bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Global Topographies: The Spiritual, the Social and the Geographical in the Missionary Movement from the West
Authors: Ustorf Werner
Published: March 2003

The modern missionary movement has contributed profoundly not only to changing the religious topography of this globe—approximately one‐third of the world’s population is Christian now—but also, often enough, it has changed the social topography as well. Missionary activity is still one of the major agents of global transformation in the twentieth century. This paper looks at some of the driving machines of transformation, namely the images, visions, and concepts of time, space and global social change that were produced within the missionary movement as part of its spiritual topography. Three motivational trends are identified, each of which represents a fundamentally different way of approaching non‐western space and time and thus leads to different models of missionary social intervention: the emancipative‐integrationist approach, the racist‐imperialistic attitude, and the egalitarian‐inversionist trend. The overall findings of this paper are, perhaps, more or less ambivalent: visions of human salvation and global social change, missionary or other, are historically powerful. Necessary as they are for the life of humankind, global visions ought to be handled with care. They need to be tested and discussed, particularly with those who are targeted.
Spins of (Dis)Integration: What Might "Reformers" in Canada Learn from the "Social Dimension" of the European Union?
Authors: Leibfried Stephan
Published: March 2003

Viewed superficially, Canada and the European Union are both multi‐tiered systems with a social identity problem, albeit one arrived at via different routes. This paper examines the extent to which Canada and Canadians might or might not be able to profit from the experience of the EU in respect of social policy development. First, the paper offers an outline review of where the "social dimension and social policy are at" in the EU. This it does with reference to the workings of three distinct processes: attempts at (a) positive activist social reform; (b) negative reform arising from the European Court of Justice’s imposition of market compatibility requirements; (c) indirect, de facto pressures towards integration resulting from the demands of adapting to a single market and single currency area. The paper then goes on to review the two main schools of proposals for restructuring Canada politically—"reversing the founding process" (a Québécois/separatist perspective), as against replacing Canada’s federal system with a "pure interstate compact"—in the light of this EU experience. In neither set of cases, as it turns out, does the experience and example of the EU offer promising pointers of relevance to Canada.
Child Support: The Limits of Social Policy Based on Assumptions of Knavery Extending the Pillars of Social Policy Financing to Aged Care
Authors: Uttley Stephen
Published: March 2003

Julian Le Grand has argued that a key component of welfare reform involves changes in the assumptions about human behaviour which are embedded in social policies. Policy assumptions have been transformed from espousing a belief that social service providers act as well‐intentioned knights and recipients as passive pawns, to a stance in which all participants are regarded as self‐seeking knaves. These ideas are particularly pertinent to policy developments concerning financial obligations for children, and this paper examines these issues in relation to child support policy in New Zealand. It highlights the evident and inevitable failure of this policy to meet its primary stated aim of revenue generation. In New Zealand this failure is compounded by the creation of parallel systems for dealing with children and families, one for financial obligations and the other for care and development, which are founded on diametrically opposed assumptions about human behaviour and capabilities. This confusion is symptomatic of a wider failure in government policy towards families in New Zealand.
Researching a Contemporary Archive
Authors: Finer Catherine Jones
Published: March 2003

This paper documents the experiences of a researcher offered unlimited, privileged access to the archive of a recent, contemporary, charismatic social reformer based in Naples, who was also at the head of an international fundraising network. It documents, first, the unintended consequences of embarking on a research project on the basis of an informal friendly understanding between researcher and researched. It then comments on particular, practical features of this research undertaking, before focusing upon the major ethical dilemmas it presented. The author concludes by offering advice to future archival researchers in the light of her memorable experience in this case.
Globalization, Inequality and Social Policy: China on the Threshold of Entry into the World Trade Organization
Authors: Guan Xinping
Published: March 2003

Over the past twenty years, social researchers have had increasingly to turn from domestic to international and global perspectives in their efforts to account for growing levels of social inequality and in their search for practical policy solutions. It is against this background that China’s recent experience is to be appreciated. The combined programme of economic reform coupled with an open‐door policy has achieved much, yet has been accompanied by marked increases in social inequality. Until recently, most experts seemed to believe this trend to be a mere transitional “by‐product” of domestic economic reform. Further social reform, backed by sustained economic growth, would be sufficient to resolve the problem. However, the facts now suggest otherwise. Sustained economic growth and reform, especially from the later 1990s, has been accompanied by ever‐widening social inequality, with no signs of an end in sight. This is a critical period. China is now on the eve of entry into the WTO, with all the anxieties as well as rewards this signals for the Chinese people. Against this background the present paper weighs up the likely impact of globalization on China’s social structure and its systems of social protection. It concludes by offering suggestions for international social policy advance both “longitudinal” (between developed and developing countries) and “latitudinal” (between developing countries in competition with each other). Only by means of such “joint efforts” might China hope to escape the “social protection dilemmas” associated with entry into the WTO.
The Smothering Embrace: Competition in the Implementation of Social Policy
Authors: C. van den Brink Jasper , Brandsen Taco , Putters Kim
Published: March 2003

