Educational guidance; an experimental study in the analysis and prediction of ability of high school pupils, by Truman Lee Kelley.

Published also as thesis (Ph. D.)--Columbia University, 1914.

Questions in Narratives from Oral Tradition to Literature

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-06

Indefinite determiner introducing definite referent: a special use of 'yi 'one' + classifier' in Chinese

The indefinite determiner yi 'one'+ classifier' is the most approximate to an indefinite article, like the English a, in Chinese. It serves all the functions characteristic of representative stages of grammaticalization from a numeral to a generalized indefinite determiner as elaborated in the literature. It is established in this paper that the Chinese indefinite determiner has developed a special use with definite expressions, serving as a backgrounding device marking entities as of low thematic importance and unlikely to receive subsequent mentions in ensuing discourse. 'yi+ classifier' in the special use with definite expressions displays striking similarities in terms of semantic bleaching and phonological reduction with the same determiner at the advanced stage of grammaticalization characterized by uses with generics, nonspecifics and nonreferentials. An explanation is offered in terms of an implicational relation between nonreferentiality and low thematic importance which characterize the two uses of the indefinite determiner. While providing another piece of evidence in support of the claim that semantically nonreferentials and entities of low thematic importance tend to be encoded in terms of same linguistic devices in language, findings in this paper have shown how an indefinite determiner can undergo a higher degree of grammaticalization than has been reported in the literature-it expands its scope to mark not only indefinite but also definite expressions as semantically nonreferential and/or thematically unimportant. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Expression profiling of purified mouse gonadal somatic cells during the critical time window of sex determination reveals novel candidate genes for human sexual dysgenesis syndromes

Despite the identification of SRY as the testis-determining gene in mammals, the genetic interactions controlling the earliest steps of male sex determination remain poorly understood. In particular, the molecular lesions underlying a high proportion of human XY gonadal dysgenesis, XX maleness and XX true hermaphroditism remain undiscovered. A number of screens have identified candidate genes whose expression is modulated during testis or ovary differentiation in mice, but these screens have used whole gonads, consisting of multiple cell types, or stages of gonadal development well beyond the time of sex determination. We describe here a novel reporter mouse line that expresses enhanced green fluorescent protein under the control of an Sf1 promoter fragment, marking Sertoli and granulosa cell precursors during the critical period of sex determination. These cells were purified from gonads of male and female transgenic embryos at 10.5 dpc (shortly after Sry transcription is activated) and 11.5 dpc (when Sox9 transcription begins), and their transcriptomes analysed using Affymetrix genome arrays. We identified 266 genes, including Dhh, Fgf9 and Ptgds, that were upregulated and 50 genes that were downregulated in 11.5 dpc male somatic gonad cells only, and 242 genes, including Fst, that were upregulated in 11.5 dpc female somatic gonad cells only. The majority of these genes are novel genes that lack identifiable homology, and several human orthologues were found to map to chromosomal loci implicated in disorders of sexual development. These genes represent an important resource with which to piece together the earliest steps of sex determination and gonad development, and provide new candidates for mutation searching in human sexual dysgenesis syndromes.

Operativity and criticality

A decade after his death, Manfredo Tafuri continues to occupy a pivotal position within contemporary architectural discourse both as a protagonist of the critical debates of the 1970s and as a historian who elucidated every period of architectural history from the fifteenth century to the twentieth. In addition to marking the publication of the English translation of his last work, INTERPRETING THE RENAISSANCE: PRINCES, CITIES, ARCHITECTURES, translated by Daniel Sherer (Yale University Press in association with Harvard GSD, 2006), this two-day conference took this event as an occasion for a new assessment of his critical legacies.

CRIANÇAS DESPROTEGIDAS E SEU IMAGINÁRIO A RESPEITO DE DEUS: abstração de imagens de Deus refletidas em representações gráficas.

