Linfield College: Study Abroad in France

This letter from returnee Brian Adams explains the value of studying abroad in France

Ultra Short Period Planets in K2: SuPerPiG Results for Campaigns 0-5

We have analyzed data from Campaigns 0-5 of the K2 mission and report 19 ultra-short-period candidate planets with orbital periods of less than 1 day (nine of which have not been previously reported). Planet candidates range in size from 0.7-16 Earth radii and in orbital period from 4.2 to 23.5 hours. One candidate (EPIC 203533312, Kp=12.5) is among the shortest-period planet candidates discovered to date (P=4.2 hours), and, if confirmed as a planet, must have a density of at least rho=8.9 g/cm^3 in order to not be tidally disrupted. Five candidates have nominal radius values in the sub-Jovian desert (R_P=3-11 R_E and P<=1.5 days) where theoretical models do not favor their long-term stability; the only confirmed planet in this range is in fact thought to be disintegrating (EPIC 201637175). In addition to the planet candidates, we report on four objects which may not be planetary, including one with intermittent transits (EPIC 211152484) and three initially promising candidates that are likely false positives based on characteristics of their light curves and on radial velocity follow-up. A list of 91 suspected eclipsing binaries identified at various stages in our vetting process is also provided. Based on an assessment of our survey's completeness, we estimate an occurrence rate for ultra-short period planets among K2 target stars that is about half that estimated from the Kepler sample, raising questions as to whether K2 systems are intrinsically different from Kepler systems, possibly as a result of their different galactic location.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, accepted to AJ on 2016 May 2

Representation and poly-time approximation for pressure of Z2\mathbb{Z}^2 lattice models in the non-uniqueness region

We develop a new pressure representation theorem for nearest-neighbour Gibbs interactions and apply this to obtain the existence of efficient algorithms for approximating the pressure in the $2$-dimensional ferromagnetic Potts, multi-type Widom-Rowlinson and hard-core models. For Potts, our results apply to every inverse temperature but the critical. For Widom-Rowlinson and hard-core, they apply to certain subsets of both the subcritical and supercritical regions. The main novelty of our work is in the latter.Comment: 37 pages, 2 figure

Going local – but does decentralisation actually make for more innovative policy?

The mayoral elections in May are part of a plan put in place by George Osborne to reinvigorate local government in the UK. “The old model of trying to run everything in our country from the centre of London is broken,” he said in 2015. But does decentralisation make government more innovative – and if so, why? Brian Adams looks at the case for (and against) decentralising policy decisions

The Effect of Statins in Primary Prevention on All-Cause Mortality

During routine yearly physicals, primary care providers often evaluate serum laboratory lipid levels. Many of these patients have no past medical history of cardiovascular events related to atherosclerotic disease. Some patients do not have secondary risk factors, such as diabetes mellitus or smoking history. Previous cardiovascular events provide stronger indications for the use of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins). In the absence of these, the provider may turn to current guidelines, in this case the 2013 the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association published the 2013 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Treatment of Blood Cholesterol to Reduce Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Risk in Adults. There is however, controversy, even within the evidence to this guideline, about the effect of statins in primary prevention with respect to the reduction that they have on all-cause mortality. There are many factors that could influence the use of statin therapy for primary prevention. These could include non-fatal myocardial infarction, non-fatal cerebral vascular accident, among others. One of the biggest factors is all-cause mortality. A review of the evidence cited for these guidelines demonstrates that the majority of the clinical trials did not show a reduction in all-cause mortality, in primary prevention. It is important to understand that this evidence comes directly from the same evidence that the ACC/AHA used to create the primary prevention guidelines.https://commons.und.edu/pas-grad-posters/1028/thumbnail.jp

Whose Beneficiaries are They Anyway? Copenhaver v. Rogers and the Attorney\u27s Contract to Prepare a Will in Virginia

In a case of first impression in the Commonwealth, the Supreme Court of Virginia recently considered whether an attorney may be liable for drafting a will which results in the failure of a testamentary gift to intended beneficiaries. Historically, will beneficiaries had been denied a means of recovery against attorneys due to a lack of privity between the parties. Although Virginia remains a strict privity\u27 jurisdiction, it recognizes third-party contract beneficiary claims\u27 and has legislatively abrogated the privity requirement in other areas of the law. The plaintiffs in Copenhaver v. Rogers sought to establish a third-party beneficiary claim as the intended beneficiaries of the contract between the deceased testator-client and the drafting attorney. The court implicitly recognized the potential viability of such a claim, yet concluded that the requisite cause of action had not been stated. The court further surmised that under current Virginia law it would no doubt be difficult for a litigant, in the case of this kind, to meet the requirements of third-party beneficiary claims

Personality Characteristics of Responsive Parents: The Relationship to Symptomatology in Children

The purpose of this study was to further define the relationship between parental responsiveness and symptomatology in children and to help elucidate qualities that might lead a parent to behave in a responsive manner toward their child. Of particular interest was the parental personality characteristic conscientiousness. The 28 Participant families were from two samples, a clinical sample taken from the University of Tennessee Psychological Clinic and a non-clinical sample taken from a local elementary school. Parents completed an assessment measure of their child\u27s symptomatology and questionnaires designed to measure conscientiousness. Families were then observed interacting for one hour to assess for parental responsivity and child negativity, using an observational coding system. This study did not show a clear link between the personality characteristic conscientiousness and parental responsiveness. However, results did demonstrate that parental responsiveness was indeed predictive of overall symptomatology as well as both internalizing and externalizing problems in children. Additionally, it appeared that parental responsiveness was a better predictor of symptomatology than observed child negativity. This study also demonstrated that clinical and non-clinical groups differed in their level of responsivity, with parents from the clinical sample presenting as significantly less responsive. Findings are discussed in the context of the responsiveness literature. Limitations to the current study, and recommendations for further research are presented

The Advanced Framework for Evaluating Remote Agents (AFERA): A Framework for Digital Forensic Practitioners

Digital forensics experts need a dependable method for evaluating evidence-gathering tools. Limited research and resources challenge this process and the lack of multi-endpoint data validation hinders reliability in distributed digital forensics. A framework was designed to evaluate distributed agent-based forensic tools while enabling practitioners to self-evaluate and demonstrate evidence reliability as required by the courts. Grounded in Design Science, the framework features guidelines, data, criteria, and checklists. Expert review enhances its quality and practicality