On syntactic action refinement and logic

Action refinement is a useful methodology for the development of concurrent processes in a stepwise manner. We are here interested in establishing a connection between syntactic action refinement and logic. In the syntactic approach to action refinement, reduction functions are used to remove the refinement operators from process-algebraic expressions thereby providing semantics for them. We incorporate a syntactic action refinement operator to the Hennessy-Milner-Logic and define a logical reduction function for this extended logic. This provides a possibility to refine a process expression and a formula simultaneously on the syntactic level, while preserving their satisfaction relation. It turns out that the assertion P ≠ φ ⇔ P[a ⇔ Q] ≠ φ[a ⇔ Q] where .(a ⇔ Q] denotes the refinement operator both, on process terms and formulas holds in the considered framework under weak and reasonable restrictions

Tuning the mobility of a driven Bose-Einstein condensate via diabatic Floquet bands

We study the response of ultracold atoms to a weak force in the presence of a temporally strongly modulated optical lattice potential. It is experimentally demonstrated that the strong ac-driving allows for a tailoring of the mobility of a dilute atomic Bose-Einstein condensate with the atoms moving ballistically either along or against the direction of the applied force. Our results are in agreement with a theoretical analysis of the Floquet spectrum of a model system, thus revealing the existence of diabatic Floquet bands in the atom's band spectra and highlighting their role in the non-equilibrium transport of the atoms

Decentralized Dispute Resolution: Using Blockchain Technology and Smart Contracts in Arbitration

Can blockchain technology and smart contracts be used in the context of alternative dispute resolution, particularly arbitration, turning traditional procedures on their head? This article discusses various possible applications of blockchain technology and smart contracts in ADR. In particular, it addresses the possibility of fully automated execution of arbitral awards using a smart contract through so-called escrow mechanisms. Subsequently, it presents two promising approaches of so-called Decentralized Dispute Resolution (DDR), including Expert-Pooling and Crowdarbitration. DDR generally involves decisions made jointly by multiple or even all participants in a network (usually a blockchain network), rather than by just one or two intermediaries, and is managed by a smart contract. In the first approach, jurors join together to form so-called expert pools and offer their services without the parties knowing the pool members. Crowdarbitration is based on game-theoretic approaches, namely the “Schelling Point Principle” and crowdjustice. In both approaches, arbitral awards are typically enforced by an escrow mechanism. The final section comments on and evaluates each of these approaches, in particular their advantages and disadvantages, as well as their potential scope and limitations

Unique Perspectives

The jewelry I build is intended to empower the wearer. Each piece of jewelry in this exhibition is inspired by my own personal experiences as a woman, but the attempt is to develop a piece that can empower anyone connecting to the message. Choosing to make wearable and empowering jewelry is an act of defiance because wearing my work gives me strength to push against existing societal gender barriers. Growing up as the youngest girl in a male dominated household and being taught a lot of gender expectations, there is an existing struggle to feel strong. Wanting to find a way out of the realm of gender norms, while simultaneously deciding to major in education really felt like I was failing at escaping that box. While working as a metalsmith, I feel as though I am able to defy the boundaries and stereotypes that were set in the past and feel as strong as the men in my life. Kristel Bechara’s artwork focuses on women’s empowerment. Bechara captures a diverse group of women and empowers them by showing off a side of them that is hidden or unexpected. I am empowered by metalwork in the same way these women have been empowered. Ayesha Mayadas is someone I look to for inspiration when planning out the construction of a piece of jewelry. Her work is very intentional, clean and is able to capture your eye through the employment of unexpected structure. My ring, Better Than Brass Knuckles, stemmed from walking at night and having a need to protect myself. Better Than Brass Knuckles could actually be used as a weapon if need be, therefore offering a source of protection to the wearer. Women should not feel the need to carry a defense weapon when walking home or to their car; However, it is still necessary today. Better Than Brass Knuckles not only offers safety to the wearer, it also draws attention to this exhausting issue. The artwork I create stems from personal experiences that connect to these overarching fears that a lot of people have. The arm cuff, Does this cuff make me look fat?, is one of the more personal pieces in my show. It was inspired by a time I was wearing a piece of clothing that hugged my body wrong and caused me to be in my head the whole time rather than enjoying an experience. Does this cuff make me look fat? allows me to take the power back from a time of insecurity, while continuing the conversation that some women don’t feel comfortable in their skin because of retired societal standards. The goal of my work is to empower others, be it through sharing my experiences or through their own personal experiences with the jewelry I have created.https://digitalcommons.murraystate.edu/art499/1063/thumbnail.jp