Este trabalho é uma interpretação do imaginário a respeito de Deus, revelado por um grupo de crianças desprotegidas. Obter-se uma representação desse imaginário, tarefa difícil, foi o primeiro passo da investigação. A partir da prática do desenho, considerado como forma capaz de oferecer indicações seguras para busca de traços de personalidade, adicionada às interpretações verbais, realizadas pelas crianças; imagens foram se revelando e concretizando o desejado imaginário. A explicitação dos mecanismos de produção de sentidos das imagens fundamentou-se em dois diferentes níveis de interpretação teórica: a primeira, subsidiada por propostas psicológicas e psicanalíticas, permitiu a interpretação dos traços e cores, nos desenhos, como indicadores de sentimento. A segunda, baseada na Teologia Sistemática: a simbologia segundo Tillich, oportunizou a identificação de símbolos relacionados ao Divino, dos quais um, pela sua presença nas duas expressões: pictórica e verbal, foi considerado o símbolo, ou, a figura simbólica de Deus, manifestada pelas crianças. O desenvolvimento do trabalho abarca os seguintes tópicos: realidade contextual das crianças, a perda como uma característica marcante nas crianças, o imaginário infantil, síntese tradicional das interpretações que as crianças fazem a respeito de Deus, significações das expressões pictóricas, revelação simbólica como representação da pessoa de Deus, imaginada, experiências religiosas de fé das crianças, para com a pessoa de Deus, por elas revelada. Considerando-se que nenhuma análise é acabada, no final do trabalho encontram-se algumas perspectivas oriundas do seu interior, substituindo qualquer conclusão.(AU)

A ruína da elite de Jerusalém e Judá em Jeremias 2 - Estudo da profecia do jovem Jeremias

Esta pesquisa exegética parte do método histórico-crítico, inserido na hermenêutica latino-americana, para analisar os textos do jovem Jeremias, mais exatamente, o capítulo 2 do seu livro. Este livro, aliás, pela sua riqueza literária somada ao seu conteúdo profético, é um dos mais amados e lidos pelos cristãos e demais amantes deste tipo de literatura. E a produção de textos referentes a Jeremias na pesquisa exegética é abundante, principalmente as porções da nova aliança (Jr.30-31) e das profecias contra as nações (Jr.46-51), além do bloco 37-45. Todavia, a pesquisa a respeito dos primeiros capítulos de Jeremias, ao contrário, tem sido muito pouco valorizada. Há, ainda, muitas controvérsias sobre onde situar na história esses capítulos iniciais. Porém, alguns críticos, como, por exemplo, Bernhard Duhm, já em 1901, e Thomas Roemer, mais recentemente, consideram esses capítulos iniciais do profeta como os mais antigos de Jeremias e marcam o início da sua atuação. E já notamos que, desde este início, Jeremias tem palavras bem claras de denúncia e juízo contra Jerusalém e Judá: não há esperanças e a ruína está às portas. O profeta não deixa, pois, de nomear os responsáveis por tal situação. A nossa posição aqui nesta pesquisa é a de que Jr 2, de fato, é um texto de Jeremias e marca o início de sua atuação profética, nos anos imediatamente anteriores à reforma de Josias (622 a.C.) Seus conteúdos, apesar de suas experiências do norte e sua influência oseiânica, apontam para Jerusalém e Judá, já que o Reino do Norte desaparecera e Anatote, cidade natal de Jeremias, fora incorporada pela administração real do sul. Trabalhando com essas premissas, acreditamos que Jr 2 relê a profecia de Oséias, porém com a ênfase que é uma das características da sua própria profecia: as escolhas e as práticas das elites levarão Jerusalém e Judá às ruínas: não há saídas; certamente, castigo e destruição vêm.(AU)