One element of recent welfare state reform has been the introduction of market coordination in the implementation of social policy. The authors of this article have conducted a comparative study of social security, health care and housing policy implementation in the Netherlands, focusing on the conditions necessary for an effective mechanism of competition. The most important condition is that clients should be able to switch between providers without difficulty. Evidence shows that the providers in these fields of social policy engage in activities that undermine the potential for future competition. While this is not uncommon in itself, the new markets in social policy appear to be particularly vulnerable to such activities. This can be explained on the basis of two variables: (1) the institutional characteristics of the policy fields as they existed before the introduction of market coordination, and (2) the characteristics of the products that providers distribute. The combination of path dependency and product characteristics strengthens efforts to reduce competition.
Food Banks and Food Security: Welfare Reform, Human Rights and Social Policy. Lessons from Canada?
Authors: Riches Graham
Published: March 2003

In the past twenty years food banks have established themselves as one of the fastest–growing charitable industries in first world societies. As institutionalized centres or clearing houses for the redistribution of donated and surplus food they have emerged as a key frontline response to the growing problem of food poverty and inequality. As welfare states have been restructured and cut back and basic entitlements have been denied, food banks have become secondary extensions of weakened social safety nets. This paper explores the growth of food banking in Canada and analyses its role in terms of advancing the human right to food, its effectiveness in achieving food security and the extent to which it contributes to, and/or counters the increasing emphasis by governments on welfare reform policies informed by neo–conservative ideology. Food banks are examined from the perspective of their origins and purposes, institutionalization, usage, food distributed and effectiveness. The rise of food banks in Canada is concrete evidence both of the breakdown of the social safety net and the commodification of social assistance. As such, they undermine the state’s obligation, as ratified in international conventions, to respect, protect and fulfil the human right to food. They enable governments to look the other way and neglect food poverty and nutritional health and well–being. A possible future role for food banks in countries where they are already established lies in public education and advocacy, but their institutionalization makes this seem an unlikely course. In countries where they are in their infancy, the question of whether to support their development should be a matter of urgent public debate.
Nursing Homes in England and their Capacity to Provide Rehabilitation and Intermediate Care Services
Authors: Jacobs Sally , Rummery Kirstein
Published: March 2003

The numbers of older people living in residential and nursing home care in the UK have risen exponentially since the early 1980s when the closure of long–stay geriatric wards and changes in social security funding of care home places led to a rapid expansion of the care home industry. While the implementation of the 1990 National Health Service (NHS) and Community Care Act shifted the responsibility for the commissioning and funding of these services to local authority social services departments, the provision of most health services (such as general practitioner care, physiotherapy and specialist nursing services) to nursing home residents remains the responsibility of community–based NHS practitioners. Recently, the attention of policy–makers in the UK has been focused on the need to improve the throughput of the acute sector. Older people who have received treatment but are not yet able to return to their own homes are to be transferred into intermediate care facilities, often by using nursing home beds, with the aim of supporting short–term rehabilitation outside of the acute sector. This paper presents evidence from a study of health service provision to older people living in nursing homes in England. It examines whether nursing homes have the capacity to fulfil the rehabilitation and intermediate care function envisaged by policy–makers. It concludes that shortfalls in the provision of NHS services to nursing homes and difficulties faced by nursing homes in paying for health services themselves may hinder the rehabilitation potential of intermediate care placements in nursing homes.
Alternatives to Custody in the New Zealand Criminal Justice System: Current Features and Future Prospects
Authors: Gibbs Anita , King Denise
Published: March 2003

Alternatives to custody in New Zealand have followed a format similar to criminal justice systems in the UK and other European countries but with a stronger emphasis on both punitive, work‐based options like periodic detention, and more recently home detention, as well as restorative justice models. Much of current practice relies heavily on the now dated Criminal Justice Act 1985. However, a new sentencing and parole act is proposed for 2002. In this paper the authors review the current alternatives to custody in New Zealand, paying particular attention to issues arising from their recent research on home detention—surveillance, control and impacts on family members—and offering a reflection on the future prospects for alternatives to custody.
Ecological Marginalization in Rural Areas: Actors, Impacts, Responses
Authors: Kousis Maria
Published: March 2003

Ecological marginalization entails the take‐over of local natural resources by powerful private and/or state interests, and the gradual or immediate disorganization of the ecosystem via withdrawals and additions. The disruption of biological processes, loss of local people’s resource base and the generation of socio‐economic and public health risks are the inevitable results of this process. This paper aims to shed light on the consequences of contentious environmental actions that have been taken in recent decades. Using illustrative examples from across the globe, the paper examines the factors leading to ecological marginalization, the consequences of this process for the natural and social system, as well as local responses.
Farmers and the Implementation of the EU Nitrates Directive in Spain
Authors: Palacios Simón Pedro Izcara
Published: March 2003

