John of Worcester and the science of history

Although the ‘chronicle of chronicles’ compiled at Worcester c1095-c1140 is now firmly attributed to John of Worcester, rather than Florence, major questions remain. A central issue is that the semi-autograph manuscript of the chronicle (now Oxford, Corpus Christi College, Ms 157) underwent several alterations to its structure and contents, as codicological evidence demonstrates. These included the incorporation of important illuminations, which have been surprisingly little considered in their overall manuscript context. This article focuses on these illuminations, and will argue that their presence in this version of the chronicle makes it something even more distinctive than the learned, revisionist chronological work of Marianus Scotus upon which it was based. John of Worcester’s chosen images are linked not only to his political narrative but also to theological works and to cutting-edge science, newly translated from Arabic. The presence of such miniatures in a twelfth-century chronicle is unique, and they are central to the final form given to the Worcester chronicle by John of Worcester himself in this key manuscript. Their analysis thus brings into focus the impressive assembly of materials which the chronicle offered to readers, to shape their understanding of ongoing events.

The trilogy of John of God

Monteiro’s assertion of the almighty auteur, after the post-structuralist and post-modern experiences, which had shattered the author and his work in theory and practice, reinstates an authority aimed at organising the chaos caused by the lack of narrative. In a way, therefore, Monteiro’s output is conservative, displaying a peculiar atemporal style, which seems entirely immune to fashion. On the other hand, however, few contemporary films could be more radical than his. Authorship, in his case, means the absence of limits and total freedom of expressing his obsessive world.

John Lewis Partnership lessons in logical incrementalism and organic growth: a case study and interview with the Chairman, Mr Charlie Mayfield

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how strategy is developed and implemented in an organisation with an unusual ownership model. Partnerships are not a prevalent form of ownership but as this case demonstrates they can be extremely effective. Furthermore this case demonstrates how logical incrementalism can be used to implement major strategic decisions. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on company documentary evidence and a semi-structured interview with Mr Charlie Mayfield, Chairman of John Lewis Partnership. A chairman has a helicopter view of business whose perspectives are rarely captured by strategy researchers. This case study offers an insight into strategic thinking of a chairman and chief executive of a successful company. Research limitations/implications – The case study and interview offer a unique insight into the rationale behind strategic decisions within a successful partnership that has grown organically in a highly competitive retail market without high gearing. Originality/value – This case study sheds light on strategic moves within partnership. Furthermore, very few case studies offer insight into the thinking of a chief executive who has successfully managed a business in a turbulent environment.

And the night was kind. 'Ruskin's Ponds' book works by John Woodman

A journal article published in the Blue Notebook: Journal for artists' books. Vol 8 No 2, April 2014 exploring the work of video and book artist John Woodman and his relationship with John Ruskin's life and landscapes.

Johnson and Juvenal in John Ashbery's 'An Additional Poem' (1962)

A note on Ashbery's metaphorical and intertextual practice.

John Wikins

My essay is an analysis of the paintings of John Wilkins that contextualizes his mode of abstract painting within the semiological turn of post eighties painting.

Shakespeare: from author to audience to print, 1608-1616

This essay analyses the transmission of the texts of Shakespeare's final plays, Pericles, Coriolanus, Cymbeline, The Winter’s Tale, The Tempest, Henry VIII and The Two Noble Kinsmen, from author to censor to stage to print and argues that he had refined his writing, revision and collaborative practices.

Reforming theatre in Farnese Parma: the case of the Accademia degli Innominati (1574-1608)

The essay explores the socio-cultural role of the main academy in Parma, the Innominati (1574-1608), which flourished in the years when the Farnese dynasty was beginning to assert more forcefully its political control over the new state of Parma and Piacenza. The Innominati was from the start associated with the ruling dynasty, who must have recognized the importance of its cultural activities to strengthening their regime, particularly in the absence of a strong local university. This essay explores the institution’s contested position within the cultural landscape – as reflected also in its membership of courtiers, clergymen, and feudal aristocrats with more ambivalent relations with the Farnese. In particular, the focus falls on the theatrical activities of the group during the 1580s, a decade which saw the establishment of the Parma Index (1580) and the succession of the internationally celebrated Duke Alessandro Farnese (1587). Based on the little surviving evidence it is argued that the Academy in the 1580s became a creative hub for theatrical experimentation – through theoretical debate and composition, and possibly even performance. However, as relations between the Farnese and the local elites, especially feudal aristocrats, became more contested the Academy’s theatrical production and the public memory of this became increasingly controlled.

GRASSIUS: A Platform for Comparative Regulatory Genomics across the Grasses

Transcription factors (TFs) are major players in gene regulatory networks and interactions between TFs and their target genes furnish spatiotemporal patterns of gene expression. Establishing the architecture of regulatory networks requires gathering information on TFs, their targets in the genome, and the corresponding binding sites. We have developed GRASSIUS (Grass Regulatory Information Services) as a knowledge-based Web resource that integrates information on TFs and gene promoters across the grasses. In its initial implementation, GRASSIUS consists of two separate, yet linked, databases. GrassTFDB holds information on TFs from maize (Zea mays), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), sugarcane (Saccharum spp.), and rice (Oryza sativa). TFs are classified into families and phylogenetic relationships begin to uncover orthologous relationships among the participating species. This database also provides a centralized clearinghouse for TF synonyms in the grasses. GrassTFDB is linked to the grass TFome collection, which provides clones in recombination-based vectors corresponding to full-length open reading frames for a growing number of grass TFs. GrassPROMDB contains promoter and cis-regulatory element information for those grass species and genes for which enough data are available. The integration of GrassTFDB and GrassPROMDB will be accomplished through GrassRegNet as a first step in representing the architecture of grass regulatory networks. GRASSIUS can be accessed from www.grassius.org.