The study of topological superconductivity has been at the forefront of condensed matter physics for the past few years. Topological superconductors are predicted to have odd parity pairing and host so called Majorana fermions, which are not only of fundamental importance, but also proposed to be building blocks for fault-tolerant quantum computing. In this dissertation, we use point contact spectroscopy to study the pairing symmetry of candidate topological superconducting materials. We study proximity induced superconductivity in the topological insulator Bi2Se3 by a superconducting niobium tip, and propose a model to explain its features in point contact spectra. We further study the nature of the superconductivity in highly doped superconducting topological insulators, including CuxBi2Se3 and Sn1-xInxTe, using both a normal metal gold tip and a superconducting niobium tip. For CuxBi2Se3, we observe a robust zero-bias conductance peak (ZBCP) in the differential conductance spectra with the gold point contact, while with the niobium point contact we find the height of the peak exhibiting unusual non-monotonic temperature dependence. We argue that both observations cannot be explained by Andreev reflection within the standard Blonder-Tinkham-Klapwijk (BTK) model, but signify unconventional superconductivity in the material. For Sn1-xInxTe samples, we observe ZBCP in the differential conductance spectra with the gold point contact, while with the niobium point contact, the temperature dependence of ZBCP is monotonic as expected from conventional theory, leaving the nature of the superconductivity of Sn1-xInxTe still an open question.

No description available.

We give natural correspondences of odd-degree characters of the symmetric groups and some of their subgroups, which can be described easily by restriction of characters, degrees and multiplicities.

We study the existence of expander graphs with a focus on odd and unique expanders. The main goal is to describe configurations of arguments for which there is no infinite family of expanders. The most imporant result is that for every graph there is a nonempty subset of at most half of its vertices, such that every other vertex is connected at least twice to the subset or not connected to the subset at all. It follows that certain classes of unique expanders cannot exist. On the other hand we present some configurations for which there are families of expanders. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

Cálculos dos espectros (E,J ) e das propriedades eletromagnéticas (U,Q,BE2,BM1) são realizados para isótopos ímpares do Ni, e isótopos ímpares com N=82, empregando o modelo de camadas (MC), a aproximação BCS usual (uma e três quasipartículas), BCS com blocking (BBCS) e BCS projetada (PBCS). São examinadas, em detalhe, a importância das correlações de cinco quasipartículas e das correções introduzidas em BCS. Os graus de liberdade coletivos do caroço são introduzidos através do acoplamento quasipartículas cluster vibrador (ACQPV), de modo que nosso formalismo possibilita tanto a inclusão de blocking como a projeção em número de partículas no cluster de uma e três quasipartículas. São realizados cálculos comparativos entre a versão com blocking (BQPCV) e com projeção (PQPCV) para os espectros e as propriedades eletromagnéticas de isótopos ímpares do Zn. A versão projetada é aplicada a isótopos do Césio, na descrição dos estados 5/2+ gerados pelo acoplamento anômalo. / We calculate nuclear spectra (E,J ) and electromagnetic properties (U,,BE2,BM1) for odd Ni isotopes and N=82 odd nuclei, using the shell model (MC), the usual BCS approximation (one and three quasiparticles ), blocking (BBCS) and projected (PBCS) BCS. The effects of five quasiparticles correlations and BCS corrections are carefully investigated. We introduce the core collective degrees of freedom by the quasiparticle- cluster- vibration coupling (ACQPV) , in such a way that our treatment makes possible to introduce both blocking and particle- number- projection in one and three quasiparticle cluster. Blocking (BQPCV) and projected (PQPCV) versions are compared for spectra and electromagnetic properties of odd Zn isotopes . Projected version is applied to Cs isotopes, in order to describe the 5/2+ states generated by anomalous coupling.

