Thesis--University of Wisconsin--Madison. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 174-180).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Columbia University, 1940. / Published also as Bulletin no. 7, Dept of civil engineering, Columbia university, 1940. Vita. Bibliography: p. 39.

Thesis (M.S. in civil engineering)--Washington State University. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--School of Computing and Engineering and Dept. of Geosciences. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2006. / "A dissertation in engineering and geosciences." Advisor: Anil Misra. Typescript. Vita. Title from "catalog record" of the print edition Description based on contents viewed Jan. 29, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 200-206). Online version of the print edition.

Quantum mechanics, which describes the behaviour of matter and energy on very small scales, is one of the most successful theories in the history of science. Einstein's theory of special relativity, which describes the relationship between space and time, is likewise a highly successful and widely accepted theory. And yet there is a well-documented tension between the two theories, to the extent that it is still not clear that the two can ever be reconciled. This thesis is concerned with furthering the current understanding of the relationship between quantum mechanics and special relativity. In the first part of the thesis we study the behaviour of quantum information in relativistic spacetime. The field of quantum information arose from the realisation that quantum information has a number of crucial properties that distinguish it from classical information, such as the no-cloning property, quantum contextuality, and quantum discord. More recently, it has been realised that placing quantum information under relativistic constraints leads to the emergence of further unique features which are not exhibited by either non-relativistic quantum information or relativistic classical information; as part of this ongoing research programme we develop a new relativistic quantum `paradox' which puts pressure on conventional views about the spatiotemporal persistence of quantum states over time. We then study a new set of relativistic quantum protocols which involve the distribution of entangled states over spacetime, defining one task involving the distribution of the two halves of a known entangled state, and another task involving the distribution of the two halves of an unknown entangled state. The second part of the thesis deals with relativistic quantum cryptography, a field which first began attracting serious attention when it was realised that a cryptographic task known as `bit commitment,' can be implemented with perfect security under relativistic constraints. This result was highly significant, since it is provably impossible to implement bit commitment with perfect security in a purely classical or purely quantum context, and hence bit commitment is an ideal starting point for probing the power of relativistic quantum cryptography. In this thesis we propose several new relativistic quantum bit commitment protocols which have notable advantages over previously known protocols. We then move to a related task, a generalization of zero-knowledge proving which we refer to as knowledge-concealing evidencing of knowledge of a quantum state; we prove no-go theorems concerning the possibility of implementing this task with perfect security, and then set out a relativistic protocol for the task which is asymptotically secure as the dimension of the state in question becomes large. These results have interesting foundational significance above and beyond their applications in the field of cryptography, providing a new perspective on the connections between knowledge, realism and quantum states.

This research was designed to explore the factors which influence national adult continuing education (ACE) policy-making and people's demands of national ACE policies in England and Wales. To achieve the purpose, relevant literature was reviewed and empirical data were analysed. Empirical data were collected through two-stage visits, interviews, and a questionnaire survey. People directly or indirectly involved in ACE were sampled as subjects at two stages. In total, there were 158 valid responses including the interviews and questionnaire surveys. The instruments used to collect empirical data were developed by the researcher, linked to the findings of the literature review, visits, and interviews. Methods applied to analyse the collected data included quantitative and qualitative approaches. The major findings were as follows: 1. Policy-making in the DFE basically had characteristics of a pluralist process. 2. Learner, Economic and Political factors were more influential on the DFE's ACE policy-making. 3. The Learner and Economic factors were the principal influential determinants and they had interactive impacts upon the DFE's ACE policy-making. 4. National ACE policies directly helpful for adult participation in learning were thought important by a comparatively large proportion of the sample. 5. There was a gap between people's demanded ACE policies and the DFE's ACE policies. Comparatively, people's demanded ACE policies were more learner-oriented. 6. Systems theory could provide a systematic and comprehensive analysis exploring influential factors and policy-making in the DFE but was insufficient for discussing the micro process inside. 7. The debate on the ideas of learner-oriented and market-oriented ACE is still ongoing. Even in the recent Green Paper, we can see the coexistance of different policy focuses. According to the above findings, the researcher made suggestions to the DfEE, professional organisations, and researchers who will study similar topics.

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Assessment is an integral part of teaching and learning. Assessment data is gathered to monitor progress and developmental gains in child development and learning, to guide curriculum planning and decision making, to identify special needs, and to evaluate the effectiveness of early childhood programs. Current research indicates that assessment data gathered from children who are immigrants does not always lead to the development of effective curriculum and instruction, and the data is not reliable in identifying immigrant children with special needs. This chapter discusses the possible technologies available to mitigate the threats and challenges that continue to affect the gathering of effective assessment data from young learners who are immigrants.

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