A INTEGRAÇÃO ORIENTE-OCIDENTE E OS FUNDAMENTOS DO JUDÔ EDUCATIVO

Desenvolvido em 1882 por Jigoro Kano a partir de seus estudos sobre as escolas de jujutsu, o Judô Kodokan surgiu dentro do espaço escolar a partir de três pilares básicos: como método de luta (arte marcial), como método de treinamento físico (educação física), como método de treinamento mental (desenvolvimento moral e intelectual) onde o Do (caminho) é o foco principal a ser ensinado em vista de beneficiar a sociedade. Uma das principais contribuições de Kano foi a transformação de uma prática de luta marcial em um método educativo. Tal processo ocorreu num momento histórico marcado por mudanças sociais no Japão que passou a receber forte influência do mundo ocidental durante a era Meiji. Naquela época os valores, pensamentos, instituições e linguagens orientais e ocidentais circulavam e se fundiam marcando um forte sincretismo em diversos espaços sociais. Teria Jigoro Kano absorvido essas influências ao desenvolver o judô? Essa possível ligação entre o Oriente e o Ocidente, preservando parte da cultura tradicional japonesa e permitindo a influência de pensamentos e práticas ocidentais, possui extrema relevância para a atualidade uma vez que muito se fala em retornar as formulações que deram origem ao Judô. Afinal, que formulações são estas e até que ponto devemos adotá-las sem uma profunda reflexão? No transcorrer da história e, mais precisamente ao final da 2ª guerra mundial, o judô perde boa parte dos conceitos e fundamentos que fazem sua ligação com a linguagem e o pensamento oriental bem como seu significado educativo original em função da sua expansão pelo mundo como prática esportiva. Assim o estudo tem como objetivos: 1) identificar os fundamentos do judô educativo segundo a influência do processo de integração Oriente-Ocidente; 2) Analisar a relação Oriente-Ocidente durante a transformação do Judô de método educativo para prática esportiva; 3) Organizar elementos estruturantes para estabelecer os fundamentos do judô educativo contemporâneo analisando a influência da integração Oriente-Ocidente nesse processo, partindo do modelo sistêmico de pensamento de Jigoro Kano ao elaborar o Judô Kodokan reorganizando suas referências conceituais a partir da Ciência da Motricidade Humana. Trata-se de um estudo teórico, de caráter bibliográfico, que se apropria da antropologia filosófica como suporte metodológico. Os resultados da pesquisa afirmam o processo de integração Oriente-Ocidente na formulação dos conceitos educativo/filosóficos do judô além das transformações dos sistemas simbólicos da luta que apontam sua evolução antropológico-filosófica, desde a prática do Bujutsu (Arte militar sec. XVII) no Japão medieval, até as perspectivas educativas contemporâneas apoiadas na Ciência da Motricidade Humana (CMH).

Statistical mechanics analysis of LDPC coding in MIMO Gaussian channels

Using analytical methods of statistical mechanics, we analyse the typical behaviour of a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) Gaussian channel with binary inputs under low-density parity-check (LDPC) network coding and joint decoding. The saddle point equations for the replica symmetric solution are found in particular realizations of this channel, including a small and large number of transmitters and receivers. In particular, we examine the cases of a single transmitter, a single receiver and symmetric and asymmetric interference. Both dynamical and thermodynamical transitions from the ferromagnetic solution of perfect decoding to a non-ferromagnetic solution are identified for the cases considered, marking the practical and theoretical limits of the system under the current coding scheme. Numerical results are provided, showing the typical level of improvement/deterioration achieved with respect to the single transmitter/receiver result, for the various cases. © 2007 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Relating two simultaneous events in discourse: the role of on-goingness devices in L1 Tunisian Arabic, L1 French and L2 French by Tunisian learners

