Sustaining organisational change: Teacher education in the Solomon Islands.

"Sustainability is the capacity of education reform initiatives to continue" (Webster, Silova, Moyer, & McAllister, 2011, para. 12). In this article we reflect upon the process of organisational strengthening that was a key component of the Partnership between the Faculty of Education at the University of Waikato and the School of Education, Solomon Islands College of Higher Education. We argue that within the New Zealand Aid Programmei funded partnership, the building of mutually respectful relationships, building leadership capacity and the respect for and inclusion of indigenous cultural considerations were key to the organisational change process and its sustainability

Explaining the diversification discount

Diversified firms trade at a discount relative to similar single-segment firms. We argue in this paper that this observed discount is not per se evidence that diversification destroys value. Firms choose to diversify. Firm characteristics, which make firms diversify might also cause them to be discounted. Not taking into account these firm characteristics might wrongly attribute the observed discount to diversification. Data from the Compustat Industry Segment File from 1978 to 1996 are used to select a sample of single segment and diversifying firms. We use three alternative econometric techniques to control for the endogeneity of the diversification decision. All three methods suggest the presence of self-selection in the decision to diversify and a negative correlation between firm's choice to diversify and firm value. The diversification discount always drops, and sometimes turns into a premium, when we control for the endogeneity of the diversification decision. We do a similar analysis in a sample of refocusing firms. Again, some evidence of self-selection by firms exists and we now find a positive correlation between firm's choice to refocus and firm value. These results consistently suggest the importance of taking the endogeneity of the diversification status into account, in analyzing its effects on firm value.Diversification discount;

The isoperimetric constant of the random graph process

The isoperimetric constant of a graph $G$ on $n$ vertices, $i(G)$, is the minimum of $\frac{|\partial S|}{|S|}$, taken over all nonempty subsets $S\subset V(G)$ of size at most $n/2$, where $\partial S$ denotes the set of edges with precisely one end in $S$. A random graph process on $n$ vertices, $\widetilde{G}(t)$, is a sequence of $\binom{n}{2}$ graphs, where $\widetilde{G}(0)$ is the edgeless graph on $n$ vertices, and $\widetilde{G}(t)$ is the result of adding an edge to $\widetilde{G}(t-1)$, uniformly distributed over all the missing edges. We show that in almost every graph process $i(\widetilde{G}(t))$ equals the minimal degree of $\widetilde{G}(t)$ as long as the minimal degree is $o(\log n)$. Furthermore, we show that this result is essentially best possible, by demonstrating that along the period in which the minimum degree is typically $\Theta(\log n)$, the ratio between the isoperimetric constant and the minimum degree falls from 1 to 1/2, its final value

Management of Osteoarthritis with Avocado/Soybean Unsaponifiables.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a painful and life-altering disease that severely limits the daily activity of millions of Americans, and is one of the most common causes of disability in the world. With obesity on the rise and the worlds population living longer, the prevalence of OA is expected to increase dramatically in the coming decades, generating burdensome socioeconomic costs. This review summarizes current pharmaceutical, non-pharmaceutical, and prospective new treatments for OA, with primary focus on the dietary supplement Avocado/Soybean Unsaponifiables (ASU). ASU modulates OA pathogenesis by inhibiting a number of molecules and pathways implicated in OA. Anticatabolic properties prevent cartilage degradation by inhibiting the release and activity of matrix metalloproteinases (MMP-2,3,13) and increasing tissue inhibitors of these catabolic enzymes (TIMP-1). ASU also inhibits fibrinolysis by stimulating the expression of plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI-1). Anabolic properties promote cartilage repair by stimulating collagen and aggrecan synthesis via inhibition of inflammatory cytokines such as IL1, IL6, IL8, TNF, ERK, and PGE2. Chondroprotective effects are mediated by correcting growth factor abnormalities, increasing TGFβ while decreasing vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in synovial fluid. ASU also inhibits cholesterol absorption and endogenous cholesterol biosynthesis, which mediate reactive oxygen species pathology in chondrocytes. At the clinical level, ASU reduces pain and stiffness while improving joint function, resulting in decreased dependence on analgesics

Climate Responsive Design and the Milam Residence

Energy conservation and efficiency is an essential area of focus in contemporary building design. The perception that the designers of buildings during the Modernist period of architecture ignored these principles is a false one. The present study, an examination of Paul Rudolph’s Milam Residence, a masterpiece of American residential architecture, is part of a larger project endeavoring to create a knowledge base of the environmental performance of iconic modernist homes. A critical examination of the Milam House allows insight into specific design characteristics that impact energy efficiency and conservation. Located in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, the Milam Residence was constructed in 1962. It was the last of a series of Florida residences designed by Rudolph, Chairman of the Department of Architecture at Yale University (1958–1965). The structure’s form is strongly related to its location on a subtropical beachfront. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the building’s solar responsiveness. Specifically, we examine design strategies such as orientation and sunscreening and their effect on daylighting, shading, and heat gain. The analysis is based on parametric energy modeling studies using Autodesk’s Ecotect, an environmental analysis tool that allows simulation of building performance. While the initial target of the program was early design, the program allows the input of complex geometries and detailed programming of zones, materials, schedules, etc. The program\u27s excellent analyses of desired parameters are augmented by visualizations that make it especially valuable in communicating results. Our findings suggest that the building, as built and situated on the site, does take advantage of daylighting and solar shading and does so in both expected and unexpected ways

Percolation-induced exponential scaling in the large current tails of random resistor networks

There is a renewed surge in percolation-induced transport properties of diverse nano-particle composites (cf. RSC Nanoscience & Nanotechnology Series, Paul O'Brien Editor-in-Chief). We note in particular a broad interest in nano-composites exhibiting sharp electrical property gains at and above percolation threshold, which motivated us to revisit the classical setting of percolation in random resistor networks but from a multiscale perspective. For each realization of random resistor networks above threshold, we use network graph representations and associated algorithms to identify and restrict to the percolating component, thereby preconditioning the network both in size and accuracy by filtering {\it a priori} zero current-carrying bonds. We then simulate many realizations per bond density and analyze scaling behavior of the complete current distribution supported on the percolating component. We first confirm the celebrated power-law distribution of small currents at the percolation threshold, and second we confirm results on scaling of the maximum current in the network that is associated with the backbone of the percolating cluster. These properties are then placed in context with global features of the current distribution, and in particular the dominant role of the large current tail that is most relevant for material science applications. We identify a robust, exponential large current tail that: 1. persists above threshold; 2. expands broadly over and dominates the current distribution at the expense of the vanishing power law scaling in the small current tail; and 3. by taking second moments, reproduces the experimentally observed power law scaling of bulk conductivity above threshold

Future for Disability Studies

Produced by The Center on Disability Studies, University of Hawai'i at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai'i, The Frank Sawyer School of Management, Suffolk University, Boston, Massachusetts and The School of Social Sciences, The University of Texas at Dallas, for the Society for Disability Studies