Most descriptions of the rise of the Canadian welfare state emphasize that traditional social welfare institutions were always inadequate and it took the Depression to demonstrate the need for better, more comprehensive arrangements. Beyond the enlightening influence of the Depression, the rise of current welfare state institutions is attributed to the efforts and influences of politicians, unions, social reformers, and intellectuals. This myth about the rise of the welfare state has been so widely accepted that there has been little effort expended in examining pre-welfare state social insurance arrangements. The findings of this case study of the Independent Order of Oddfellows of British Columbia (IOOFBC) sickness insurance indicate that before 1930 there was an extensive formalized system of social insurance. The study also reveals that rather than having demonstrated the inadequacies of the traditional welfare mechanisms, the severe economic conditions of the Depression devastated the existing social insurance arrangements which created the impetus for the rise of the welfare state. Up until 1930, membership in a fraternal organization, like the Independent Order of Oddfellows (IOOF), was one of the most important sources of sickness/health insurance and life insurance throughout the world. Fraternal insurers were able to provide insurance at a lower cost than commercial insurers through their non-profit motive and their use of screening and peer monitoring practices to alleviate problems of adverse selection and moral hazard. Until 1930, 13% of the population in British Columbia had sickness/health insurance coverage through fraternal membership. Critics of fraternal insurance argued that while fraternal insurers may have had low costs, they led a financially precarious existence due to their hazardous pricing practices. An analysis of IOOFBC lodges for the period 1891 to 1950 reveals that this is not a good explanation of the decline of fraternal insurance. Even with the most hazardous of pricing practices, IOOFBC lodges had almost no probability of being bankrupted by high claims. Early in lodge operations, surplus revenues were invested in assets, like the lodge hall, which generated revenues that subsidized lodge operations and benefit payments. Given that fraternal insurers were viable, why was fraternal membership not an important source of insurance coverage after the Depression? An analysis of the memberships of four IOOFBC lodges over the period 1891 to 1980 reveals that the devastation of fraternal memberships in the Depression promoted the growth of alternative (commercial and government) insurance arrangements. In the 1930s, more workers than ever before were without sickness insurance coverage. As the probability of suspension for non-payment of dues tripled, workers would have had little expectation of remaining in a fraternal membership long enough to collect sick benefits that were primarily needed after age 45. Through and after the Depression, IOOFBC lodges abandoned their insurance functions. Lodge memberships had "aged" so much between 1930 and 1945 that the increased lodge benefit liabilities made reforming the IOOFBC's beneficial systems impractical. If changes were not made to the IOOFBC subordinate lodges' dues and benefits, lodges would have had to potentially draw on their assets to meet their inflated obligations. The solution adopted was to abandon sick benefits altogether as members who had always been opposed to the insurance.

The effectiveness of parenting programs in preventing child problem behaviors have been increasingly supported in the literature. However, studies revealed contradictory findings of how children with severe problem levels benefit from the programs. In this study, I performed secondary analysis on parent-reported externalizing behaviors, ADHD and ODD symptoms of 749 children, aged 3-12 years, to evaluate the effectiveness of four different parenting programs on children with clinical and non-clinical problems. Mixed design ANOVA models revealed that the programs significantly reduced children’s externalizing behaviors, ADHD and ODD symptoms at post-test. Furthermore, the same mixed design ANOVA models and follow-up tests revealed consistent significant differences in program response for children with and without initial clinical problems on all outcomes. Cohen’s d within-group change effect sizes showed consistently large program effects for children with clinical problem levels on all outcomes. Findings indicate that group-based parenting programs are effective for children with externalizing behavior, ADHD and ODD symptoms, at least in the short term, and that children with clinical problem levels may benefit substantially.

A binary clutter is cycling if its packing and covering linear program have integral optimal solutions for all Eulerian edge capacities. We prove that the clutter of odd st- walks of a signed graph is cycling if and only if it does not contain as a minor the clutter of odd circuits of K5 nor the clutter of lines of the Fano matroid. Corollaries of this result include, of many, the characterization for weakly bipartite signed graphs, packing two- commodity paths, packing T-joins with small |T|, a new result on covering odd circuits of a signed graph, as well as a new result on covering odd circuits and odd T-joins of a signed graft.

