The Phraseology and Structure of Latin Building Inscriptions in Roman North Africa

This study analyses the diction of Latin building inscriptions. Despite its importance, this topic has rarely been discussed before: the most substantial contribution on the subject is a short dissertation by Klaus Gast (1965) that focuses on 100 inscriptions dating mostly from the Republican period. Marietta Horster (2001) also touched upon this theme in her thesis on imperial building inscriptions. I have collected my source material in North Africa because more Latin building inscriptions dating from the Imperial period have survived there than in any other area of the Roman Empire. By means of a thorough and independent survey, I have assembled all relevant African Latin building inscriptions datable to the Roman period (between 146 BC and AD 425), 1002 texts, into a corpus. These inscriptions are all fully edited in Appendix 1; Appendix 2 contains references to earlier editions. To facilitate search operations, both are also available in electronic form. They are downloadable from the address http://www.helsinki.fi/hum/kla/htm/jatkoopinnot.htm. Chapter one is an introduction dealing with the nature of building inscriptions as source material. Chapter two offers a statistical overview of the material. The following main section of the work falls into five chapters, each of which analyses one main part of a building inscription. An average building inscription can be divided into five parts: the starting phrase opens the inscription (a dedication to gods, for example), the subject part identifies the builder, the object part describes the constructed or repaired building, the predicate part records the building activity and the supplement part offers additional information on the project (it can specify the funding, for instance). These chapters are systematic and chronological and their purpose is to register and interpret the phrases used, to analyse reasons for their use and for their popularity among the different groups of builders. Chapter eight, which follows the main section of the work, creates a typology of building inscriptions based on their structure. It also presents the most frequently attested types of building inscriptions. The conclusion describes, on a general level, how the diction of building inscriptions developed during the period of study and how this striking development resulted from socio-economic changes that took place in Romano-African society during Antiquity. This study shows that the phraseology of building inscriptions had a clear correlation both with the type of builder and with the date of carving. Private builders tended to accentuate their participation (especially its financial side) in the project; honouring the emperor received more emphasis in the building inscriptions set up by communities; the texts produced by the army were concise. The chronological development is so clear that it enables stylistic dating. At the beginning of the imperial period the phrases were clear, concrete, formal and stereotyped but by Late Antiquity they have become vague, subjective, flexible, varied and even rhetorically or poetically coloured.

Structure informationnelle et constructions du kabyle : Etude de trois types de phrase dans le cadre de la grammaire constructionnelle

Information structure and Kabyle constructions Three sentence types in the Construction Grammar framework The study examines three Kabyle sentence types and their variants. These sentence types have been chosen because they code the same state of affairs but have different syntactic structures. The sentence types are Dislocated sentence, Cleft sentence, and Canonical sentence. I argue first that a proper description of these sentence types should include information structure and, second, that a description which takes into account information structure is possible in the Construction Grammar framework. The study thus constitutes a testing ground for Construction Grammar for its applicability to a less known language. It constitutes a testing ground notably because the differentiation between the three types of sentences cannot be done without information structure categories and, consequently, these categories must be integrated also in the grammatical description. The information structure analysis is based on the model outlined by Knud Lambrecht. In that model, information structure is considered as a component of sentence grammar that assures the pragmatically correct sentence forms. The work starts by an examination of the three sentence types and the analyses that have been done in André Martinet s functional grammar framework. This introduces the sentence types chosen as the object of study and discusses the difficulties related to their analysis. After a presentation of the state of the art, including earlier and more recent models, the principles and notions of Construction Grammar and of Lambrecht s model are introduced and explicated. The information structure analysis is presented in three chapters, each treating one of the three sentence types. The analyses are based on spoken language data and elicitation. Prosody is included in the study when a syntactic structure seems to code two different focus structures. In such cases, it is pertinent to investigate whether these are coded by prosody. The final chapter presents the constructions that have been established and the problems encountered in analysing them. It also discusses the impact of the study on the theories used and on the theory of syntax in general.