Our PhD study focuses on the role of aspectual marking in expressing simultaneity of events in Tunisian Arabic as a first language, French as a first language, as well as in French as a second language by Tunisian learners at different acquisitional stages. We examine how the explicit markers of on-goingness qa:’id and «en train de» in Tunisian Arabic and in French respectively are used to express this temporal relation, in competition with the simple forms, the prefixed verb form in Tunisian Arabic and the présent de l’indicatif in French. We use a complex verbal task of retelling simultaneous events sharing an interval on the time axis based on eight videos presenting two situations happening in parallel. Two types of simultaneity are exploited: perfect simultaneity (when the two situations are parallel to each other) and inclusion (one situation is framed by the second one). Our informants in French and in Tunisian Arabic have two profiles, highly educated and low educated speakers. We show that the participants’ response to the retelling task varies according to their profiles, and so does their use of the on-goingness devices in the expression of simultaneity. The differences observed between the two profile groups are explained by the degree to which the speakers have developed a habit of responding to tasks. This is a skill typically acquired during schooling. We notice overall that the use of qa:’id as well as of «en train de» is less frequent in the data than the use of the simple forms. However, qa:’id as well as «en train de» are employed to play discursive roles that go beyond the proposition level. We postulate that despite the shared features between Tunisian Arabic and French regarding marking the concept of on-goingness, namely the presence of explicit lexical, not fully grammaticalised markers competing with other non-marked forms, the way they are used in the discourse of simultaneous events shows clear differences. We explain that «en train de» plays a more contrastive role than qa:’id and its use in discourse obeys a stricter rule. In cases of the inclusion type of simultaneity, it is used to construe the ‘framing’ event that encloses the second event. In construing perfectly simultaneneous events, and when both «en train de» and présent de l’indicatif are used, the proposition with «en train de» generally precedes the proposition with présent de l’indicatif, and not the other way around. qa:id obeys, but to a less strict rule as it can be used interchangeably with the simple form regardless of the order of propositions. The contrastive analysis of French L1 and L2 reveals learners’ deviations from natives’ use of on-goingness devices. They generalise the use of «en train de» and apply different rules to the interaction of the different marked and unmarked forms in discourse. Learners do not master its role in discourse even at advanced stages of acquisition despite its possible emergence around the basic and intermediate varieties. We conclude that the native speakers’ use of «en train de» involves mastering its role at the macro-structure level. This feature, not explicitly available to learners in the input, might persistently present a challenge to L2 acquisition of the periphrasis.

Mach edges: a critical test of the nonlinear 3rd derivative model for edge-detection

Feature detection is a crucial stage of visual processing. In previous feature-marking experiments we found that peaks in the 3rd derivative of the luminance profile can signify edges where there are no 1st derivative peaks nor 2nd derivative zero-crossings (Wallis and George 'Mach edges' (the edges of Mach bands) were nicely predicted by a new nonlinear model based on 3rd derivative filtering. As a critical test of the model, we now use a new class of stimuli, formed by adding a linear luminance ramp to the blurred triangle waves used previously. The ramp has no effect on the second or higher derivatives, but the nonlinear model predicts a shift from seeing two edges to seeing only one edge as the added ramp gradient increases. In experiment 1, subjects judged whether one or two edges were visible on each trial. In experiment 2, subjects used a cursor to mark perceived edges and bars. The position and polarity of the marked edges were close to model predictions. Both experiments produced the predicted shift from two to one Mach edge, but the shift was less complete than predicted. We conclude that the model is a useful predictor of edge perception, but needs some modification.

Bars and edges: what makes a feature for human vision?

There have been two main approaches to feature detection in human and computer vision - luminance-based and energy-based. Bars and edges might arise from peaks of luminance and luminance gradient respectively, or bars and edges might be found at peaks of local energy, where local phases are aligned across spatial frequency. This basic issue of definition is important because it guides more detailed models and interpretations of early vision. Which approach better describes the perceived positions of elements in a 3-element contour-alignment task? We used the class of 1-D images defined by Morrone and Burr in which the amplitude spectrum is that of a (partially blurred) square wave and Fourier components in a given image have a common phase. Observers judged whether the centre element (eg ±458 phase) was to the left or right of the flanking pair (eg 0º phase). Lateral offset of the centre element was varied to find the point of subjective alignment from the fitted psychometric function. This point shifted systematically to the left or right according to the sign of the centre phase, increasing with the degree of blur. These shifts were well predicted by the location of luminance peaks and other derivative-based features, but not by energy peaks which (by design) predicted no shift at all. These results on contour alignment agree well with earlier ones from a more explicit feature-marking task, and strongly suggest that human vision does not use local energy peaks to locate basic first-order features. [Supported by the Wellcome Trust (ref: 056093)]

