Characterizations of Super-regularity and its Variants

Convergence of projection-based methods for nonconvex set feasibility problems has been established for sets with ever weaker regularity assumptions. What has not kept pace with these developments is analogous results for convergence of optimization problems with correspondingly weak assumptions on the value functions. Indeed, one of the earliest classes of nonconvex sets for which convergence results were obtainable, the class of so-called super-regular sets introduced by Lewis, Luke and Malick (2009), has no functional counterpart. In this work, we amend this gap in the theory by establishing the equivalence between a property slightly stronger than super-regularity, which we call Clarke super-regularity, and subsmootheness of sets as introduced by Aussel, Daniilidis and Thibault (2004). The bridge to functions shows that approximately convex functions studied by Ngai, Luc and Th\'era (2000) are those which have Clarke super-regular epigraphs. Further classes of regularity of functions based on the corresponding regularity of their epigraph are also discussed.Comment: 15 pages, 2 figure

Strengthening Experiential Learning at Your School

Experiential learning has become increasingly pervasive across education and is particularly relevant to STEM education. This session will discuss foundational theories and best practices for experiential learning and provide strategies and approaches to scale and enhance experiential learning opportunities in and across your schools. It will be relevant for all grade levels and applicable to educators of all levels of experience with experiential learning

Addressing cohort uncertainty through advanced length frequency and stage-based assessment models with application to anglerfish

Fisheries stock assessments are important tools for successful management of fisheries. Reliability of a stock assessment model is often determined by the data available and accounting for key uncertainties in the data is an important aspect of stock assessments and management. Central to many assessment models is the tracking of cohorts through the population, but uncertainty in the identification of cohorts, in the form of uncertainty in age-estimation and fish growth, can impact model performance. Overall, the aim of this thesis was to develop methods to address this cohort uncertainty, as well as assess the impact of biased age-composition data on the fisheries advice process. I focus on anglerfish as the main case study species, as their assessment and management is affected by the challenges touched upon earlier. To provide context, Chapter 1 gives an overview of stock assessment and management, focussing on the challenges of uncertainty in age-estimation and growth, as well as the approaches used to account for them. Anglerfish fisheries are also summarised and issues affecting their assessment and management discussed. Chapter 2 addresses the topic of cohort uncertainty by developing a new method of length frequency analysis. The model is a maximum likelihood-based procedure that uses Gaussian mixture models and the Expectation Maximisation algorithm to estimate von Bertalanffy growth parameters from length frequency data from fisheries surveys. The model was applied to length data from the white-bellied anglerfish stock in the Celtic Sea and Bay of Biscay. The basic model estimated a single set of growth parameters, whereas the hierarchical extension to the model was able to model some of the natural variability in fish growth between cohorts or years with bivariate random effects on key parameters. Chapter 3 approaches the issue of cohort uncertainty from a different perspective, implementing and and testing the performance of stage-based stock assessment models. Stage-based assessment models have less data requirements and simpler population dynamics than more complex assessment models, so are likely to be more robust to cohort uncertainty in the data. The stage-based assessment models implemented were: Catch-Survey Analysis (CSA), and a model first described in a theoretical paper by Schnute (1987). The performance of these two theoretically different stage-based assessment models was assessed with a simulation-testing framework and on a real anglerfish stock. The findings showed both models are useful stock assessment models, with CSA more robust but less precise than the Schnute model. The Schnute model was more precise than CSA but required growth and mean fish weight data unaffected by selectivity. As part of the work conducted for Chapter 3, the R package ‘sbar’ was developed. This is a fully documented R package that contains the functions to run the stage-based assessment models. Chapter 4 outlines the key assumptions and data requirements of the models, as well as demonstrating use with data from a real anglerfish stock. Versions of the Schnute model not described or tested in Chapter 3 were also detailed here. A goal of this chapter was to allow new users to begin running stage-based assessment models with relevant background information provided. Chapter 5 addresses the impact of using age-composition data generated with a biased growth function in stock assessment and management over time. A management strategy evaluation framework was used, with both stage-based and age-based management procedures tested. A method for estimating CSA reference points was also developed. Both management procedures were affected by the biased sampling data, but in different ways. Performance statistics indicated that it is important to consider the uncertainty and potential bias in growth estimates when generating age-composition data. Overall, the research presented in this thesis has developed and implemented techniques that aim to further advance the field of fisheries stock assessment and management when cohorts are uncertain. The thesis focussed on anglerfish for the majority of case studies due to the fisheries’ reported issues, however the methods implemented here are useful in a wider context and there are many species to which the techniques could be applied.n

Load-sharing policies in parallel simulation of agent-based demographic models

Execution parallelism in agent-Based Simulation (ABS) allows to deal with complex/large-scale models. This raises the need for runtime environments able to fully exploit hardware parallelism, while jointly offering ABS-suited programming abstractions. In this paper, we target last-generation Parallel Discrete Event Simulation (PDES) platforms for multicore systems. We discuss a programming model to support both implicit (in-place access) and explicit (message passing) interactions across concurrent Logical Processes (LPs). We discuss different load-sharing policies combining event rate and implicit/explicit LPs’ interactions. We present a performance study conducted on a synthetic test case, representative of a class of agent-based models.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