A Sketch of the Phonology and Grammar of Rajbanshi

This dissertation is a synchronic description of the phonology and grammar of two dialects of the Rajbanshi language (Eastern Indo-Aryan) as spoken in Jhapa, Nepal. I have primarily confined the analysis to the oral expression, since the emerging literary form is still in its infancy. The grammatical analysis is therefore based, for the most part, on a corpus of oral narrative text which was recorded and transcribed from three informants from north-east Jhapa. An informant, speaking a dialect from south-west Jhapa cross checked this text corpus and provided additional elicited material. I have described the phonology, morphology and syntax of the language, and also one aspect of its discourse structure. For the most part the phonology follows the basic Indo-Aryan pattern. Derivational morphology, compounding, reduplication, echo formation and onomatopoeic constructions are considered, as well as number, noun classes (their assignment and grammatical function), pronouns, and case and postpositions. In verbal morphology I cover causative stems, the copula, primary and secondary agreement, tense, aspect, mood, auxiliary constructions and non-finite forms. The term secondary agreement here refers to genitive agreement, dative-subject agreement and patient (and sometimes patient-agent) agreement. The breaking of default agreement rules has a range of pragmatic inferences. I argue that a distinction, based on formal, semantic and statistical grounds, should be made between conjunct verbs, derivational compound verbs and quasi-aspectual compound verbs. Rajbanshi has an open set of adjectives, and it additionally makes use of a restricted set of nouns which can function as adjectives. Various particles, and the emphatic and conjunctive clitics are also considered. The syntactic structures studied include: non-declarative speech acts, phrase-internal and clause-internal constituent order, negation, subordination, coordination and valence adjustment. I explain how the future, present and past tenses in Rajbanshi oral narratives do not seem to maintain a time reference, but rather to indicate a distinction between background and foreground information. I call this tense neutralisation .

Biophysical Characterization of Oxidized Phospholipids : Implications for Altered Membrane Structure and Function

The present study aims to elucidate the modifications in the structure and functionality of the phospholipid matrix of biological membranes brought about by free radical-mediated oxidative damage of its molecular constituents. To this end, the surface properties of two oxidatively modified phospholipids bearing an aldehyde or carboxyl function at the end of truncated sn-2 acyl chain were studied using a Langmuir balance. The results obtained reveal both oxidized species to have a significant impact on the structural dynamics of phospholipid monolayers, as illustrated by the progressive changes in force-area isotherms with increasing mole fraction of the oxidized lipid component. Moreover, surface potential measurements revealed considerable modifications in the electric properties of oxidized phospholipid containing monolayers during film compression, suggesting a packing state-controlled reorientation of the intramolecular electric dipoles of the lipid headgroups and acyl chains. Based on the above findings, a model describing the conformational state of oxidized phospholipid molecules in biological membranes is proposed, involving the protrusion of the acyl chains bearing the polar functional groups out from the hydrocarbon phase to the surrounding aqueous medium. Oxidative modifications alter profoundly the physicochemical properties of unsaturated phospholipids and are therefore readily anticipated to have important implications for their interactions with membrane-associating molecules. Along these lines, the carboxyl group bearing lipid was observed to bind avidly the peripheral membrane protein cytochrome c. The binding was reversed following increase in ionic strength or addition of polyanionic ATP, thus suggesting it to be driven by electrostatic interactions between cationic residues of the protein and the deprotonated lipid carboxyl exposed to the aqueous phase. The presence of aldehyde function bearing oxidized phospholipid was observed to enhance the intercalation of four antimicrobial peptides into phospholipid monolayers and liposomal bilayers. Partitioning of the peptides to monolayers was markedly attenuated by the aldehyde scavenger methoxyamine, revealing it to be mediated by the carbonyl moiety possibly through efficient hydrogen bonding or, alternatively, formation of covalent adduct in form of a Schiff base between the lipid aldehydes and primary amine groups of the peptide molecules. Lastly, both oxidized phospholipid species were observed to bind with high affinity three small membrane-partitioning therapeutic agents, viz. chlorpromazine, haloperidol, and doxorubicin. In conclusion, the results of studies conducted using biomimetic model systems support the notion that oxidative damage influences the molecular architecture as well as the bulk physicochemical properties of phospholipid membranes. Further, common polar functional groups carried by phospholipids subjected to oxidation were observed to act as molecular binding sites at the lipid-water interface. It is thus plausible that oxidized phospholipid species may elicit cellular level effects by modulating integration of various membrane-embedded and surface-associated proteins and peptides, whose conformational state, oligomerization, and functionality is known to be controlled by highly specific lipid-protein interactions and proper physical state of the membrane environment.

