics of bulk material which was extremely similar to PCBBI-1. A classic [2+2] photocycloaddition reaction between maleic anhydride and dissolved ethylene gas was improved on the measures of safety, efficiency, and reduced complexity. This was achieved by using a UV source which targeted the absorption of the maleic anhydride starting material. In doing so, the use of high-power UV photoreaction bulbs can be avoided. This eliminates the need for specialized cooling glassware thus reducing apparatus complexity. An isolated yield of 70% was achieved via vacuum distillation after 5 days reaction time. A similar reaction using acetylene gas was performed but did not provide the same high efficiency. However, the reaction was a success as a crystal structure of the desired product was collected for the first time. Additionally, a new polymorph of a side product of the reaction, biscyclopropanedicarboxylic anhydride, CPDAn-1, was collected. In total, 21 compounds are presented here. Aside from maleimide and its photo dimer, all of these compounds are either not present or virtually ignored in literature for various reasons as discussed. Eleven of these compounds are novel and initial characterizations are presented herein. Further characterizations are provided for the remainder. Characterization includes 10 initial crystal structures reported for both novel and extant species

Effects of Leaf Tannin Concentration on Aquatic Beetle Colonization

The abstract for this presentation can be downloaded by clicking on the blue download button

The Blackstone Group: A Case Study

The Blackstone Group, Inc., located in Beaumont, Texas, is a full-service advertising agency providing design, media, and marketing support for clients in southeast Texas and the Lake Charles, Louisiana, area. The agency was founded April 15, 1978, with its first offices above owners Lawrence and Samantha’s garage. They began with three accounts. Prior to beginning their agency, Lawrence worked for two other agencies, serving five years as Art Director of the first agency, and four years as Creative Director for the second agency. Samantha was employed as a bookkeeper in a third agency. Lawrence began as a freelance designer, doing project work. Shortly thereafter, Samantha joined him in the business. They moved out of the garage, and established an upscale business address located quite near their major clients. Once they became an agency, they “pitched” every opportunity. As a result, they captured a wide variety of accounts, requiring that they become knowledgeable in every aspect of the business. Whatever it took – media buys, copywriting, radio scripts, design, television sport, photography – they did it, and learned as they went. Currently, employing five people plus the principals, the agency is the market leader in the Beaumont area with an estimated 25% market share in those service markets in which they compete. They are recognized as the quality leader in their market, and have garnered an impressive collection of local, regional and national awards for design in both print and other media. Gross billings in 1998 were $3.9 million. Capital billings, the measure used in the industry to report agency size, approximated$4.7 million. (Contact author for a copy of the complete report.)Entrepreneurship

Competition at the Teller\u27s Window?: Altered Antitrust Standards for Banks and Other Financial Institutions

Congressional and judicial attitudes towards the banking industry have reflected two, sometimes conflicting, goals-the maintenance of the solvency of financial institutions to protect the interests of depositors, other creditors and the economy at large; and the promotion of competition among these institutions and in the economy. The advancement of these goals has been reflected in the application of the antitrust laws to the industry. For the most part, the Sherman and Clayton Acts apply with the same force and scope to financial institutions as to other industries. In some cases, however, the goal of institutional protection is favored, and the antitrust laws are relaxed to a degree. As an example, the Bank Merger Act insulates banks to some extent from the full reach of section 7 of the Clayton Act, in the belief that certain mergers will strengthen the banks and will promote the financial well-being of the banks\u27 customers and the community in which they operate. By contrast, in some other cases the goal of advancing competition is elevated, and banks are held to a higher antitrust standard than other industries. For example, certain conditional transactions - tying arrangements, reciprocal dealing or exclusive dealing arrangements - are tested by more stringent standards than those applied to other industries. This article will first provide an overview of the banking industry in the United States, with an examination of the different kinds of institutions and their services, and of the different types of banking regulations. An appreciation of the variegated nature of the banking industry will help in evaluating claims either for an antitrust exemption-total or partial-or for higher antitrust standards. The article will then consider three areas of antitrust law in which banks have been singled out for special treatment - mergers and acquisitions, interlocking directorates, and conditional transactions