Farming practices and their implications for the environment have come under increasing scrutiny in recent years with mounting pressures on farmers to reduce pollution and achieve higher environmental standards. The Nitrates Directive is an outstanding example, at EU level, of the pressure on farmers to redirect agriculture toward greater sustainability. This paper examines the implementation process of the Nitrates Directive in Spain, analysing the causes of the delay in implementing the directive, and examining farmer’s views of nitrate pollution and their attitudes toward environmental regulation of their activity.
7. Fixed-Effects Negative Binomial Regression Models
Authors: Allison Paul D. , Waterman Richard P.
Published: March 2003

This paper demonstrates that the conditional negative binomial model for panel data, proposed by Hausman, Hall, and Griliches (1984), is not a true fixed-effects method. This method—which has been implemented in both Stata and LIMDEP—does not in fact control for all stable covariates. Three alternative methods are explored. A negative multinomial model yields the same estimator as the conditional Poisson estimator and hence does not provide any additional leverage for dealing with over-dispersion. On the other hand, a simulation study yields good results from applying an unconditional negative binomial regression estimator with dummy variables to represent the fixed effects. There is no evidence for any incidental parameters bias in the coefficients, and downward bias in the standard error estimates can be easily and effectively corrected using the deviance statistic. Finally, an approximate conditional method is found to perform at about the same level as the unconditional estimator.
Embodying the Environment in Everyday Life Practices
Authors: Macnaghten Phil
Published: March 2003

This paper suggests ways in which ‘the environment’ needs to be reconfigured so that it better resonates with how people are experiencing politics, nature and everyday life. Through empirical research on environmental concerns and everyday practices, this paper sketches a framework through which the values associated with contemporary environmentalism might be developed in a more reflexive relationship to wider transformations in society. In particular, the research critically evaluates the standard storyline of a ‘global nature’ under threat and in need of collective action by a global imagined community. In contrast to rhetorics of the global environment, this paper explores ways in which the environment is being embodied, valued and experienced in an array of social practices. The paper further outlines the significance of such embodied practices as significant yet undervalued points of connection for wider, global environmental issues.
Epistemological Culture Theory: A Micro Theory of the Origin and Maintenance of Culture
Authors: Demerath Loren
Published: March 2003

This paper presents a new “epistemological” theory of culture that explains how individuals enhance their sense of security in the world by creating and maintaining culture as knowledge of the world. Using cognitive and affective processes previously ignored by culture theorists, the theory posits three dimensions of cultural production: we articulate, typify, and orient our experiences to make them meaningful. The theory asserts that we produce culture because it allows us to feel as if we understand our world, and to perceive it as ordered; this in turn triggers an aesthetic response of knowledge-based affect. The theory explains how cultural production is motivated by the pursuit of meaningfulness as well as material interests. The theory describes how an oppressive culture can be reproduced unintentionally, even by the groups it oppresses. The theory also identifies connections between social structure and culture where conditions of ambiguity or control have implications for how meaning can be created.
The Socio‐economic Patterning of Health and Smoking Behaviour among Mothers with Young Children on Income Support
Authors: Graham Hilary , Blackburn Clare
Published: March 2003

The paper is set against the backdrop of the increase in the number of households in the UK in receipt of means‐tested benefits. Focusing on women in households with children, it examines two issues: the limitations of conventional measures of socio‐economic position and the contribution that alternative measures can make to the analysis of socio‐economic variations in health in claimant households. These issues are illustrated by a British survey of mothers caring for young children on income support. The data point to relative disadvantage within this low‐income group and the difficulties of capturing its range and degree within conventional socio‐economic measures. Analyses examine the contribution which conventional and alternative indicators of socio‐economic position make to predicting the odds of poor health and cigarette smoking among mothers in the survey. We conclude that the use of conventional measures may result in an underestimation of the strength of the association between relative disadvantage, poorer health and smoking behaviour within claimant groups, and that alternative measures need to be developed if the scale and health‐impact of disadvantage is to be accurately reflected in surveys of health and lifestyles.
A new approach to maximum likelihood estimation of sum‐constrained linear models in case of undersized samples
Authors: De Boer P. M. C. , Harkema R.
Published: March 2003

Maximum likelihood procedures for estimating sum‐constrained models like demand systems, brand choice models and so on, break down or produce very unstable estimates when the number of categories (n) is large as compared with the number of observations (T). In applied research, this problem is usually resolved by postulating the contemporaneous covariance matrix of the dependent variables to be known apart from a constant of proportionality. In this paper we develop a maximum likelihood procedure for sum‐constrained models with large numbers of categories, which does not require too many observations, but nevertheless allows for n covariance parameters to be estimated freely.
Optimal transformations for categorical autoregressive time series
Authors: Van Buuren S.
Published: March 2003