Doctor of Philosophy / Disruptive behaviour in children and adolescents has a negative impact on their families, schools, and communities. Common treatments include medication, behaviour management, psychosocial and family programs in various combinations. These treatments have some success, but there is need for improvement in response and relapse rates following treatment. Yoga encourages participants to be actively and independently involved in their own treatment and self-management through respiratory awareness and manipulation, postures and cognitive control. Yoga practices have a positive effect on brain wave frequencies, glucose metabolism, neurotransmitter activity and the autonomic nervous system, all of which are affected in disruptive behaviour. In young people, yoga and similar mind body approaches have been shown to reduce hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattention, aggression and anxiety. However, many of the trials involving young people, took place up to three decades ago. This research needs to be revived and applied to the school environment where the problems are most evident and where inexpensive, non-intrusive and self-management strategies are needed. Aims and Design This controlled field study, using a within and between repeated measures design examined the impact of yoga on the behaviour of students aged 8-16 years, enrolled at special schools for disruptive behaviour with the New South Wales Department of Education, Australia. Of the seventy-eight participants (five female) enrolled in the study, sixteen students acted as their own controls, fifty–five participated in yoga intervention only and seven were in the control condition only. Altogether seventy-one (71) students participated in the yoga intervention and twenty-three (23) in the control condition. Methods The yoga intervention, a 13-week comprehensive program consisting of two to three 30-40 minute sessions per week, was taught by a qualified, experienced yoga teacher who was also a specialist teacher for behaviourally disordered students (PSJ). The control group experienced the standard school program provided by the special school. Control and yoga participants were pre- and post-tested on the Conners’ Teacher and Parent Rating Scales–Revised Long Version (CTRS-R: L, CRRS-R: L), the Test of Everyday Attention for Children (TEA-Ch), the Trait component of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) or the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC) and the Self Description Questionnaire I or II (SDQI &II). Behaviour observations were conducted using the Behaviour Assessment System for Children- Portable Observation Program (BASC-POP) in both the classroom (for control and yoga groups) and the yoga classes by blind independent observers and by the main researcher. School staff wrote comprehensive daily notes, in yoga classes and recorded students’ on- and off-task behaviours. Measures designed by the researchers consisted of the Feelings Faces Scale (FFS) that was completed after the last yoga class for the week by all students; a yoga survey (YS) requesting student perceptions of the benefits of yoga and Individual Assessments of Yoga Competence (IAYC) that were completed at the end of the yoga intervention by two subgroups. A Physical, Emotional and Mental States (PEMS) measure was administered prev and post-yoga sessions for a subgroup. Breathing patterns before, during and after the yoga relaxation session were recorded using Respiratory Inductive Plethysmography (RIP) bands in a subgroup and compared with three young people without disruptive behaviour. Results were analysed using the General Liner Model for all pre- and post-test measures. Mean scores were calculated for the FFS, the Yoga Survey and the IAYC. Visual analysis of the RIP results was conducted by researchers. Results Of 71 participants in the yoga group 12 (16.9%) attended from 7 to 10 classes; 36 (50.5%) attended from 11 to 20 classes and 23 (32.5%) attended from 21 to 35 classes. Total absences from the yoga classes (39.76%) were due to sickness and truancy (32.35%); lack of interest, (45.71%); work experience, home school visits or other school programs, (15.89%); and suspension from school (6.04%). Of the 33 students in the control group, 10 (32.35%) discontinued due to leaving the school (n=6) or truancy (n=4); 23 (67.65%) remained in the control group. Major findings were as