The structure of Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst.) stems in relation to wood properties of sawn timber

An important challenge in forest industry is to get the appropriate raw material out from the forests to the wood processing industry. Growth and stem reconstruction simulators are therefore increasingly integrated in industrial conversion simulators, for linking the properties of wooden products to the three-dimensional structure of stems and their growing conditions. Static simulators predict the wood properties from stem dimensions at the end of a growth simulation period, whereas in dynamic approaches, the structural components, e.g. branches, are incremented along with the growth processes. The dynamic approach can be applied to stem reconstruction by predicting the three-dimensional stem structure from external tree variables (i.e. age, height) as a result of growth to the current state. In this study, a dynamic growth simulator, PipeQual, and a stem reconstruction simulator, RetroSTEM, are adapted to Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst.) to predict the three-dimensional structure of stems (tapers, branchiness, wood basic density) over time such that both simulators can be integrated in a sawing simulator. The parameterisation of the PipeQual and RetroSTEM simulators for Norway spruce relied on the theoretically based description of tree structure developing in the growth process and following certain conservative structural regularities while allowing for plasticity in the crown development. The crown expressed both regularity and plasticity in its development, as the vertical foliage density peaked regularly at about 5 m from the stem apex, varying below that with tree age and dominance position (Study I). Conservative stem structure was characterized in terms of (1) the pipe ratios between foliage mass and branch and stem cross-sectional areas at crown base, (2) the allometric relationship between foliage mass and crown length, (3) mean branch length relative to crown length and (4) form coefficients in branches and stem (Study II). The pipe ratio between branch and stem cross-sectional area at crown base, and mean branch length relative to the crown length may differ in trees before and after canopy closure, but the variation should be further analysed in stands of different ages and densities with varying site fertilities and climates. The predictions of the PipeQual and RetroSTEM simulators were evaluated by comparing the simulated values to measured ones (Study III, IV). Both simulators predicted stem taper and branch diameter at the individual tree level with a small bias. RetroSTEM predictions of wood density were accurate. For focusing on even more accurate predictions of stem diameters and branchiness along the stem, both simulators should be further improved by revising the following aspects in the simulators: the relationship between foliage and stem sapwood area in the upper stem, the error source in branch sizes, the crown base development and the height growth models in RetroSTEM. In Study V, the RetroSTEM simulator was integrated in the InnoSIM sawing simulator, and according to the pilot simulations, this turned out to be an efficient tool for readily producing stand scale information about stem sizes and structure when approximating the available assortments of wood products.

Population structure of Pyrenophora teres, the causal agent of net blotch of barley

Spring barley is the most important crop in Finland based on cultivated land area. Net blotch, a disease caused by Pyrenophora teres Drech., is the most damaging disease of barley in Finland. The pressure to improve the economics and efficiency of agriculture has increased the need for more efficient plant protection methods. Development of durable host-plant resistance to net blotch is a promising possibility. However, deployment of disease resistant crops could initiate selection pressure on the pathogen (P. teres) population. The aim of this study was to understand the population biology of P. teres and to estimate the evolutionary potential of P. teres under selective pressure following deployment of resistance genes and application of fungicides. The study included mainly Finnish P. teres isolates. Population samples from Russia and Australia were also included. Using AFLP markers substantial genotypic variation in P. teres populations was identified. Differences among isolates were least within Finnish fields and significantly higher in Krasnodar, Russia. Genetic differentiation was identified among populations from northern Europe and from Australia, and between the two forms P. teres f. teres (PTT, net form of net blotch) and P. teres f. maculata (PTM, spot form of net blotch) in Australia. Differentiation among populations was also identified based on virulence between Finnish and Russian populations, and based on prochloraz (fungicide) tolerance in the Häme region in Finland. Surprisingly only PTT was recovered from Finland and Russia although both forms were earlier equally common in Finland. The reason for the shift in occurrence of forms in Finland remained uncertain. Both forms were found within several fields in Australia. Sexual reproduction of P. teres was supported by recover of both mating types in equal ratio in those areas although the prevalence of sexual mating seems to be less in Finland than in Australia. Population from Krasnodar was an exception since only one mating type was found in there. Based on the substantial high genotypic variation in Krasnodar it was suggested go represent an old P. teres population, whereas the Australian samples were suggested to represent newer populations. In conclusion, P. teres populations are differentiated at several levels. Human assistance in dispersal of P. teres on infected barley seed is obvious and decreases the differentiation among populations. This can increase the plant protection problems caused by this pathogen. P. teres is capable of sexual reproduction in several areas but the prevalence varies. Based on these findings it is apparent that P. teres has the potential to pose more serious problems in barley cultivation if plant protection is neglected. Therefore, good agricultural practices, including crop rotation and the use of healthy seed, are recommended.