This paper describes a method for finding optimal transformations for analyzing time series by autoregressive models. ‘Optimal’ implies that the agreement between the autoregressive model and the transformed data is maximal. Such transformations help 1) to increase the model fit, and 2) to analyze categorical time series. The method uses an alternating least squares algorithm that consists of two main steps: estimation and transformation. Nominal, ordinal and numerical data can be analyzed. Some alternative applications of the general idea are highlighted: intervention analysis, smoothing categorical time series, predictable components, spatial modeling and cross‐sectional multivariate analysis. Limitations, modeling issues and possible extensions are briefly indicated.
A heuristic rule for routing customers to parallel servers
Authors: Sassen S. A. E. , Tijms H. C. , Nobel R. D.
Published: March 2003

A practically important problem is the assignment of stochastically arriving service requests to one of several parallel service groups so as to minimize the long‐run average sojourn time per service request. An exact solution of this multi‐dimensional optimization problem is computationally infeasible. A simple heuristic solution method yielding a good suboptimal rule will be given for the case of server groups with different and generally distributed service times. This solution method is based on a decomposition approach and first principles from Markov decision theory. The main idea of the heuristic method is to apply one step of policy improvement to the best Bernoulli‐splitting rule.
A statistical and probabilistic analysis of popular lottery tickets
Authors: Henze N.
Published: March 2003

We investigate statistical and probabilistic aspects of a data set of 2588 lottery tickets purchased for the German 6/49 lottery drawing of 16.10.1993 in Baden–Württemberg. Roughly speaking, each of these combinations was chosen at least 50 times above average. 288 of these most popular tickets represent past winning numbers (or modifications thereof) from various lotteries. The vast majority of the remaining tickets is filled out from aesthetic points of view. In this respect, some new random variables are introduced and studied.
Sampling with probabilities proportional to the variable of interest
Authors: Moors J. J. A. , Smeets R. , Boekema F. W. M.
Published: March 2003

To estimate the mean sojourn time, a sample of Tilburg fair visitors was asked for the duration of their stay on the fair grounds. The longer a visitor's sojourn, the larger his/her probability of being interviewed will be; therefore, longer sojourn times will be overrepresented in the sample. As a consequence, the arithmetic sample mean is not a good estimator.

The paper places this problem against a theoretical background. Sampling with unequal probabilities is considered in a general context. The special case that the sampling probabilities are a function of the variable under investigation, is discussed in detail. As a better estimator the harmonic mean of the observations is presented. Most properties of this estimator are difficult to derive analytically, but a suitable variance estimator is derived. The behavior of estimator and variance estimator is studied in a number of quite different examples.
Description of purchase incidence by multivariate heterogeneous Poisson processes
Authors: Hoogendoorn A. W. , Sikkel D.
Published: March 2003

In this paper the application of bivariate Poisson heterogeneous models to budget data is studied. This study was motivated from inconsistencies that we encountered when univariate Poisson based models were applied to cumulative data sets. Application of a multivariate Poisson based model is a possible solution to this problem. In this paper we will study the feasibility of estimators based on these models.
A variety of criteria for setting test limits
Authors: Albers W. , Kallenberg W. C. M. , Arts G. R. J.
Published: March 2003

In the inspection of manufactured parts, measurements of the characteristic of interest are subject to, typically small, measurement errors. Hence, there is need for a test limit which is typically more strict than the specification limit. In this paper we will discuss various criteria on which such test limits can be based.
On Bayesian selection of the best normal population using theKullback–Leibler divergence measure
Authors: Thabane L. , Safiul Haq M.
Published: March 2003

In this paper, we use the Bayesian approach to study the problem of selecting the best population among k different populations π1, ..., πk (k≥2) relative to some standard (or control) population π0. Here, π0 is considered to be the population with the desired characteristics. The best population is defined to be the one which is closest to the ideal population π0 . The procedure uses the idea of minimizing the posterior expected value of the Kullback–Leibler (KL) divergence measure of πi from π0. The populations under consideration are assumed to be multivariate normal. An application to regression problems is also presented. Finally, a numerical example using real data set is provided to illustrate the implementation of the selection procedure.
Least squares, preliminary test and Stein‐type estimation in general vector AR(p) models
Authors: Ahmed S. E. , Basu A. K.
Published: March 2003

In the general vector autoregressive process AR(p), multivariate least square estimation (LSE)/maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) of a subset of the parameters is considered when the complementary subset is suspected to be redundant. This may be viewed as a special case of linear constraints of autoregressive parameters. We incorporate this nonsample information in the estimation process and propose preliminary test and Stein‐type estimators for the target subset of parameters. Under local alternatives their asymptotic properties are investigated and compared with those of unrestricted and restricted LSE. The dominance picture of the estimators is presented.
On a bivariate Markov process arising in the theory of single‐server retrial queues
Authors: Falin G. I. , Gómez‐Corral A.
Published: March 2003

