Radial basis functions: Developments and applications to planetary scale flows

Radial basis functions (RBFs) can be seen as a major generalization of pseudospectral (PS) methods, abandoning the orthogonality of the basis functions and in return obtaining much improved simplicity and geometric flexibility. Spectral accuracy becomes now easily available also when using completely unstructured node layouts, permitting local node refinements in critical areas. The first major PDE applications for which RBFs have been shown to compete successfully against the best currently available numerical approaches can be found in the geosciences. Examples that are discussed here include translating vortex roll-ups (cyclogenesis), nonlinear flows on the sphere modeled by the shallow water equations, and 3D convection in the earth’s mantle.     

A comparison of conditional and unconditional randomization tests for highly stratified designs

An unconditional randomization procedure is proposed for use in highly stratified randomized experiments where the sample size assigned to each treatment cannot be fixed in advance. This procedure is contrasted to the usual conditional randomization procedure in which sample sizes assigned within randomization units are treated as fixed and randomization units without both treatments assigned are deleted. The unconditional procedure is shown to have superior power for the populations studied.     

The Picture Test: Rationale and one validation of the method.

A procedure has been designed that capitalizes on halo variance in ratings. To test the hypothesis of affective transfer from picture material to response categories, over 300 Ss were tested with one format of the Picture Test, obtaining, indirectly, their attitudes towards 8 religious groupings. Objective scoring of responses to the religious categories was accomplished, and Ss were grouped by their stated religious affiliation. Distributions of responses to the religious categories were consistent and supportive of the test's rationale—that affective transfer from picture material to response categories can occur with the method, and that responses can be meaningfully related to known group characteristics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)