Translating Lucretia: word, image and 'ethical non-indifference' in Simon de Hesdin's translation of Valerius Maximus's 'Facta et dicta memorabilia'

An analysis of how illustrations functioned as a distinctive and important aspect of the translation of Latin versions of the story of the rape and suicide of Lucretia into Middle French texts, especially the 'Faits et dits memorables' (a translation-adaptation of Valerius Maximus's 'Facta et dicta memorabilia'). The study focuses on a selection of 14th- and 15th- century illuminations, and proposes also that the early modern 'Lucretia' portrait tradition should be viewed in the context of these images.

Change detection evokes a Simon-like effect

A change detection paradigm was used to estimate the role of explicit change detection in the generation of the irrelevant spatial stimulus coding underlying the Simon effect. In one condition, no blank was interposed between two successive displays, which produced efficient change detection. In another condition, the presence of a blank frame produced a robust change blindness effect, which is crucially assumed to occur as the consequence of impaired attentional orienting to the change location. The results showed a strong Simon-like effect under conditions of efficient change detection. By contrast, no Simon-like effect was observed under conditions of change blindness, namely when attention shifting towards the change location was hampered. Experiment 2 supported this pattern by showing that a Simon-like effect could be observed when the blank was present, but only when participants detected the change by means of a cue that was informative as to change location. Overall, our findings show that a Simon-like effect can only be observed under conditions of explicit change detection, likely because a shift of attention towards the change location has occurred.

On the spectra and pseudospectra of a class of non-self-adjoint random matrices and operators

In this paper we develop and apply methods for the spectral analysis of non-selfadjoint tridiagonal infinite and finite random matrices, and for the spectral analysis of analogous deterministic matrices which are pseudo-ergodic in the sense of E. B. Davies (Commun. Math. Phys. 216 (2001), 687–704). As a major application to illustrate our methods we focus on the “hopping sign model” introduced by J. Feinberg and A. Zee (Phys. Rev. E 59 (1999), 6433–6443), in which the main objects of study are random tridiagonal matrices which have zeros on the main diagonal and random ±1’s as the other entries. We explore the relationship between spectral sets in the finite and infinite matrix cases, and between the semi-infinite and bi-infinite matrix cases, for example showing that the numerical range and p-norm ε - pseudospectra (ε > 0, p ∈ [1,∞] ) of the random finite matrices converge almost surely to their infinite matrix counterparts, and that the finite matrix spectra are contained in the infinite matrix spectrum Σ. We also propose a sequence of inclusion sets for Σ which we show is convergent to Σ, with the nth element of the sequence computable by calculating smallest singular values of (large numbers of) n×n matrices. We propose similar convergent approximations for the 2-norm ε -pseudospectra of the infinite random matrices, these approximations sandwiching the infinite matrix pseudospectra from above and below.

Efficacy of condensed tannins against larval Hymenolepis diminuta (Cestoda) in vitro and in the intermediate host Tenebrio molitor (Coleoptera) in vivo

Natural anti-parasitic compounds in plants such as condensed tannins (CT) have anthelmintic properties against a range of gastrointestinal nematodes, but for other helminths such effects are unexplored. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of CT from three different plant extracts in a model system employing the rat tapeworm, Hymenolepis diminuta, in its intermediate host, Tenebrio molitor. An in vitro study examined infectivity of H. diminuta cysticercoids (excystation success) isolated from infected beetles exposed to different concentrations of CT extracts from pine bark (PB) (Pinus sps), hazelnut pericarp (HN) (Corylus avellana) or white clover flowers (WC) (Trifolium repens), in comparison with the anthelmintic drug praziquantel (positive control). In the in vitro study, praziquantel and CT from all three plant extracts had dose-dependent inhibitory effects on cysticercoid excystation. The HN extract was most effective at inhibiting excystation, followed by PB and WC. An in vivo study was carried out on infected beetles (measured as cysticercoid establishment) fed different doses of PB, HN and praziquantel. There was a highly significant inhibitory effect of HN on cysticercoid development (p = 0.0002). Overall, CT showed a promising anti-cestodal effect against the metacestode stage of H. diminuta.