We introduce a bivariate Markov process which can be seen as the joint process of the channel state and the number of customers in orbit of a Markovian single‐server retrial queue with state dependent intensities. We obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for the process to be regular, and necessary and sufficient conditions for ergodicity and recurrence. A product‐form formula for the stationary distribution is obtained. Besides, we study the busy period, the number of served customers and other related quantities. We show that for all the above problems there exist “equivalent” birth‐and‐death processes. However, a “uniformly equivalent” birth‐and‐death process does not exist.
The M/G/∞ Queueing Model for Optimistic Concurrency Control
Authors: Sassen S. A. E. , Van Der Wal J.
Published: March 2003

The M/G/∞ queue with Optimistic Concurrency Control (OCC) is a model for a special form of parallel transaction processing in a real‐time database. Transactions arrive according to a Poisson process and require some generally distributed execution time. One of the differences with ordinary multi‐ and infinite‐server queueing models is that under OCC the successful completion of one transaction may immediately cause the failure of one or more of the other transactions. This happens if the completing transaction has overwritten a data‐item that is in use by another transaction in progress. As soon as this failure is detected the failed transaction is restarted. So the total service time of a transaction consists of its final successful run and the time spent on unsuccessful runs.

In this study we develop an approximation for the distribution of the total service time, and test the approximation against simulation. Although in practice the number of servers is never unlimited, this study provides valuable insight in the asymptotics with respect to the number of servers. The approximation clearly demonstrates the very limited performance gain from an increase of the number of servers.
A neural network unification
Authors: Aarts E. H. L. , Ten Eikelder H. M. M.
Published: March 2003

We study the relation between the asymptotic behaviour of synchronous Boltzmann machines and synchronous Hopfield networks. More specifically, we consider the relation between the pseudo consensus function that is used in analyzing Boltzmann machines and the energy function that is used in the study of Hopfield networks. We show that for small values of the control parameter, synchronous Boltzmann machines and synchronous Hopfield networks compute global respectively local maxima of the same function.
On the generalized Poisson distribution
Authors: Tuenter H. J. H.
Published: March 2003

We use Euler's difference lemma to prove that, for θ > 0 and 0 ≤λ < 1, the function Pn defined on the non‐negative integers by

P

n
(θ, λ) = [θ(θ + nλ)n−1/n!]e−nλ−θ

defines a probability distribution, known as the Generalized Poisson Distribution.
Almost sure local limit theorems
Authors: Denker Manfred , Koch Susanne
Published: March 2003

CHUNG ERDÖS (1951) are among the first to prove some form of an almost sure local limit theorem (cf. CSÁKI et al., 1993). Here we propose a formulation of such statements and discuss related problems.
Fourier inversion and the Hausdorff distance
Authors: Van Rooij Arnoud
Published: March 2003

This paper continues research done by F.H. Ruymgaart and the author. For a function f on Rd we consider its Fourier transform Ff and the functions fM(M>0) derived from Ff by the formula fM(x)=(F(εM·Ff))(−x);, where the εM are suitable integrable functions tending to 1 pointwise as M→∞. It was shown earlier that, relative to a metric dH, analogous to the Hausdorff distance between closed sets, one has dH(fM, f)=O(M−½) for all f in a certain class. We now show that, for such f, the estimate O(M−½) is optimal if and only if f has a discontinuity point.
Statistics for the contact process
Authors: Fiocco Marta , Van Zwet Willem R.
Published: March 2003

A d‐dimensional contact process is a simplified model for the spread of an infection on the lattice Zd. At any given time t≥0, certain sites x∈Zd are infected while the remaining once are healthy. Infected sites recover at constant rate 1, while healthy sites are infected at a rate proportional to the number of infected neighboring sites. The model is parametrized by the proportionality constant λ. If λ is sufficiently small, infection dies out (subcritical process), whereas if λ is sufficiently large infection tends to be permanent (supercritical process).

In this paper we study the estimation problem for the parameter λ of the supercritical contact process starting with a single infected site at the origin. Based on an observation of this process at a single time t, we obtain an estimator for the parameter λ which is consistent and asymptotically normal as t→∞
Some problems in actuarial finance involving sums of dependent risks
Authors: Goovaerts M. J. , Kaas R.
Published: March 2003

A trend in actuarial finance is to combine technical risk with interest risk. If Yt, t= 1, 2,… denotes the time–value of money (discount factors at time t) and Xt the stochastic payments to be made at time t, the random variable of interest is often the scalar product of these two random vectors V=ΣXt Yt. The vectors X? and Y? are supposed to be independent, although in general they have dependent components. The current insurance practice based on the law of large numbers disregards the stochastic financial aspects of insurance. On the other hand, introduction of the variables Y1,Y2, … to describe the financial aspects necessitates estimation or knowledge of their distribution function.

