Books versus ‘The Book’: The 1974 Kanawha County Textbook Controversy

In 1974 Kanawha County, West Virginia witnessed one of the most violent textbook wars the USA has seen. The paper chronicles the direction of the dispute identifying key issues, protagonists and ideological positions; this is followed by an analysis ofcore protester motivation and intention focusing around the embryonic emergence of Christian fundamentalism and the politics of Conservatism. This is placed within the context of Gramscian notions of hegemonic and counter-hegemonic struggle (Gramsci 1971), the construction of moral panic (Cohen 1972) and authoritarian populism (Hall 1988) as organising ideas. Finally, the paper reflects upon how the Kanawha incident offered a template for the subsequent development of an articulated Christian fundamentalist and political right-wing counter-hegemonic movement aimed at dominating educational policy agendas in the USA

The Paradoxical Relationship between Econometric Effectiveness and Legal Certainty

Be it information asymmetry in banking regulation or game theory as applied to child custody in divorce, economic theory plays an increasingly prominent role in legal scholarship. Econometrics brings welcome empiricism to our efforts to understand the operation both of markets and of society in general. Its application to the law, however, carries with it the risks of failing to account for certain fundamental contradictions between econometric and legal method. This paper considers the problem of using econometric data to inform legal decision making, and in particular what may be an irreconcilable clash between effective purposive law and legal certainty. This creates problems for the judge asked to make choices based upon desired purposive outcomes, such as achieving the best returns of creditors or having the highest probability of recovery, in order to achieve a legally certain outcome, which is to say that the informed observer is reasonably able to predict the result. Although this paradox is described in the context of insolvency law, it is inherent to legal method in general rather than being specific to this discipline.The exact nature or desirability of either legal certainty or effective social engineering through the law is beyond the scope of this paper, as is the question of the extent to which legal reasoning is genuinely deductive. The purpose is to demonstrate that the objectives of certainty and effectiveness are pulling in opposite directions: an effective law is uncertain, and a certain law is ineffective. The lawmaker must choose between one and the other

The Impact of “Rollover” Contracts on Switching Costs in the UK Voice Market : Evidence from Disaggregate Customer Billing Data

In February 2008, British Telecommunications (BT) introduced automatically renewing, or “rollover”, contracts into the UK market for fixed-voice telephone service. These contracts included a 12-month Minimum Contract Period (MCP) with associated Early Termination Charges (ETCs). Unless customers opted out, at the end of the 12 months they would automatically be rolled over into a new MCP and face new ETCs if they later wished to leave BT. Using a unique, disaggregate, customer billing dataset, we measure the impact of rollover contracts on BT customers’ decision to switch to another provider. We find that, controlling for the effects of tenure, broadband purchase, price discounts, and self-selection, rollover households switch after their first MCP 34.8% (54.8%) less than comparable customers on standard plans (fixed-term contracts). These imply rollover contracts induce switching costs on the order of 33.0% of the monthly price of the average BT fixed-voice telephone service. This raises significant concerns about the competitive effects of such contracts n media and telecommunications markets.

A Singular Theta Lift and the Shimura Correspondence

Modular forms play a central and critical role in the study of modern number theory. These remarkable and beautiful functions have led to many spectacular results including, most famously, the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem. In this thesis we find connections between these enigmatic objects. In particular, we describe the construction and properties of a singular theta lift, closely related to the well known Shimura correspondence. We first define a (twisted) lift of harmonic weak Maass forms of weight 3/2-k, by integrating against a well chosen kernel Siegel theta function. Using this, we obtain a new class of automorphic objects in the upper-half plane of weight 2-2k for the group Gamma_{0}(N). We reveal these objects have intriguing singularities along a collection of geodesics. These singularities divide the upper-half plane into Weyl chambers with associated wall crossing formulas. We show our lift is harmonic away from the singularities and so is an example of a locally harmonic Maass form. We also find an explicit Fourier expansion. The Shimura/Shintani lifts provided very important correspondences between half-integral and even weight modular forms. Using a natural differential operator we link our lift to these. This connection then allows us to derive the properties of the Shimura lift. The nature of the singularities suggests we formulate all of these ideas as distributions and finally we consider the current equation encompassing them. This work provides extensions of the theta lifts considered by Borcherds (1998), Bruinier (2002), Bruinier and Funke (2004), Hövel (2012) and Bringmann, Kane and Viazovska (2013)

Laminar-Turbulent Transition Due to 2-D Excrescences at 1% Chord on a Swept Wing

Laminar flow has the potential to dramatically reduce fuel consumption and/or extend the range of modern aircraft. However, before laminar-flow aircraft can be made practical, the effect of surface imperfections must be better understood. Many studies have been performed on the effects of distributed roughness and other types of imperfections. Two-dimensional step excrescences, however have not been studied in significant detail until recently. Two-dimensional steps are common on real aircraft due to practical considerations such as skin-panel junctions, high-lift-device interfaces, deicing mechanisms, etc. Traditionally, these 2-D excrescences have been treated as just another form of roughness; however, the behavior of these steps is fundamentally distinct. The present study tests the effect of 2-D excrescences near 1% chord in order to examine the effects of pressure gradient and curvature. Testing on a 30° swept-wing model is performed in both the flight environment aboard a Cessna O-2A Skymaster, as well as in the Klebanoff-Saric Wind tunnel at Texas A&M University. In both environments, IR thermography is utilized to detect the global laminar–turbulent transition location. In the wind tunnel, a hotwire traverse is also utilized to map out the boundary layer and further measure the influence of these excrescences. Interactions between the crossflow instability and these excrescences are observed. Both critical and subcritical step induced transition behavior is present. Comparisons are made to other contemporary experiments in order to draw conclusions about the influence of pressure gradient, sweep, and curvature on the step-induced transition behavior. The resulting data are intended for use in validating an ongoing companion computational effort

Reverse Perspective: a view beyond and between borders of identity in a “Liquid modern world”

My research is concerned with the flux of cultural transition, emergent identities, and pluralism within a community. It explores a changing point of view beyond traditions and is informed by the ontology of “becoming rather than being”, to paraphrase William H. Hastie. This research is a response to the phenomenon of recent immigration to the town of Dungannon in Northern Ireland as a consequence of globalization and postmodern politics. Biographical narrative enquiry is the primary research methodology used as I draw upon my life experience to reflect on the condition of being an immigrant. This research project aims to initiate a dialogue of identity generally and specifically within the community of Dungannon. The agency of immigration within a traditionally homeostatic environment informs this inquiry. Through a series of exhibited works this research will question the validity of cultural community borders. I focus on the arbitrary nature of the “false closures” (Hall, 1987) that form identity and delineate borders between identities, and the realization that borders are points of contact as well as points of separation. The research is practice-led and is concerned with what is beyond the border

Connecting Digital Environments to Additional Language Learning in Schools

Despite digital environments’ proven effectiveness in supporting additional language acquisition, there is a gap in knowledge about how technology is integrated in Kindergarten–Grade 12 (K–12) additional language classrooms. This study examined situations in which additional language learning classes integrated digital environments in elementary and secondary language classrooms and sought to highlight how young learners interact with such environments for additional language learning purposes. A review of the literature revealed that digital learning environments offer corrective feedback for additional language learners who have traditionally been a focus of computer-assisted language learning (CALL); however, more recently computermeditated communication (CMC) has taken hold. Importantly, digital environments that offer multimodality provide comprehensible input that supports the language learning process. The utilization of digital environments with traditional additional language resources is discussed. This study has significant implications for additional language learning and teaching strategies while applying digital learning theories into the additional language classroom

The law and economics of orderly and effective insolvency

What is effective insolvency law? Effective insolvency laws play an important role in the health of an economy, and particularly upon the framework of investment decisions. Understanding how this works is particularly relevant during a period of financial crisis. International Monetary Fund and World Bank guidelines for “Orderly and Effective” insolvency laws were intended to encourage law reforms that would stimulate investment by improving returns to investors in the event of insolvency. The guidelines were strongly influenced by an efficiency approach to insolvency. This approach posits that absolute priority for secured creditors is allocatively efficient and therefore the best means to achieve maximum social welfare. The guidelines also drew heavily on the principles and practices of ‘creditor friendly’ English law, seen by some as a paragon of efficient insolvency. But how accurate is this appraisal of English law or the impact of efficient insolvency? The Enterprise Act 2002 sought to develop a rescue culture by improving inclusivity and increasing distribution of both control and returns amongst stakeholders. Instead of reducing overall returns, as an efficiency model would suggest, research into insolvency outcomes suggests that the revised administration procedure may provide better returns to all groups of creditors, including secured creditors. This thesis uses empirical data to explore the limitations of an efficiency approach to insolvency, and explain why in a developed legal regime inclusivity improves returns by increasing the likelihood of effective rescue. The changes in English law are reflective of an increased private sector investment in informal workouts and a growing emphasis on reputational and relationship concerns. An element of redistribution and inclusivity will provide better global returns to investors than a slavish approach to secured creditor priority

Reducing in-stent restenosis therapeutic manipulation of miRNA in vascular remodeling and inflammation

Background: Drug-eluting stents reduce the incidence of in-stent restenosis, but they result in delayed arterial healing and are associated with a chronic inflammatory response and hypersensitivity reactions. Identifying novel interventions to enhance wound healing and reduce the inflammatory response may improve long-term clinical outcomes. Micro–ribonucleic acids (miRNAs) are noncoding small ribonucleic acids that play a prominent role in the initiation and resolution of inflammation after vascular injury.<p></p> Objectives: This study sought to identify miRNA regulation and function after implantation of bare-metal and drug-eluting stents.<p></p> Methods: Pig, mouse, and in vitro models were used to investigate the role of miRNA in in-stent restenosis.<p></p> Results: We documented a subset of inflammatory miRNAs activated after stenting in pigs, including the miR-21 stem loop miRNAs. Genetic ablation of the miR-21 stem loop attenuated neointimal formation in mice post-stenting. This occurred via enhanced levels of anti-inflammatory M2 macrophages coupled with an impaired sensitivity of smooth muscle cells to respond to vascular activation.<p></p> Conclusions: MiR-21 plays a prominent role in promoting vascular inflammation and remodeling after stent injury. MiRNA-mediated modulation of the inflammatory response post-stenting may have therapeutic potential to accelerate wound healing and enhance the clinical efficacy of stenting

Comparison of Two Approaches to Interpretive Use Arguments

The Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing (AERA, APA, & NCME, 2014) recommend an argument-based approach to validation that involves a clear statement of the intended interpretation and use of test scores, the identification of the underlying assumptions and inferences in that statement—termed the interpretation/use argument, and gathering of evidence to support or refute the assumptions and inferences. We present two approaches to articulating the assumptions and inferences that underlie a score interpretation and use statement, also termed the interpretation/use argument (Kane, 2016). One approach uses the five sources of validity evidence in the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing (AERA, APA, & NCME, 2014) as a framework and the other approach uses Kane’s chain of assumptions/inferences approach (Kane, 2006, 2013a, 2016) as a framework. Through this process we identified aspects of these approaches that need to be further clarified for instrument developers to consistently implement either approach, identified important differences in the perspective each approach takes on validation, and highlight important questions for the measurement and mathematics education research fields to consider