Properties of intramuscular connective tissue in pork and poultry with reference to weakening of structure

The most common connective tissue research in meat science has been conducted on the properties of intramuscular connective tissue (IMCT) in connection with eating quality of meat. From the chemical and physical properties of meat, researchers have concluded that meat from animals younger than physiological maturity is the most tender. In pork and poultry, different challenges have been raised: the structure of cooked meat has weakened. In extreme cases raw porcine M. semimembranosus (SM) and in most turkey M. pectoralis superficialis (PS) can be peeled off in strips along the perimysium which surrounds the muscle fibre bundles (destructured meat), and when cooked, the slices disintegrate. Raw chicken meat is generally very soft and when cooked, it can even be mushy. The overall aim of this thesis was to study the thermal properties of IMCT in porcine SM in order to see if these properties were in association with destructured meat in pork and to characterise IMCT in poultry PS. First a 'baseline' study to characterise the thermal stability of IMCT in light coloured (SM and M. longissimus dorsi in pigs and PS in poultry) and dark coloured (M. infraspinatus in pigs and a combination of M. quadriceps femoris and M. iliotibialis lateralis in poultry) muscles was necessary. Thereafter, it was investigated whether the properties of muscle fibres differed in destructured and normal porcine muscles. Collagen content and also solubility of dark coloured muscles were higher than in light coloured muscles in pork and poultry. Collagen solubility was especially high in chicken muscles, approx. 30 %, in comparison to porcine and turkey muscles. However, collagen content and solubility were similar in destructured and normal porcine SM muscles. Thermal shrinkage of IMCT occurred at approximately 65 °C in pork and poultry. It occurred at lower temperature in light coloured muscles than in dark coloured muscles, although the difference was not always significant. The onset and peak temperatures of thermal shrinkage of IMCT were lower in destructured than in normal SM muscles, when the IMCT from SM muscles exhibiting ten lowest and ten highest ultimate pH values were investigated (onset: 59.4 °C vs. 60.7 °C, peak: 64.9 °C vs. 65.7 °C). As the destructured meat was paler than normal meat, the PSE (pale, soft, exudative) phenomenon could not be ruled out. The muscle fibre cross sectional area (CSA), the number of capillaries per muscle fibre CSA and per fibre and sarcomere length were similar in destructured and normal SM muscles. Drip loss was clearly higher in destructured than in normal SM muscles. In conclusion, collagen content and solubility and thermal shrinkage temperature vary between porcine and poultry muscles. One feature in the IMCT could not be directly associated with weakening of the meat structure. Poultry breast meat is very homogenous within the species.

Glycoalkaloid Content and Starch Structure in Solanum Species and Interspecific Somatic Potato Hybrids