The primal sketch revisited: locating and representing edges in human vision via Gaussian-derivative filtering

Marr's work offered guidelines on how to investigate vision (the theory - algorithm - implementation distinction), as well as specific proposals on how vision is done. Many of the latter have inevitably been superseded, but the approach was inspirational and remains so. Marr saw the computational study of vision as tightly linked to psychophysics and neurophysiology, but the last twenty years have seen some weakening of that integration. Because feature detection is a key stage in early human vision, we have returned to basic questions about representation of edges at coarse and fine scales. We describe an explicit model in the spirit of the primal sketch, but tightly constrained by psychophysical data. Results from two tasks (location-marking and blur-matching) point strongly to the central role played by second-derivative operators, as proposed by Marr and Hildreth. Edge location and blur are evaluated by finding the location and scale of the Gaussian-derivative `template' that best matches the second-derivative profile (`signature') of the edge. The system is scale-invariant, and accurately predicts blur-matching data for a wide variety of 1-D and 2-D images. By finding the best-fitting scale, it implements a form of local scale selection and circumvents the knotty problem of integrating filter outputs across scales. [Supported by BBSRC and the Wellcome Trust]

Modeling geometric rules in object based models:an XML / GML approach

Most object-based approaches to Geographical Information Systems (GIS) have concentrated on the representation of geometric properties of objects in terms of fixed geometry. In our road traffic marking application domain we have a requirement to represent the static locations of the road markings but also enforce the associated regulations, which are typically geometric in nature. For example a give way line of a pedestrian crossing in the UK must be within 1100-3000 mm of the edge of the crossing pattern. In previous studies of the application of spatial rules (often called 'business logic') in GIS emphasis has been placed on the representation of topological constraints and data integrity checks. There is very little GIS literature that describes models for geometric rules, although there are some examples in the Computer Aided Design (CAD) literature. This paper introduces some of the ideas from so called variational CAD models to the GIS application domain, and extends these using a Geography Markup Language (GML) based representation. In our application we have an additional requirement; the geometric rules are often changed and vary from country to country so should be represented in a flexible manner. In this paper we describe an elegant solution to the representation of geometric rules, such as requiring lines to be offset from other objects. The method uses a feature-property model embraced in GML 3.1 and extends the possible relationships in feature collections to permit the application of parameterized geometric constraints to sub features. We show the parametric rule model we have developed and discuss the advantage of using simple parametric expressions in the rule base. We discuss the possibilities and limitations of our approach and relate our data model to GML 3.1. © 2006 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

The pragmatic motifs of the Jespersen cycle: default, activation, and the history of negation in French

The purpose of this article is to delimit the role of pragmatic specialization in the evolution of negation in French. The change in the marking of sentential negation is believed to proceed in characterized stages that would together constitute the Jespersen cycle. As a marker becomes the default expression of negation, the other markers do not necessarily fade away, and are maintained with specialized roles that include pragmatic functions. One such pragmatic function is that of activation (Dryer 1996), by which a proposition is presented as accessible to the hearer. Activation is shown to motivate the use of preverbal non that competes with 'ne' for several centuries. The claims that the emergence of postverbal pas in early French and the loss of 'ne' in contemporary spoken French are associated with activation are considered on the basis of novel data. It is concluded that pragmatic functions contribute to language change by providing marked options that may be conferred the default status in a grammatical paradigm.