ESalger_Art399_Portfolio

In artwork, there is much joy to be found in using patterns, figures, and contrast. A lot of the subject matter is related to the female body, whether that be the entire feminine form, or just parts of the female body. Presenting the feminine figure in many different ways is an inclusive way of showing young females that every body is beautiful. A lot of young girls (myself included) have to rely on their education to learn about their own body and have a hard time accepting and understanding the complexities of their body. Art may not deeply teach the science behind it, but presenting diverse visuals is a good place to start. The feminist movement and recent body positve movement have been a major influence offering women confidence in embracing topics that others find uncomfortable. Typically, pattern is a primary principle to experiment with, but it is important to push oneself to use different techniques as well. For example, using contrast and movement to grasp the audience’s attention. The contrast in the presented art is focused on bright colors and neutrals or different metals. Metalsmithing is a difficult medium to use, especially when presenting parts of the body, but beautifully crafted images can be created nonetheless. Jeanne Beaver and Terri Sauer have become huge inspirations in pursuing metal work. Jeanne is a talented metalsmithing professor, and working with her and learning from her has been an amazing experience, not only because of her talent, but because of her ability to run a successful metalsmithing department. This makes Jeanne an amazing role model for future art teachers. Terri Sauer is a teacher from Paducah Middle School. Terri was also taught by Jeanne, and is a metalsmith herself who is easy to get along with and stresses the importance of staying connected. In my male dominated, Christan childhood, powerful and divine femininity was hard to come by, but Terri and Jeanne have quickly filled that position.https://digitalcommons.murraystate.edu/art399/1127/thumbnail.jp

Doppler-free frequency modulation spectroscopy of atomic erbium in a hollow cathode discharge cell

The erbium atomic system is a promising candidate for an atomic Bose-Einstein condensate of atoms with a non-vanishing orbital angular momentum ($L \neq 0$) of the electronic ground state. In this paper we report on the frequency stabilization of a blue external cavity diode laser system on the 400.91 $nm$ laser cooling transition of atomic erbium. Doppler-free saturation spectroscopy is applied within a hollow cathode discharge tube to the corresponding electronic transition of several of the erbium isotopes. Using the technique of frequency modulation spectroscopy, a zero-crossing error signal is produced to lock the diode laser frequency on the atomic erbium resonance. The latter is taken as a reference laser to which a second main laser system, used for laser cooling of atomic erbium, is frequency stabilized

Creating, moving and merging Dirac points with a Fermi gas in a tunable honeycomb lattice

Dirac points lie at the heart of many fascinating phenomena in condensed matter physics, from massless electrons in graphene to the emergence of conducting edge states in topological insulators [1, 2]. At a Dirac point, two energy bands intersect linearly and the particles behave as relativistic Dirac fermions. In solids, the rigid structure of the material sets the mass and velocity of the particles, as well as their interactions. A different, highly flexible approach is to create model systems using fermionic atoms trapped in the periodic potential of interfering laser beams, a method which so far has only been applied to explore simple lattice structures [3, 4]. Here we report on the creation of Dirac points with adjustable properties in a tunable honeycomb optical lattice. Using momentum-resolved interband transitions, we observe a minimum band gap inside the Brillouin zone at the position of the Dirac points. We exploit the unique tunability of our lattice potential to adjust the effective mass of the Dirac fermions by breaking inversion symmetry. Moreover, changing the lattice anisotropy allows us to move the position of the Dirac points inside the Brillouin zone. When increasing the anisotropy beyond a critical limit, the two Dirac points merge and annihilate each other - a situation which has recently attracted considerable theoretical interest [5-9], but seems extremely challenging to observe in solids [10]. We map out this topological transition in lattice parameter space and find excellent agreement with ab initio calculations. Our results not only pave the way to model materials where the topology of the band structure plays a crucial role, but also provide an avenue to explore many-body phases resulting from the interplay of complex lattice geometries with interactions [11, 12]