Faculty Perceptions of Teacher Professionalism in Christian Schools

Able school administrators understand that teachers are their most valuable asset. If Christian schools are to effectively serve the families who entrust their children to their care, teachers must demonstrate both professional competency and godly character. This study was an investigation of faculty perceptions of teacher professionalism at ten Christian schools in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. An online survey of 24 items was completed by 230 teachers (males=30; females=200). The survey instrument was a modified version of Tichenor and Tichenor’s (2009) four dimensions of teacher professionalism. Data were analyzed using a multivariate analysis-of-variance (MANOVA) with gender as the independent variable. Results demonstrated statistically significant variance in totals on 18 of 24 individual items, three of the four dimensions, and on the total score

The generation of a Gaussian random process in a position parameter

Analog computer method for approximating stationary Gaussian random process depending only on position paramete

Alternative monetary constitutions and the quest for price stability

This article reviews the various means through which governments and central banks have sought to guarantee long-run price stability. Finn Kydland and Mark Wynne argue that monetary regimes or standards can all be viewed as more or less successful attempts to overcome the well-known time-consistency problem in monetary policy. The classical gold standard, which prevailed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, can be interpreted as a monetary policy rule that delivered long-run price stability. The fiat monetary standard adopted by countries following the abandonment of gold allows greater discretion on the part of monetary policymakers and has been characterized by greater long-run price instability. Countries have tried through a variety of means to regain the benefits of price stability that prevailed under the earlier gold standard by limiting the scope for discretionary actions on the part of central bankers. A close analogy exists between the gold standard and the currency board arrangements proposed for many emerging market economies in recent years.Money

Ireland's great depression

We argue that Ireland experienced a great depression in the 1980s comparable in severity to the better known and more studied depression episodes of the interwar period. Using the business cycle accounting framework of Chari, Kehoe and McGrattan (2005), we examine the factors that lead to the depression and the subsequent recovery in the 1990s. We calculate efficiency, labor, investment and government wedges, and evaluate the contribution of each to the downturn and subsequent recovery. We find that the efficiency wedge on its own can account for a significant portion of the downturn, but predicts a stronger recovery in output. The labor wedge also helps account for what happened during the depression episode. We also find that the investment wedge played no role in the depression.

D-branes and Strings as Non-commutative Solitons

The non-commutative geometry of a large auxiliary $B$-field simplifies the construction of D-branes as solitons in open string field theory. Similarly, fundamental strings are constructed as localized flux tubes in the string field theory. Tensions are determined exactly using general properties of non-BPS branes, and the non-Abelian structure of gauge fields on coincident D-branes is recovered.Comment: 31 pages, 2 figures, harvmac; v2: crucial sign error in vortex solution corrected, additional comments on electric flux tube, references adde

Visualizing data mining results with the Brede tools

A few neuroinformatics databases now exist that record results from neuroimaging studies in the form of brain coordinates in stereotaxic space. The Brede Toolbox was originally developed to extract, analyze and visualize data from one of them --- the BrainMap database. Since then the Brede Toolbox has expanded and now includes its own database with coordinates along with ontologies for brain regions and functions: The Brede Database. With Brede Toolbox and Database combined we setup automated workflows for extraction of data, mass meta-analytic data mining and visualizations. Most of the Web presence of the Brede Database is established by a single script executing a workflow involving these steps together with a final generation of Web pages with embedded visualizations and links to interactive three-dimensional models in the Virtual Reality Modeling Language. Apart from the Brede tools I briefly review alternate visualization tools and methods for Internet-based visualization and information visualization as well as portals for visualization tools

Higher order corrections to the Newtonian potential in the Randall-Sundrum model

The general formalism for calculating the Newtonian potential in fine-tuned or critical Randall-Sundrum braneworlds is outlined. It is based on using the full tensor structure of the graviton propagator. This approach avoids the brane-bending effect arising from calculating the potential for a point source. For a single brane, this gives a clear understanding of the disputed overall factor 4/3 entering the correction. The result can be written on a compact form which is evaluated to high accuracy for both short and large distances.Comment: 12 pages, LaTeX2e with RevTeX4, 3 postscript figures; Minor corrections, references update

Optimization of graded multilayer designs for astronomical x-ray telescopes

We developed a systematic method for optimizing the design of depth-graded multilayers for astronomical hard-x-ray and soft-γ-ray telescopes based on the instrument’s bandpass and the field of view. We apply these methods to the design of the conical-approximation Wolter I optics employed by the balloon-borne High Energy Focusing Telescope, using W/Si as the multilayer materials. In addition, we present optimized performance calculations of mirrors, using other material pairs that are capable of extending performance to photon energies above the W K-absorption edge (69.5 keV), including Pt/C, Ni/C, Cu/Si, and Mo/Si