We investigate some statistical models for problems of insurance and finance, including Risk Based Capital/Value at Risk, Asset Liability Management, the distribution of annuities, cash flow evaluations (in the framework of pension funds, embedded value of a portfolio, Asian options) and provisions for claims incurred, but not reported (IBNR).
Generalized piecewise linear histograms
Authors: Berlinet A. , Hobza T. , Vajda I.
Published: March 2003

We extend the concept of piecewise linear histogram introduced recently by Beirlant, Berlinet and Györfi. The disadvantage of that histogram is that in many models it takes on negative values with probability close to 1. We show that for a wide set of models, the extended class of estimates contains a bona fide density with probability tending to 1 as the sample size n increases to infinity. The mean integrated absolute error in the extended class of estimators decreases with the same rate n–2/5 as in the original narrower class.
On the passive existential construction
Authors: Law Paul
Published: March 2003

Presenting a cluster of facts regarding extraction, the distribution of adverbs and binding, this paper argues that the passive existential construction is not a matrix passive sentence but an existential construction in which the copula verb be takes a DP complement adjoined by a reduced relative clause, instead of a small clause complement. It accounts for the event interpretation of the construction, a reading that is shared by a matrix passive sentence, by binding of the event‐variable.
Fast mapping in early L2 lexical acquisition
Authors: Rohde Andreas , Tiefenthal Christine
Published: March 2003

Are L1 and L2 lexical acquisition fundamentally different with regard to the children's strategy of fast mapping? 27 German children aged 3 to 6 are taught a new English word. 24 hours later their comprehension of the new term is assessed. Despite the fact that a German control group scores considerably better, the results for the L2 children suggest that fast mapping or at least ‘partial mapping’ does occur. It is argued that L1 and L2 lexical acquisition are not fundamentally different but that novel English words are less salient than novel German labels. In addition, the children's L2 is limited to preschool contexts so that the exposure in this specific project is not sufficient to trigger some of the children's full attention.
Individual differences, strategic performance and achievement in second language learners of Spanish
Authors: Luja´n‐Ortega Violante , Clark‐Carter David
Published: March 2003

The study examines whether learners' individual characteristics predict their use of strategies and whether individual differences and strategy use predict achievements in formal language examinations.

Participants were post A‐Level learners of Spanish in their first year at University. They were formally assessed for their competence in the language in various tasks. They also performed oral tasks in which they encountered problems due to insufficient linguistic resources, but overcame their deficiencies by using compensatory strategies. Individual differences were assessed through standardised measures of personality/learning style and intelligence. Gender was also noted.

Hierarchical multiple regressions were conducted. They revealed that IQ, learning style, and the strategies adopted by the students each explain a substantial and significant amount of variance in assessment. In addition, although not significant, the results suggest that participants' individual differences do predict aspects of their strategy use.
The absence of Verb‐movement and the role of C: Some negative constructions in Shakespeare
Authors: Gelderen Elly van
Published: March 2003

The paper lists and discusses all occurrences of an infrequent construction in Shakespearean English, namely one where not precedes (rather than follows) the finite main verb, without the auxiliary do to support the negation. This construction has been neglected or, when it is mentioned, has been left unexplained in traditional grammar. I show that in all these constructions a CP is overtly present. Thus, rather than being an anomaly, the construction provides insight into the clause structure: when a CP is included, an IP is not always present (for the verb to move to across not) and agreement is checked through covert features attraction to C.
Formal Solutions of an Evolution Equation of Riemann Type
Authors: Fairlie D. B.
Published: March 2003

A general implicit solution to a multivariable quasilinear first‐order partial differential equation of evolution type for a scalar function is demonstrated. A formal power series solution to the Cauchy problem for this equation is shown to possess succinct Taylor coefficients.
Singularity Structure of Third‐Order Dynamical Systems. I
Authors: Sachdev P. L. , Ramanan Sharadha
Published: March 2003

A general third‐order dynamical system with polynomial right‐hand sides of finite degrees in the dependent variables is analyzed to unravel the singularity structure of its solutions about a movable singular point. To that end, the system is first transformed to a second‐order Briot–Bouquet system and a third auxiliary equation via a transformation, similar to one used earlier by R. A. Smith in 1973–1974 for a general second‐order dynamical system. This transformation imposes some constraints on the coefficients appearing in the general third‐order system. The known results for the second‐order Briot–Bouquet system are used to explicitly write out Laurent or psi‐series solutions of the general third‐order system about a movable singularity. The convergence of the relevant series solutions in a deleted neighborhood of the singularity is ensured. The theory developed here is illustrated with the help of the May–Leonard system.
Hermitean Matrix Ensembles and Orthogonal Polynomials
Authors: Chen Yang , Ismail Mourad E. H.
Published: March 2003