When genome sections of wild Solanum species are bred into the cultivated potato (S. tuberosum L.) to obtain improved potato cultivars, the new cultivars must be evaluated for their beneficial and undesirable traits. Glycoalkaloids present in Solanum species are known for their toxic as well as for beneficial effects on mammals. On the other hand, glycoalkaloids in potato leaves provide natural protection against pests. Due to breeding, glycoalkaloid profile of the plant is affected. In addition, the starch properties in potato tubers can be affected as a result of breeding, because the crystalline properties are determined by the botanical source of the starch. Starch content and composition affect the texture of cooked and processed potatoes. In order to determine glycoalkaloid contents in Solanum species, simultaneous separation of glycoalkaloids and aglycones using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was developed. Clean-up of foliage samples was improved using a silica-based strong cation exchanger instead of octadecyl phases in solid-phase extraction. Glycoalkaloids alpha-solanine and alpha-chaconine were detected in potato tubers of cvs. Satu and Sini. The total glycoalkaloid concentration of non-peeled and immature tubers was at an acceptable level (under 20 mg/100 g of FW) in the cv. Satu, whereas concentration in cv. Sini was 23 mg/100 g FW. Solanum species (S. tuberosum, S. brevidens, S. acaule, and S. commersonii) and interspecific somatic hybrids (brd + tbr, acl + tbr, cmm + tbr) were analyzed for their glycoalkaloid contents using liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS). The concentrations in the tubers of the brd + tbr and acl + tbr hybrids remained under 20 mg/100 g FW. Glycoalkaloid concentration in the foliage of the Solanum species was between 110 mg and 890 mg/100 g FW. However, the concentration in the foliage of S. acaule was as low as 26 mg/100 g FW. The total concentrations of brd + tbr, acl + tbr, and cmm + tbr hybrid foliages were 88 mg, 180 mg, and 685 mg/100 g FW, respectively. Glycoalkaloids of both parental plants as well as new combinations of aglycones and saccharides were detected in somatic hybrids. The hybrids contained mainly spirosolanes, and glycoalkaloid structures having no 5,6-double bond in the aglycone. Based on these results, the glycoalkaloid profiles of the hybrids may represent a safer and more beneficial spectrum of glycoalkaloids than that found in currently cultivated varieties. Starch nanostructure of three different cultivars (Satu, Saturna, and Lady Rosetta), a wild species S. acaule, and interspecific somatic hybrids were examined by wide-angle and small-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS, SAXS). For the first time, the measurements were conducted on fresh potato tuber samples. Crystallinity of starch, average crystallite size, and lamellar distance were determined from the X-ray patterns. No differences in the starch nanostructure between the three different cultivars were detected. However, tuber immaturity was detected by X-ray scattering methods when large numbers of immature and mature samples were measured and the results were compared. The present study shows that no significant changes occurred in the nanostructures of starches resulting from hybridizations of potato cultivars.

The Spin-Statistics Relation and Noncommutative Quantum Field Theory

The efforts of combining quantum theory with general relativity have been great and marked by several successes. One field where progress has lately been made is the study of noncommutative quantum field theories that arise as a low energy limit in certain string theories. The idea of noncommutativity comes naturally when combining these two extremes and has profound implications on results widely accepted in traditional, commutative, theories. In this work I review the status of one of the most important connections in physics, the spin-statistics relation. The relation is deeply ingrained in our reality in that it gives us the structure for the periodic table and is of crucial importance for the stability of all matter. The dramatic effects of noncommutativity of space-time coordinates, mainly the loss of Lorentz invariance, call the spin-statistics relation into question. The spin-statistics theorem is first presented in its traditional setting, giving a clarifying proof starting from minimal requirements. Next the notion of noncommutativity is introduced and its implications studied. The discussion is essentially based on twisted Poincaré symmetry, the space-time symmetry of noncommutative quantum field theory. The controversial issue of microcausality in noncommutative quantum field theory is settled by showing for the first time that the light wedge microcausality condition is compatible with the twisted Poincaré symmetry. The spin-statistics relation is considered both from the point of view of braided statistics, and in the traditional Lagrangian formulation of Pauli, with the conclusion that Pauli's age-old theorem stands even this test so dramatic for the whole structure of space-time.