follows: On the Conners’ Teacher Rating Scales Revised-: Long Version (CTRS-R: L), significant improvement over time was found for the yoga group (n=64) in the Oppositional subscale. No other significant changes were seen over time or in group by time interactions for the yoga (n=64) or the control groups (n=20). On the Conners’ Parent Rating Scales Revised-: Long Version (CRRS-R: L), significant improvements over time were seen in ten out of fifteen subscales for the control group (n=10) and deterioration in vi six subscales for the yoga intervention (n=16). Group by time interaction, favouring the control group was seen in thirteen subscales. Significant improvements on the Test of Everyday Attention for Children, (TEA-Ch) were seen on two subtests of focused attention and two subtests of sustained attention (one borderline) for the yoga group and two subtests of focused attention, two subtests of sustained attention and one of switching attention for the control group. No significant changes were observed on the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) or the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC) nor on the Self Description Questionnaire I or II SDQ I & II) but pre-test levels were within normal limits. Subgroup analysis of the CTRS-R: L. of students who participated in over 20 classes (n=14) indicated more pronounced significance on the Oppositional subscale. On the Behaviour Assessment System for Children-Portable Observation Program, (BASC-POP) significant group by time interaction reductions were observed in oppositional behaviour with a trend in hyperactive behaviours favouring the yoga group in the classroom. Over time, the yoga group’s (n=19) classroom behaviours indicated significant reductions in impulsive behaviour and borderline reductions in hyperactivity and total ADHD behaviours. Numbers assessed on this measure were reduced due to one rater proving unreliable (and whose ratings were discarded) and due to technical problems. The control group (n=16) showed no significant changes in classroom behaviours. Subgroup analysis of the BASC-POP for students who acted as their own controls (n=8) indicated significantly less ADHD behaviours in yoga classes at the end of the program compared with all other assessment times. In the yoga classes (n=21) at the beginning of the intervention ADHD behaviours were 33% of classroom behaviours compared with 25% at the end (n=20) of the intervention. Staff observations of yoga classes indicated on-task behavioural descriptors outnumbered off-task descriptors by approximately 4:1. Weekly selfvii reports on the Feelings Faces Scale (n ≤ 35), immediately after yoga each week, showed an overall positive response in mood, enjoyment of the program, and confidence in yoga practice. Self-report on the Physical, Emotional, Mental States measure, showed significant positive changes in physical, emotional and mental states from the beginning of yoga sessions to the end of sessions in a subgroup of students (n≤13). The Yoga Survey indicated benefits for 63% to 80% of the respondents (n=27) in six out of the seven items. On the Individual Assessment of Yoga Competence students (n=11) scored a mean of 79.64 % (SD 9.44). Breathing patterns, for students with disruptive behaviour (n=7), indicated greater stability during the relaxation compared with before and to a lesser degree after the relaxation but were not as stable as the breathing patterns of students without disruptive behaviour (n=3) throughout the testing period. Discussion Yoga as an intervention for students enrolled at behaviour school appears to have immediate positive effects as perceived by students immediately after sessions, in observations of behaviour during the yoga class, in assessed ability during a yoga class and in the stabilizing effects on breathing effort during relaxation. Collecting data on a regular basis appears to be a method of overcoming spasmodic attendance and early withdrawal. Few significant results were found on standardized measures. Results on these tests were affected by a number of methodological issues such as (i) fluctuations in attendance, (ii) withdrawals from the program weeks before post-program assessments, and (iii) to the intervention not being long viii and intense enough for parents and teachers to perceive significant changes in the environments in which the students had been ‘acting out’ for most of their childhood.