In this article, we investigate orthogonal polynomials associated with complex Hermitean matrix ensembles using the combination of the methods of Coulomb fluid (or potential theory), chain sequences, and Birkhoff–Trjitzinsky theory. We give a general formula for the largest eigenvalue of the N×N Jacobi matrices (which is equivalent to estimating the largest zero of a sequence of orthogonal polynomials) and the two‐level correlation function for the α ensembles (α>0) introduced previously for α>1. In the case of 0<α<1, we give a natural representation for the weight function that is a special case of the general Nevanlinna parametrization. We also discuss Hermitean matrix ensembles associated with general indeterminate moment problems.
Justification of a Perturbation Approximation of the Klein–Gordon Equation
Authors: Jiang X.‐H. , Wong R.
Published: March 2003

Consider the nonlinear wave equation

utt−γ2uxx+f(u) = 0

with the initial conditions

u(x,0) = εφ(x), ut(x,0) = εψ(x),

where f(u) is either of the form f(u)=c2u−σu2s+1, s=1, 2,…, or an odd smooth function with f′(0)>0 and |f′(u)|≤C02.The initial data ϕ(x)∈C2 and ψ(x)∈C1 are odd periodic functions that have the same period. We establish the global existence and uniqueness of the solution u(x, t; ɛ), and prove its boundedness in x∈R and t>0 for all sufficiently small ɛ>0. Furthermore, we show that the error between the solution u(x, t; ɛ) and the leading term approximation obtained by the multiple scale method is of the order ɛ3 uniformly for x∈R and 0≤t≤T/ɛ2, as long as ɛ is sufficiently small, T being an arbitrary positive number.
Combinatorics for Wavelets: The Umbral Refinement Equation
Authors: Shen Jianhong
Published: March 2003

The refinement equation is the most fundamental equation in wavelet theory.In this article, we study its combinatorial meanings and analogs. We show that the invariant properties of the Cauchy generating function are well adapted to the translation and dilation operators in the refinement equation. This leads to the discovery of analytic scaling functions and wavelets. The classical umbral calculus (or symbolic calculus) provides a powerful tool for moments analysis and defines the combinatorial analog of the ordinary refinement equation—the umbral refinement equation. By developing the existing theory of classical umbral calculus, we are able to solve the umbral refinement equation in a purely umbral manner. Many classical results in wavelet analysis are reestablished in the context of umbral calculus.
Uniform Approximations of Bernoulli and Euler Polynomials in Terms of Hyperbolic Functions
Authors: López José L. , Temme Nico M.
Published: March 2003

Bernoulli and Euler polynomials are considered for large values of the order. Convergent expansions are obtained for Bn(nz+1/2) and En(nz+1/2) in powers of n−1, and coefficients are rational functions of z and hyperbolic functions of argument 1/(2z). These expansions are uniformly valid for |z±i/2π|>1/2π and |z±i/π|1/π, respectively. For a real argument, the accuracy of these approximations is restricted to the monotonic region. The range of validity of the uniformity parameter z is enlarged, respectively, to regions of the form |z±i/2(m+1)π|>1/2(m+1)π and |z±i/(2m+1)π|>1/(2m+1)π, m=1,2,3,…, by adding certain combinations of incomplete gamma functions to these uniform expansions. In addition, the convergence of these improved expansions is stronger, and for a real argument, the accuracy of these improved approximations is also better in the oscillatory region.
The Expression of The Laplace Transform of (P±i0)λ as a K‐transform
Authors: Trione Susana Elena
Published: March 2003

In this article we obtain the Laplace transform (1.1) of the distributions (P±i0)λ (2.2) as a Kν‐transform of order ν=(n‐2)/2 (see Theorem 4, formula (3.17)).
Breaking Homoclinic Connections for a Singularly Perturbed Differential Equation and the Stokes Phenomenon
Authors: Tovbis Alexander
Published: March 2003

Behavior of the separatrix solution y(t)=−(3/2)/cosh2(t/2) (homoclinic connection) of the second order equation y″=y+y2 that undergoes the singular perturbation ɛ2y″″+y″=y+y2, where ɛ>0 is a small parameter, is considered. This equation arises in the theory of traveling water waves in the presence of surface tension. It has been demonstrated both rigorously [1, 2] and using formal asymptotic arguments [3, 4] that the above‐mentioned solution could not survive the perturbation.The latter papers were based on the Kruskal–Segur method (KS method), originally developed for the equation of crystal growth [5]. In fact, the key point of this method is the reduction of the original problem to the Stokes phenomenon of a certain parameterless “leading‐order” equation. The main purpose of this article is further development of the KS method to study the breaking of homoclinic connections. In particular: (1) a rigorous basis for the KS method in the case of the above‐mentioned perturbed problem is provided; and (2) it is demonstrated that breaking of a homoclinic connection is reducible to a monodromy problem for coalescing (as ɛ→0) regular singular points, where the Stokes phenomenon plays the role of the leading‐order approximation.
Eigenvalue Bounds for the Orr—Sommerfeld Equation and their Relevance to the Existence of Backward Wave Motion—II
Authors: Banerjee Mihir B. , Shandil R. G. , Chauhan S. S. , Sharma Daleep
Published: March 2003