Kutsu kuuliaisuuteen : James I. Packerin liittonomistinen raamattukäsitys

This dissertation examines James I. Packer s view of the Bible as the book of God s revelation. However, this study could not be complete without discussion of his background ideas about God, man and the foundations of theology. The research method used in this dissertation is systematic analysis. I analyse key theological concepts in the data, such as inerrancy, God s word and the covenant of grace, and examine Packer s concepts primarily in the context of the reformed tradition that he represents. Although the dissertation presents the philosophical premises of Packer s thought, the focus is on an analysis of theological concepts. Packer claims to approach theological issues broadly and to reject legalism. However, he also considers Calvinist thinking to be best suited to theological work and emphasises the central role of law in his view of the Bible. My dissertation pays particular attention to the status of law in Packer s theology and especially in the covenant of grace. The dissertation shows that the fundamental theological structure of Packer s view of the Bible is based on Puritan covenant theology, which consists of the temporally successive covenant of works and covenant of grace. Covenant theology stresses the connection and friendship between God and man. Man s highest goal according to the Westminster Confession of Faith (1647) is to glorify the triune God and to rejoice in him for all eternity. After the fall of man, this friendship between God and man can only take place in the covenant of grace. For Packer, the covenant of grace encompasses not only the time of the Gospel, but also the time of the law before the Gospel. Consequently, the covenant of grace incorporates in its very essence the demand of obedience to God s law. Covenant theology forms the foundation for both his view of the Bible and his idea that a believer lives in a covenant of grace, the key aspects of which are God s commandments and man s works. Law and the Gospel are not considered fundamental opposites in the covenant of grace, unlike in justification. In the covenant of grace, man has become God s friend who obeys the law as the law of Christ in a way which differs from Luther s view of obedience to the faith . For Packer, covenant theology is a Puritan instrument to link predestination and sanctification. Works committed in obedience show that the believer belongs to the covenant of grace and will be among the saved. Although voluntary obedience to God s commandments is not a direct instrument to achieve salvation, it is a pivotal sign of predestination. God calls the predestined to salvation with an effectual calling, the reliable message of the Bible. In sanctification, God guides a believer living in the context of covenantal nomism. In that sense, the Bible is above all an instrument of law guided by reason. In man s obedience, God completes man s nature and restores the imago Dei in man.

EU Multi-level Governance in the Making - The Community Initiative LEADER+ in Finland and Germany

In order to fully understand the process of European integration it is of paramount importance to consider developments at the sub-national and local level. EU integration scholars shifted their attention to the local level only at the beginning of the 1990s with the concept of multi-level governance (MLG). While MLG is the first concept to scrutinise the position of local levels of public administration and other actors within the EU polity, I perceive it as too optimistic in the degree of influence it ascribes to local levels. Thus, learning from and combining MLG with other concepts, such as structural constructivism, helps to reveal some of the hidden aspects of EU integration and paint a more realistic picture of multi-level interaction. This thesis also answers the call for more case studies in order to conceptualise MLG further. After a critical study of theories and concepts of European integration, above all, MLG, I will analyse sub-national and local government in Finland and Germany. I show how the sub-national level and local governments are embedded in the EU s multi-level structure of governance and how, through EU integration, those levels have been empowered but also how their scope of action has partially decreased. After theoretical and institutional contextualisation, I present the results of my empirical study of the EU s Community Initiative LEADER+. LEADER stands for Liaison Entre Actions de Développement de l'Économie Rurale , and aims at improving the economic conditions in Europe s rural areas. I was interested in how different actors construct and shape EU financed rural development, especially in how local actors organised in so-called local action groups (LAGs) cooperate with other administrative units within the LEADER+ administrative chain. I also examined intra-institutional relations within those groups, in order to find out who are the most influential and powerful actors within them. Empirical data on the Finnish and German LAGs was first gathered through a survey, which was then supplemented and completed by interviewing LAG members, LAG-managers, several civil servants from Finnish and German decision-making and managing authorities and a civil servant from the EU Commission. My main argument is that in both Germany and Finland, the Community Initiative LEADER+ offered a space for multi-level interaction and local-level involvement, a space that on the one hand consists of highly motivated people actively contributing to the improvement of the quality of life and economy in Europe s countryside but which is dependent and also restricted by national administrative practices, implementation approaches and cultures on the other. In Finland, the principle of tri-partition (kolmikantaperiaatte) in organising the executive committees of LAGs is very noticeable. In comparison to Germany, for instance, the representation of public administration in those committees is much more limited due to this principle. Furthermore, the mobilisation of local residents and the bringing together of actors from the local area with different social and institutional backgrounds to become an active part of LEADER+ was more successful in Finland than in Germany. Tri-partition as applied in Finland should serve as a model for similar policies in other EU member states. EU integration changed the formal and informal inter-institutional relations linking the different levels of government. The third sector including non-governmental institutions and interest groups gained access to policy-making processes and increasingly interact with government institutions at all levels of public administration. These developments do not necessarily result in the empowering of the local level.