Doctor of Philosophy / Disruptive behaviour in children and adolescents has a negative impact on their families, schools, and communities. Common treatments include medication, behaviour management, psychosocial and family programs in various combinations. These treatments have some success, but there is need for improvement in response and relapse rates following treatment. Yoga encourages participants to be actively and independently involved in their own treatment and self-management through respiratory awareness and manipulation, postures and cognitive control. Yoga practices have a positive effect on brain wave frequencies, glucose metabolism, neurotransmitter activity and the autonomic nervous system, all of which are affected in disruptive behaviour. In young people, yoga and similar mind body approaches have been shown to reduce hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattention, aggression and anxiety. However, many of the trials involving young people, took place up to three decades ago. This research needs to be revived and applied to the school environment where the problems are most evident and where inexpensive, non-intrusive and self-management strategies are needed. Aims and Design This controlled field study, using a within and between repeated measures design examined the impact of yoga on the behaviour of students aged 8-16 years, enrolled at special schools for disruptive behaviour with the New South Wales Department of Education, Australia. Of the seventy-eight participants (five female) enrolled in the study, sixteen students acted as their own controls, fifty–five participated in yoga intervention only and seven were in the control condition only. Altogether seventy-one (71) students participated in the yoga intervention and twenty-three (23) in the control condition. Methods The yoga intervention, a 13-week comprehensive program consisting of two to three 30-40 minute sessions per week, was taught by a qualified, experienced yoga teacher who was also a specialist teacher for behaviourally disordered students (PSJ). The control group experienced the standard school program provided by the special school. Control and yoga participants were pre- and post-tested on the Conners’ Teacher and Parent Rating Scales–Revised Long Version (CTRS-R: L, CRRS-R: L), the Test of Everyday Attention for Children (TEA-Ch), the Trait component of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) or the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC) and the Self Description Questionnaire I or II (SDQI &II). Behaviour observations were conducted using the Behaviour Assessment System for Children- Portable Observation Program (BASC-POP) in both the classroom (for control and yoga groups) and the yoga classes by blind independent observers and by the main researcher. School staff wrote comprehensive daily notes, in yoga classes and recorded students’ on- and off-task behaviours. Measures designed by the researchers consisted of the Feelings Faces Scale (FFS) that was completed after the last yoga class for the week by all students; a yoga survey (YS) requesting student perceptions of the benefits of yoga and Individual Assessments of Yoga Competence (IAYC) that were completed at the end of the yoga intervention by two subgroups. A Physical, Emotional and Mental States (PEMS) measure was administered prev and post-yoga sessions for a subgroup. Breathing patterns before, during and after the yoga relaxation session were recorded using Respiratory Inductive Plethysmography (RIP) bands in a subgroup and compared with three young people without disruptive behaviour. Results were analysed using the General Liner Model for all pre- and post-test measures. Mean scores were calculated for the FFS, the Yoga Survey and the IAYC. Visual analysis of the RIP results was conducted by researchers. Results Of 71 participants in the yoga group 12 (16.9%) attended from 7 to 10 classes; 36 (50.5%) attended from 11 to 20 classes and 23 (32.5%) attended from 21 to 35 classes. Total absences from the yoga classes (39.76%) were due to sickness and truancy (32.35%); lack of interest, (45.71%); work experience, home school visits or other school programs, (15.89%); and suspension from school (6.04%). Of the 33 students in the control group, 10 (32.35%) discontinued due to leaving the school (n=6) or truancy (n=4); 23 (67.65%) remained in the control group. Major findings were as follows: On the Conners’ Teacher Rating Scales Revised-: Long Version (CTRS-R: L), significant improvement over time was found for the yoga group (n=64) in the Oppositional subscale. No other significant changes were seen over time or in group by time interactions for the yoga (n=64) or the control groups (n=20). On the Conners’ Parent Rating Scales Revised-: Long Version (CRRS-R: L), significant improvements over time were seen in ten out of fifteen subscales for the control group (n=10) and deterioration in vi six subscales for the yoga intervention (n=16). Group by time interaction, favouring the control group was seen in thirteen subscales. Significant improvements on the Test of Everyday Attention for Children, (TEA-Ch) were seen on two subtests of focused attention and two subtests of sustained attention (one borderline) for the yoga group and two subtests of focused attention, two subtests of sustained attention and one of switching attention for the control group. No significant changes were observed on the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) or the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC) nor on the Self Description Questionnaire I or II SDQ I & II) but pre-test levels were within normal limits. Subgroup analysis of the CTRS-R: L. of students who participated in over 20 classes (n=14) indicated more pronounced significance on the Oppositional subscale. On the Behaviour Assessment System for Children-Portable Observation Program, (BASC-POP) significant group by time interaction reductions were observed in oppositional behaviour with a trend in hyperactive behaviours favouring the yoga group in the classroom. Over time, the yoga group’s (n=19) classroom behaviours indicated significant reductions in impulsive behaviour and borderline reductions in hyperactivity and total ADHD behaviours. Numbers assessed on this measure were reduced due to one rater proving unreliable (and whose ratings were discarded) and due to technical problems. The control group (n=16) showed no significant changes in classroom behaviours. Subgroup analysis of the BASC-POP for students who acted as their own controls (n=8) indicated significantly less ADHD behaviours in yoga classes at the end of the program compared with all other assessment times. In the yoga classes (n=21) at the beginning of the intervention ADHD behaviours were 33% of classroom behaviours compared with 25% at the end (n=20) of the intervention. Staff observations of yoga classes indicated on-task behavioural descriptors outnumbered off-task descriptors by approximately 4:1. Weekly selfvii reports on the Feelings Faces Scale (n ≤ 35), immediately after yoga each week, showed an overall positive response in mood, enjoyment of the program, and confidence in yoga practice. Self-report on the Physical, Emotional, Mental States measure, showed significant positive changes in physical, emotional and mental states from the beginning of yoga sessions to the end of sessions in a subgroup of students (n≤13). The Yoga Survey indicated benefits for 63% to 80% of the respondents (n=27) in six out of the seven items. On the Individual Assessment of Yoga Competence students (n=11) scored a mean of 79.64 % (SD 9.44). Breathing patterns, for students with disruptive behaviour (n=7), indicated greater stability during the relaxation compared with before and to a lesser degree after the relaxation but were not as stable as the breathing patterns of students without disruptive behaviour (n=3) throughout the testing period. Discussion Yoga as an intervention for students enrolled at behaviour school appears to have immediate positive effects as perceived by students immediately after sessions, in observations of behaviour during the yoga class, in assessed ability during a yoga class and in the stabilizing effects on breathing effort during relaxation. Collecting data on a regular basis appears to be a method of overcoming spasmodic attendance and early withdrawal. Few significant results were found on standardized measures. Results on these tests were affected by a number of methodological issues such as (i) fluctuations in attendance, (ii) withdrawals from the program weeks before post-program assessments, and (iii) to the intervention not being long viii and intense enough for parents and teachers to perceive significant changes in the environments in which the students had been ‘acting out’ for most of their childhood.