Results of the previous paper with this title (M. B. Banerjee et al., Stud. Appl. Math. 103:43–50) are extended to the case of neutrally stable perturbations.
A Hybrid Method for Low Reynolds Number Flow Past an Asymmetric Cylindrical Body
Authors: Titcombe Michèle S. , Ward Michael J. , Kropinski Mary Catherine
Published: March 2003

Low Reynolds number fluid flow past a cylindrical body of arbitrary shape in an unbounded, two‐dimensional domain is a singular perturbation problem involving an infinite logarithmic expansion in the small parameter ε, representing the Reynolds number. We apply a hybrid asymptotic–numerical method to compute the drag coefficient, CD and lift coefficient CL to within all logarithmic terms. The hybrid method solution involves a matrix M, depending only on the shape of the body, which we compute using a boundary integral method. We illustrate the hybrid method results on an elliptic object and on a more complicated profile.
Importance of Tollmien's Counter Example
Authors: Banerjee Mihir B. , Shandil R. G. , Shirkot K. S. , Sharma Daleep
Published: March 2003

Efforts to construct a general theoretical basis containing the essential features of Tollmien's counter example to the sufficiency of Rayleigh's theorem on point of inflexion have resulted in the determination of a pair of upper bounds of the rate of growth of arbitrary unstable disturbances; whereas, the necessary condition of the existence of these upper bounds have provided access to a sufficient condition of stability in its simplest form in the equilibrium of homogeneous incompressible inviscid parallel shear flows that are not known as yet and go beyond the works of Rayleigh [1], Tollmien [2], Friedrichs [3], Fjortoft [4], Hoiland [5], Howard [6, 7], Hickernell [8], and Banerjee et al. [9]. An alternative proof of the result that a wide class of such flows could be made stable by bringing the boundaries sufficiently close, although the flow has a point of inflexion inside the domain of flow with the Fjortoft's criterion satisfied, which is derived by Drazin and Howard [10] from variational formulation of the problem follows as an outcome of the expressions of these upper bounds. The counter example has played the role of a forerunner for much of the development that followed in its wake after 1935, and the present succession of papers is especially undertaken to investigate the trail left behind by the counter example and, it is hoped, to arrive at a necessary and sufficient condition of stability in its simplest form, which is still missing in the literature on the subject.
Maxentropic Reconstruction of Some Probability Distributions
Authors: Gzyl Henryk
Published: March 2003

We propose a variational method to describe some families of probability distributions. The given probability distributions are to be found from the knowledge of the expected values of some variables. To do that we restate the problem as a constrained linear inverse problem, which we then proceed to solve by the method of maximum entropy on the mean.
On the Nonlinear Initial Value Problem for Vortex–Wave Interactions in Shear Flows
Authors: Hall Philip
Published: March 2003

Small‐amplitude wave systems interacting nonlinearly can produce 0(1)amplitude streamwise vortex structures through the vortex–wave interaction mechanism described, for example, by [1–3]. The key feature of the interaction is that the spanwise velocity component of a vortex is small as compared to the streamwise component so that a nonlinear wave system driving the spanwise velocity component through Reynolds stresses can provoke a 0(1) response of the vortex. The wave system can correspond to either a Rayleigh or Tollmien–Schlichting wave disturbance, but previous work on the initiation of the process has been confined to Rayleigh waves (see, for example, [5, 6]). Here, we address the nonlinear initial value problem for Tollmien–Schlichting wave–vortex interactions in channel flows. The evolution of the disturbances is accounted for using the phase equation approach of [7]. We determine the circumstances, if any, under which the finite amplitude vortex–wave equilibrium states of [4] are generated. Our discussion of the nonlinear evolution of a wave system points toward a possible mechanism for the experimentally observed breakup of three‐dimensional instabilities into shorter streamwise scales.
Random Perturbation in Games of Chance
Authors: Fuh Cheng‐Der , Yeh Yeong‐Nan
Published: March 2003

In this article, we consider a problem in games of chance. Our result shows that two losing games (A and B, in the sense of a negative expectation) can become a winning game (in the sense of a positive expectation), when the two are played in a suitable alternating order; for example, ABBABB....... By using a regrouping technique in Automata and the concept of Markov chain embedding, we give proof of this gambling result. A signal‐to‐noise ratio is also presented to explain this counterintuitive phenomenon.
Long Nonlinear Waves in Resonance with Topography
Authors: Choi Jongho , Milewski Paul A.
Published: March 2003

The evolution of periodic long surface waves over a periodic bottom topography resonant with the waves is studied. Coupled Korteweg–de Vries equations are derived and describe the evolution in terms of interaction between right‐ and left‐traveling waves. The coupling arises from the cumulative effect of wave scattering. We discuss the various conserved quantities of the system and compute solutions for the initial value problem and for the time‐periodic problem of fluid “sloshing” in a tank. Some three‐dimensional extensions are discussed.