13,709 research outputs found
Commentary on the Portfolio of Compositions submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Composition
John Goodenough
Doctor of Philosophy by Composition
Durham University
Department of Music
2014
Portfolio Contents
1. Ubi Caritas 2009 - for Violin & Piano 4.36
2. String Quartet 2010 - for String Quartet 5.15
3. Echoes of Poems & Prose 2010 - for small ensemble 32.45
4. Fountains 2011 - for String Quartet 4.45
5. Stato di Cambiamento 2012 - for large ensemble 5.10
6. Triptych 2012 - for small ensemble 5.20
7. Divergenza 2013 - for large orchestra 33.12
Total time 91.03
Other musical examples (not part of the portfolio)
Sette archi spezzati 2013 - for small ensemble 5.28
This portfolio has three principal themes. The first, explored with the discussion of Ubi Caritas and the (2010) String Quartet, concerns the interpretation of harmony; that is harmony, plainly being the vertical component in music but having an inbuilt propensity for horizontal movement, including line and counterpoint. In echoes of Poems & Prose, there is a disregard for any horizontal reasoning, harmony is constrained to the point of isolation and focus fundamentally shifts to the chord as 'object'. I consider this 'objective' sense in detail, in subsequent music in this portfolio.
A second theme hinges on a discussion of 'musical material' (the term devised by Theodor Adorno); this considered alongside Samuel Beckett's description of a relationship, between 'mess and confusion' (Beckett's terms for material) and the 'form' that contains it. In Echoes of Poems & Prose, I consider material explicitly, in particular the singular sound. With Fountains and Stato di Cambiamento control of the sounds and their overall architecture become increasingly obscure, with issues around form, substantively re-defining the compositional process.
A third theme is the consideration of aspects of structure, which become of particular significance in the final pieces Triptych and Divergenza (the term 'structure' being as defined by John Cage). In Triptych, exploration is made of a confining form into which structural material grows; material that yields intensely colourful musical moments. In the final piece Divergenza, the Fibonacci sequence applies a vice-like grip on the material, but as I remove the conceptual dependence on this sequence, the music's intrinsic characteristics of rhythm and character grow to become of central importance
Cultural Replication Theory and Law
Does law itself evolve? It has been widely suggested that culturally transmitted behavioral information exhibits a Darwinian evolutionary dynamic. The argument is straightforward. Darwinian evolution has three basic elements: (i) replicative descent with (ii) variation, subject to (iii) a form of selection. Bundles of cultural information as diverse as language, religious practices, and how to bake bread pass with imperfect fidelity from generation to generation. Some of the variants created by these imperfections are passed, non-randomly, to the next generation with greater frequency.
Review: Timothy Shanahan (2014), Philosophy and Blade Runner, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. 240pp
Charge Asymmetric Cosmic Ray Signals From Dark Matter Decay
The PAMELA and Fermi measurements of the cosmic-ray electron and positron
spectra have generated much interest over the past two years, because they are
consistent with a significant component of the electron and positron fluxes
between 20 GeV and 1 TeV being produced through dark matter annihilation or
decay. However, since the measurements are also consistent with astrophysical
interpretations, the message is unclear. In this paper, we point out that dark
matter can have a more distinct signal in cosmic rays, that of a charge
asymmetry. Such charge asymmetry can result if the dark matter's abundance is
due to a relic asymmetry, allowing its decay to generate an asymmetry in
positrons and electrons. This is analogous to the baryon asymmetry, where
decaying neutrons produce electrons and not positrons. We explore benchmark
scenarios where the dark matter decays into a leptophilic charged Higgs boson
or electroweak gauge bosons. These models have observable signals in gamma rays
and neutrinos, which can be tested by Fermi and IceCube. The most powerful test
will be at AMS-02, given its ability to distinguish electron and positron
charge above 100 GeV. Specifically, an asymmetry favoring positrons typically
predicts a larger positron ratio and a harder (softer) high energy spectrum for
positrons (electrons) than charge symmetric sources. We end with a brief
discussion on how such scenarios differ from the leading astrophysical
explanations.Comment: 8 pages, 11 figures, revtex; v2, additional references adde
Magnetic interaction at an interface between manganite and other transition metal oxides
A general consideration is presented for the magnetic interaction at an
interface between a perovskite manganite and other transition metal oxides. The
latter is specified by the electron number in the level as
. Based on the molecular orbitals formed at the interface and
the generalized Hund's rule, the sign of the magnetic interaction is rather
uniquely determined. The exception is when the orbital is
stabilized in the interfacial manganite layer neighboring to a
or system. In this case, the magnetic
interaction is sensitive to the occupancy of the Mn orbital. It
is also shown that the magnetic interaction between the interfacial Mn layer
and the bulk region can be changed. Manganite-based heterostructures thus show
a rich magnetic behavior. We also present how to generalize the argument
including orbitals.Comment: 7pages, 4 figures, 1 tabl
User oriented ERTS-1 images
Photographic reproduction of ERTS-1 images are capable of displaying only a portion of the total information available from the multispectral scanner. Methods are being developed to generate ERTS-1 images oriented towards special users such as agriculturists, foresters, and hydrologists by applying image enhancement techniques and interactive statistical classification schemes. Spatial boundaries and linear features can be emphasized and delineated using simple filters. Linear and nonlinear transformations can be applied to the spectral data to emphasize certain ground information. An automatic classification scheme was developed to identify particular ground cover classes such as fallow, grain, rape seed or various vegetation covers. The scheme applies the maximum likelihood decision rule to the spectral information and classifies the ERTS-1 image on a pixel by pixel basis. Preliminary results indicate that the classifier has limited success in distinguishing crops, but is well adapted for identifying different types of vegetation
An extension of the Dewey decimal system of classification applied to the engineering industries
A ruck, a ramp and imbricate stack, but no culmination β the Dundonnell sector of the Caledonian Moine Thrust Belt, Northwest Highlands of Scotland [abstract only]
- β¦