The Plethora of Working Self Out: Relationship between Workload and Emotional Exhaustion among High School Teachers in Kiambu County, Kenya

Less emotional exhaustion among teachers is critical in ensuring that teachers perform optimally in their various workloads However few studies have explored how various workloads for teachers can contribute to their emotional exhaustion The current study aimed to examine how various workload categories relate to emotional exhaustion among teachers in public high schools in Kiambu County Kenya The study adopted a descriptive survey design using a random sample of 367 participants drawn from 4447 teachers working in public high schools in Kiambu County at the time The quantitative data were collected using a workload questionnaire for assessing workload and the Maslach Burnout Inventory Scale MBI-S for burnout The qualitative data were collected using a structured interview guide and focus group discussions and descriptive frequency tables and percentages and inferential multinomial logistic regression statistics to analyze the data The study used Job Demand-Resource and Multidimensional theories to explain the relationship Results indicate a relationship between workload and emotional exhaustion among teachers in public high schools Emotional exhaustion can affect teachers physical mental emotional and social wellbeing The research recommends that school counselling departments be made comprehensive enough to accommodate workplace counselling to assist teachers deal with emotional exhaustion and acquiring overall mental health which would enhance their performanc

Imperatives of Corporate Governance On Corporate Citizenship in Nigeria

This paper seeks to examine and interrogate the conceptual ideas and frameworks of corporate governance; its relationship and relevance to corporate citizenship and the elements that describe what is meant by corporate citizenship. Various perspectives of the role which corporate governance plays as a major influence on corporate citizenship and corporate social responsibility were clearly shown. Also shown is the meaning which is ascribed to corporate governance, its core principles, the rhetoric and realities concerning the effect of a corporation’s pursuit of power and profit on corporate citizenship, legal and social responsibilities and the significant paradigm shift. Situating the concept of corporate governance with corporate citizenship shows an interrelationship between the former and the latter. Consequently, this paper revealed that in the long run the market mechanism should be able to provide additional resources to those companies which are best at maximizing and adhering to the principles of corporate governance for the promotion of good corporate citizenship

The Capstone Journey: Exploring Design, Delivery and Evaluation in an Undergraduate Management Discipline Context

The focus of this paper is the development of a capstone management course and the application of educational action research through continual learning. In this article, we use the continual learning frame of plan, do, study, and act to underpin an educational action research design on the development of a capstone management course. As part of an Active Learning Trial, the development of the capstone experience has been captured in the embodiment of that experience. Our aim is to guide other academics in developing their own capstone course, particularly, within management with extension into other disciplines. Through continual improvement, we stress the importance of integrating the primary voice of the students, to emphasize the active learning and to optimize a meaningful experience in connecting theory to practice – the key to the capstone experience. Examples of how to gain feedback and integrate classroom improvements are given. To do this we present two cycles where we applied and practiced continual learning and educational action research to understand and evoke improvements within the course. These changes are evidenced through aggregated student feedback

Older persons participation in hard martial arts: Opportunities to improve psychological well-being? A scoping review.

International Journal of Exercise Science 17(5): 183-198, 2024. This study aims to explore the potential psychological and cognitive advantages for older individuals engaged in hard martial arts (HMA), through a comprehensive scoping review of literature up to 2023. Specifically, it examines the extent of changes in cognition, mental state, and quality of life among elderly participants of HMA. Inclusion criteria were studies conducted on healthy persons who were over 50 years of age. Only papers published in the English language were included. The search was undertaken in electronic databases and sources of grey literature. Thirteen papers with a total of 514 participants met the inclusion criteria. Improved cognition and decreased levels of anxiety and depression were emerging themes. Together, these factors contributed to the quality of life of participants. HMA was found to benefit cognitive abilities and psychological well-being, increasing quality of life more than traditional exercise alone. Findings suggested duration of training influenced change more than frequency. The limited number of studies exploring the effects of HMA on mental wellness and cognitive ability in older adults underscores the need for further research. The findings of this review suggest cognitive and quality of life improvements and reduced depression and anxiety in individuals engaging in HMA. This review serves as a foundation for soundly designed future research

The relationship between relapse and disability in multiple sclerosis

The relationship between relapse and disability in multiple sclerosis is unclear. Whilst natural history studies have confirmed the disabling effects of insidious disease progression they have suggested that relapse, the clinically defining feature of the majority of cases multiple sclerosis, is largely unrelated to disability. However the major therapeutic strategies currently in use against multiple sclerosis are known only to ameliorate relapses and their ability to prevent long term disability is not presently based on evidence but faith in a long presumed, but unproven relationship between relapse, disease progression and disability.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo